A more unstable car, but no danger for Ferrari
First day in the shadow of Mercedes for the Scuderia in Melbourne. Despite a rather average feeling, the Reds are reassured that the best is yet to come.
The high stakes of the Private Tests were watched closely during the first laps. Pushed beyond a second off the pace in FP1, the two Ferrari drivers came back to a more acceptable distance from the front during the second session.
Vettel: FP1 → 6th, 1:25.464 (10 laps) / FP2 → 2nd, 1:24.167 (35 laps)
The German driver ended the day as Lewis Hamilton’s closest rival, just over five-tenths behind (+0.547 exactly). A tad disappointed, the four-time world champion remained positive: « We had a mixed day. The morning was not as good as expected. We had a better afternoon. The balance of the car is not yet where we want it to be. I’m sure we’ll take a step forward by tomorrow! »
Responding to journalists’ questions about the representativeness of the gaps, Vettel was keen to downplay the margin conceded against the best Mercedes: « I hope not! In any case, today’s ranking is hardly important. »
In this perspective, the driver bearing the number 5 rebuffed journalists’ suggestions about the true level of the car. The uncertainty remains significant: « People outside make their own judgment of our level, no matter what we tell them. Obviously, we were very happy during pre-season testing, but the times didn’t mean much either! What matters is the work done here, we are realistic about that. »
However, fans of the Prancing Horse can rest assured: the SF70H has hardly changed since the Barcelona tests. The prospects for the rest of the weekend remain interesting: « I didn’t feel as good with my car as I had hoped. But I am confident: we can do something this weekend! »
Räikkönen: FP1 → 5th, 1:25.372 (16 laps) / FP2 → 4th, 1:24.525 (30 laps)
In front of his teammate in FP1, the 2007 world champion was slightly more reserved in the late afternoon. Kimi Räikkönen still managed to gain two-tenths on Lewis Hamilton, who was leading at the end of the two sessions. But “Iceman” doesn’t care much about this improvement. The image of this day isn’t very realistic regarding the course of events: “I really wasn’t expecting much from this day,” he admitted about his position. “It’s as if we’re still in pre-season testing. We don’t have much idea of what the others are doing. It could have been simpler today; we had some minor issues here and there, but in general, we’re still happy. It’s only Friday. I think the hierarchy isn’t 100% clear. It’s a special circuit: it’s very difficult to compare with pre-season tests. We know the areas to improve, we know how to do it. It was a perfectly normal testing day!”
Moral? It will thus be necessary to be present at the first Qualifications of the season to get a true glimpse of the forces at play…
About to go out #FP2 #Seb5 pic.twitter.com/HyFyvgK1c5
— Scuderia Ferrari (@ScuderiaFerrari) 24 mars 2017
