Pirelli Tests 2018 – Abu Dhabi: Vettel the fastest, Kubica convincing
Formula 1 bid farewell in 2017 on the Abu Dhabi track during private tests organized by Pirelli. The two Ferraris of Sebastian Vettel and Kimi Räikkönen were the fastest, but all eyes turned to the returning Robert Kubica, who was convincing at the wheel of a Williams.
The final laps for the 2017 single-seaters took place over the past two days on the Abu Dhabi track. Several regular drivers, as well as some young talents, tested themselves against the clock with the new specifications of the Pirelli tires that will debut next season.
Tuesday morning was marked by Robert Kubica taking to the track at the wheel of a Williams with a cockpit somewhat modified to allow better mobility of the Pole’s right arm. The native of Krakow impressed both the observers and the team by completing around a hundred laps during the two half-days of testing allocated to him.
If these days were to be decisive in Williams’ decision to entrust a seat to Kubica, it therefore seems increasingly likely to see the Pole return to competition in 2018 alongside Lance Stroll.
Robert takes to the track! #abudhabitest #f1 pic.twitter.com/PY5x8Sop17
— WILLIAMS RACING (@WilliamsRacing) 28 novembre 2017
Note that the first day, this Tuesday, was marked by Fernando Alonso’s off-track excursion in his McLaren early in the morning, and the best time was recorded by Kimi Räikkönen’s Ferrari with a time of 1:37.768, equipped with the ultra-soft pink Hyper tires, which is one of the new compounds offered by Pirelli.
Today, it was Sebastian Vettel’s other Ferrari that proved to be the fastest, also on the Hyper softs, with a time of 1:37.551 ahead of Valtteri Bottas’ Mercedes and Max Verstappen’s Red Bull, thus respecting the competitive hierarchy of this 2017 season.
Lando Norris at McLaren, Charles Leclerc at Sauber, and Sean Gelael at Toro Rosso all had the opportunity to drive during these tests, with the Monegasque expected to be confirmed in the Swiss team in the coming days.
The Williams team also took advantage of this last day to test Sergey Sirotkin, who is a contender for the still open seat in 2018 within the British team. The Russian completed 86 laps and ranked 10th on the timesheet, nearly half a second behind Robert Kubica but on soft tires.
The combined standings of the two days of testing:
#AbuDhabiTest completed. Fastest time set by #Seb5 and @ScuderiaFerrari with new #Hypersoft. #Fit4F1
More #F1Testing info https://t.co/OeMIw5vLm8 pic.twitter.com/xxcBKiyJA4— Pirelli Motorsport (@pirellisport) 29 novembre 2017
