Winter Testing Barcelona – Day 1: Vettel ahead of Sainz and Grosjean

It’s back to school for Formula 1! After the flurry of new car presentations, the teams are hard at work on the Barcelona track to test the innovations and give a first glimpse of the hierarchy for the upcoming season.

But before hitting the Spanish asphalt, the teams that only revealed their liveries last week are in presentation mode showing off their designs in front of their garages, as is the case for the Haas team.

Translate:

First duty of the day – Show off the VF-19 at @Circuitcat_eng! 📷✅ pic.twitter.com/mEowfSMygw

— Haas F1 Team (@HaasF1Team) February 18, /f1/actualite/23128-officiel-alfa-romeo-racing-presente-la-c38-a-barcelone.html

It is also with a hint of disappointment among the fans that Red Bull presents itself for its tests with a classic livery, identical to last year’s and far from the one used to unveil the RB15. The team’s latest creation is entrusted today to Max Verstappen before Pierre Gasly, the new team member, takes over tomorrow.

Matte on track 👌 @Max33Verstappen and his #RB15 enjoying the Barcelona sunshine ☀️ #givesyouwings pic.twitter.com/OIMU2yqYaB

— Red Bull Racing (@redbullracing) February 18, /f1/actualite/23128-officiel-alfa-romeo-racing-presente-la-c38-a-barcelone.html

Alfa Romeo Racing was the last team to unveil its colors and car. It took advantage of this first day in Barcelona to present the C38 to the general public. Kimi Räikkönen is tasked with running the new Swiss machinery and, to say the least, the Finn quickly made a mark. Just a few kilometers in and already an off-track excursion for the former Ferrari driver!

Oh no, Kimi! 😮

🔊 #F1Testing pic.twitter.com/pcRpsMuQNX

— Formula 1 (@F1) 18 février /f1/actualite/23128-officiel-alfa-romeo-racing-presente-la-c38-a-barcelone.html

Within the other teams, Mercedes chose to share the day between Valtteri Bottas, who will drive this morning, and Lewis Hamilton in the afternoon. The same goes for Renault, where Nico Hülkenberg opens the session before handing over to Daniel Ricciardo. Racing Point F1 entrusts its new car to Sergio Pérez, McLaren to Carlos Sainz, Toro Rosso to the returning Daniil Kvyat, and Ferrari to Sebastian Vettel. Note that Williams, too late in the design of its car, will not take part in this first day.

During the morning, it was Sebastian Vettel in his Ferrari SF90 who was the fastest and most diligent on track. With a total of 72 laps, the Scuderia’s single-seater has already proven its reliability. Even though the German spun at the beginning of the day, he still set the best time before the lunch break with a 1:18.161.

A red flag was also waved in the middle of the morning following Romain Grosjean’s car coming to a stop on the track. The French driver’s Haas experienced a sudden engine cut-off, preventing him from going any further. Despite this setback, Grosjean was quite satisfied with the balance of the VF19.

Fuel pressure loss – we’ve been brought back to the garage! Work to do… #F1Testing @Circuitcat_eng pic.twitter.com/J8s6TWDw0l— Haas F1 Team (@HaasF1Team) 18 février /f1/actualite/23128-officiel-alfa-romeo-racing-presente-la-c38-a-barcelone.html

The afternoon starts poorly for the Williams team, even though they are not on track for this first day. Indeed, Claire Williams states in a press release that the new FW42 will not be able to take to the track by Wednesday, at the earliest. This adds further challenges for the British team, which would like to present a different face at the start of the year.

But the real attraction of this Spanish afternoon is the return to the track of Lewis Hamilton. The five-time world champion took the place of Valtteri Bottas, who, this morning, clocked the third fastest time with 1:20.127 and an more than acceptable total of 69 laps without encountering any problems.

Reliability, however, plays tricks on other teams, notably McLaren, who see Carlos Sainz’s car come to a halt at the exit of the pit lane shortly after 3 p.m., causing a new red flag.

On the other hand, if this morning Max Verstappen experienced some difficulties before taking to the track, it appears that the new partnership between Red Bull and Honda is working quite well. In the afternoon, the Dutchman completed numerous laps without encountering any major issues, both in terms of performance and reliability. It is quite different from the Japanese engine manufacturer’s debut with McLaren four years earlier…

The times go wild at the end of the day. Romain Grosjean, unhappy with his Haas this morning, manages to secure an excellent second place, close to Sebastian Vettel’s Ferrari, which remains untouchable at the top, having improved his morning time to 1.18.161.

But it is ultimately Carlos Sainz who makes the good deal in the last minutes by securing the runner-up position, less than four tenths behind Vettel.

The two men are therefore ahead of Grosjean, Max Verstappen’s Red Bull, and Kimi Räikkönen in the Alfa Romeo.

The two Mercedes of Valtteri Bottas and Lewis Hamilton are only 8th and 9th ahead of the two Renaults of Nico Hülkenberg and Daniel Ricciardo, who bring up the rear.

Here’s the final leaderboard after the opening day of pre-season testing in Barcelona ⏱️🏎️

Vettel = 👑

Time for @McLarenF1 fans to start getting a little bit excited? 👀#F1 #F1Testing pic.twitter.com/jmsxqFmOq0

— Formula 1 (@F1) 18 février /f1/actualite/23128-officiel-alfa-romeo-racing-presente-la-c38-a-barcelone.html