Bahrain Test 1 – Day 3: Hamilton and Mercedes Lead, Red Bull and Lotus Still Struggle

Once again during this third day of testing, Mercedes engines took the lead in the rankings. The top three are indeed made up of German engines, with only Esteban Gutierrez and his Ferrari-powered Sauber managing to avoid a quartet.

On the drivers and single-seaters side, it is Lewis Hamilton who has gained a clear advantage over everyone. The Mercedes driver improved the best mark of this session to record a time of 1:34.263. This is faster than Kevin Magnussen’s time on the second day and also faster than Jenson Button’s time of 1:34.976.

Behind these two drivers, a chasm. The third is none other than Felipe Massa, who took to the track in the afternoon, clocking a 1:37:066. His teammate, Valtteri Bottas, completed 55 laps, but none were timed, as his program focused on pit stops for the majority of the Brazilian’s afternoon.

Behind the Williams, we find the first non-Mercedes engine: Esteban Gutierrez in the Sauber with a 1:37.180. But the last Mercedes-powered driver is very close, Sergio Perez and his Force India are just behind at 1:37.367.

One of the drivers everyone was waiting for is Kimi Räikkönen. However, he was unable to complete a significant number of laps after being hindered by a telemetry problem that kept him in the pits for many hours. The Finn recorded 1:37.476.

Behind him, the Renault-powered quartet is clustered together. Kvyat is 7th with a 1:38.974 at the end of the session. Maldonado, making his debut in the E22, follows with a 1:39.642 after causing two red flags with no real severity (due to a gearbox issue, among others).

A slightly more unfortunate session for Daniel Ricciardo, who had to step out with more than an hour to go and without breaking the 1:40 mark. Indeed, the new Red Bull driver recorded a 1:40.781, as his RB10 encountered a new problem.

Second to last, Marcus Ericsson on his Caterham. But although his time of 1:42.130 is not very flattering, the new Caterham driver completed no less than 98 laps, a significant number for a team powered by Renault these days. The standings end with Max Chilton, who only completed 4 laps early in the morning, as his Marussia came to a halt in a puff of smoke. Apparently, the Ferrari engine encountered some difficulties.

You can follow the last day of this private testing session tomorrow morning on Motorsinside.com from 7 AM to 3 PM.

Bahrain Classification 1 – Day 3 – Friday, February 21, 2014: