Ferrari: Räikkönen and Vettel can still make progress on Saturday
Despite brake issues on Sebastian Vettel's single-seater, the Ferraris have shown to be fast, particularly on long stints. The Scuderia can still improve according to Kimi Räikkönen, who posted the 1st and 3rd fastest times this Friday.
Kimi Räikkönen was the fastest of the Scuderia drivers this Friday. The Finnish driver achieved the best time during the first session – admittedly less representative – and was 5 tenths behind the Mercedes in the second. However, the 2007 world champion did not achieve the perfect lap and has not yet found the ideal settings for his car.
He therefore thinks he can still make progress in qualifying on Saturday: « I think we are not as good as expected. During the second session, it was a bit difficult with the settings. (…) Having a qualification without any issues will make our life easier in the race. I don’t know if we can really challenge the Mercedes, tomorrow is another day, conditions can change, and that plays a big part… so we just have to wait and see what will happen. »
For his part, Sebastian Vettel had a scare during the second session. Coming out of the pits, the German experienced a brake problem that caused him to collide with Sergio Perez’s car (neither driver will be penalized on the grid following this incident, as we later learned from the FIA). He recounts this collision: « I came out of the garage and encountered a problem. I pressed the brake pedal, but there was an impact immediately after, and I couldn’t brake properly. »
The four-time world champion was still able to complete 26 laps, finishing in fourth place on the timesheet during the second session, just a tenth behind his teammate. But the German can do better in qualifying: « My fast lap wasn’t perfect, but everything in the car worked well ».
Can Sebastian Vettel compete with the Mercedes, like at the Malaysian Grand Prix? « It’s difficult to say if we’ve gotten closer to the Mercedes, everyone seems to have gotten closer to them… I’m sure they haven’t shown everything yet ».
Ferrari has decided to use a new engine for this race in Sakhir, to maximize their top speed on the circuit’s long straights. This decision could greatly assist the Scuderia in qualifying, against the Mercedes engines which have a famous magic button, providing an extra boost of power during fast laps.
