Vettel and Ferrari at the top of the grid but « it’s only Friday »
Ferrari's drivers started their Mexican weekend on a much more positive note than last week in Austin. Out in front in both practice sessions, and even having the luxury of beating Lewis Hamilton - by 4 thousandths - in super-tendres in FP2 with Sebastian Vettel, it was a day with a glimmer of hope for the men from Maranello.
After the setbacks on the track and in the pits for the prancing horse firm’s drivers, this Mexican race begins under better auspices and maybe even with higher ambitions by regularly outpacing the Red Bulls.
Sebastian Vettel – 2nd and 1st times – seemed in good shape this Friday despite the difficult morning temperature conditions, but very much at ease in the afternoon. As proof, he set the best time in FP2 ahead of Lewis Hamilton and Nico Rosberg. The German was satisfied with the pace and behavior of his car both overall and on a single lap.
#Seb5: ‘The car seems to work, not only from the result but as an overall feeling’ #MexicoGP #redseason pic.twitter.com/hTD758uB9u
— Scuderia Ferrari (@ScuderiaFerrari) October 28, 2016
He congratulated himself on having completed his entire schedule for the day and even on being ahead: « We were ahead of our schedule, which is not always the case. »
However, the four-time world champion remains realistic and grounded despite his good results of the day: « It is certain that it’s nice to be first at the top of the timing charts, but it doesn’t mean much on Friday. If we are in the same position tomorrow afternoon, then we can be happy. »
True to his habit, he didn’t forget to mention a few words about the traffic on the track: « I felt like I was in Mexico City, not on a race track with all the traffic. I think everyone had the same problems trying to put on the soft tires at the end. I didn’t manage to have several consecutive laps without traffic (…). »
He concluded his remarks for the day on a more optimistic note: « Overall, the pace was good, which is the most important thing. I think we can still improve for tomorrow. »
On the other side of the garage, with Kimi Räikkönen – 3rd and 4th times – the events were marked by some understeer issues: « Overall it was a good day, but it’s still too early to know where we stand and how it’s going to go. I had understeer problems, mainly this afternoon. With the new tires, it was a bit tricky, but it’s only the first day of testing. Now we need to focus and work on some parameters as we always do after Friday’s session. Hopefully tomorrow, with new tires, we can push a bit more. »
Still winless this season, the Ferrari drivers seem to be on a better trajectory this Friday, but they remain cautious about the rest of the weekend. If their pace and performance are confirmed, they could challenge the Mercedes, which would be pleasing for the end-of-season spectacle and the morale of the Italian team.
