Barcelona Pre-Season Test – Day 6: Bottas sets new record, Räikkönen in the gravel

Mercedes and Valtteri Bottas took the spotlight once again this Tuesday by improving their own record from last week by over four-tenths, clocking in at 1:19.310 on super-soft tires and completing 70 laps in the morning before handing over to Lewis Hamilton. As lap times improve, drivers are slowly approaching the track’s ultimate record. With this new time, the former Williams driver has already beaten the 2010 pole position record held by Mark Webber by half a second. Will Felipe Massa’s track record from 2008 of 1:18.339 last much longer?

VIDEO 🎥 Go onboard with @ValtteriBottas for the quickest lap of winter so far> https://t.co/y3sIwqyHCN#F1Testing #F1 pic.twitter.com/owMvrBT8sB

— Formula 1 (@F1) 8 mars /f1/actualite/21753-relations-tres-tendues-entre-mclaren-et-honda.html

The Brazilian, moreover, went under the one minute twenty mark again by securing the second fastest time of the day in 1:19.420 on the ultra-soft tires. His young teammate Lance Stroll took over in the afternoon and experienced a trouble-free half-day of testing, completing 59 laps and securing the 5th fastest time. In sum, two consecutive encouraging and diligent days for the Grove team, which completed the highest number of laps overall along with Mercedes: 122 and 149 laps respectively.

Regarding the rest of the field, they are beyond the one minute twenty mark from a timing perspective. Kimi Räikkönen holds the third-fastest time with 1:20.406 on soft tires. However, he notably drew attention with his off-track excursion at turn 3 this afternoon, having to abandon his car in the gravel and prematurely ending the Maranello team’s testing day. A tire issue is suspected.

In other highlights of this second day, Max Verstappen, who was at the wheel for Red Bull, set the fourth mark of the day, just a whisker behind Räikkönen. However, an engine block change on Tuesday and a red flag at the end of the session punctuated the day for the Austrian team. It is worth noting that the Dutchman claimed the award for the most laps completed today: 102. It seems that the Renault engine is still experiencing issues after Jolyon Palmer’s engine change yesterday.

In this regard, the Enstone team had a relatively quiet morning with Nico Hülkenberg completing 61 laps and occupying the 7th position, before yielding his place to Jolyon Palmer late in the afternoon. The Briton only completed 29 laps. The reasons for this lackluster afternoon on the part of the Franco-British team remain to be seen.

Similarly, on the McLaren side – whose relations are starting to fray with its engine supplier Honda – the test days come and go looking the same. Fernando Alonso’s car spent most of its time stationary in the garage, completing only 46 laps.

For Haas, Force India, and Toro Rosso, the day went smoothly without major issues. All completed an average of 100 laps, with times beyond one minute twenty-one. Even though these times should be taken with caution, it should be noted—aside from McLaren’s difficulties—that the Sauber team is still lingering at the back of the field with times beyond one minute twenty-three. In fact, Marcus Ericsson ended this second day of testing on track by causing a red flag.

TEST 2, DAY 2 = DONE

Scorching laps for BOT and MAS 👀 😮

PER and VES pass 1️⃣0️⃣0️⃣ 👏#F1Testing #F1 pic.twitter.com/AEMYkdPWzo

— Formula 1 (@F1) 8 mars /f1/actualite/21753-relations-tres-tendues-entre-mclaren-et-honda.html