Turns out I was wrong; Red Bull have already switched to their usual colours.
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I hate redbull just for that.
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Live Timing video feed is live eventaully:
Is “unlisted” so not sure embedding will work. Direct link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dV9TMBlAdm0
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Video unavailable… But clicking on the link does work.
Here is Ferrari’s new matt paintjob in the light of day.
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You can obviously read absolutely stuff-all into this, but Sainz in the McLaren has the highest top speed in all three sectors currently.
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Yeah, that’s the problem. Can he actually do this once everyone has dialled their cars in for 60+ laps back to back (free practice, qualifying and the actual race) without catching fire or simply stopping
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Pretty cool “Visor Cam” view of Danny Ric’s first installation lap in the Renault this morning Actually from the team’s filming day session in Barcelona yesterday:
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I thought the cars were supposed to be 1.5-odd seconds slower this year…
Top time from the full 1st Test session last year was Hamilton’s 1:19.333, Vettel was 2nd fastest at 1:19.673. Seb has just clocked a 1:18.425 on his first morning in the car. Admittedly they did get down to the low 1:17s by the end of the 2nd test week last year, but still… He has also run almost 50 laps already, so they’re not messing about it seems.
After the first 3 hours of testing:
- Sebastian Vettel, Ferrari, 1:18.425, 46 laps
- Max Verstappen, Red Bull, 1:20.174, 35 laps
- Valtteri Bottas, Mercedes, 1:20.285, 41 laps
- Sergio Perez, Racing Point, 1:20.652, 12 laps
- Kimi Raikkonen, Alfa Romeo, 1:20.945, 24 laps
- Carlos Sainz, McLaren, 1:21.230, 34 laps
- Romain Grosjean, Haas, 1:21.500, 12 laps
- Nico Hulkenberg, Renault, 1:21.633, 41 laps
- Daniil Kvyat, Toro Rosso, 1:22.985, 12 laps
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Indeed, they don’t seem any slower at this point… Question is whether following another car is any easier, which was the point of these changes to begin with.
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Vettel down to a 1:18:161 now. The 17’s are already looming.
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Lap count and timing info for the first morning. Most teams are doing plenty of laps, which is a positive sign.
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Williams will apparently now only be running on Wednesday…
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Was just gonna post it.
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Plenty of drivers and teams have hit 100-plus laps. It’s rare to see such a trouble-free first day.
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Here’s how things finished up on day one:
1 Vettel (Ferrari), 1m18.161s (169 laps)
2 Sainz (McLaren), 1m18.558s (119)
3 Grosjean (Haas), 1m19.159s (65)
4 Verstappen (Red Bull), 1m19.426s (128)
5 Raikkonen (Alfa Romeo), 1m19.462s (114)
6 Kvyat (Toro Rosso), 1m19.464s (77)
7 Perez (Racing Point), 1m19.944s (30)
8 Bottas (Mercedes), 1m20.127s (69)
9 Hamilton (Mercedes, 1m20.135s (81)
10 Hulkenberg (Renault), 1m20.980s (65)
11 Ricciardo (Renault), 1m20.983s (44)
Ferrari - 169 laps
Mercedes - 150 laps
Red Bull - 128 laps
McLaren - 119 laps
Alfa Romeo - 114 laps
Renault - 109 laps
Toro Rosso - 77 laps
Racing Point - 30 laps
Williams - 0 laps
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And one last post for today:
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Very positive day for most teams. As a McLaren fan, 120 laps and second fastest overall is better than I could have imagined. Let’s hope the good form continues.
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Test Day 2 dawns. Here’s a quick summary of Day 1 from F1TV:
Day 2 may bring more focused aero running I think. Expect lots of pitot racks and flow-vis paint.
Yesterday’s 100+ lap runs may also feature again today as teams focus on determining engine reliability and life. With only 3 engine and power units available penalty free this season, and 21 races to get through, the longevity of those components is going to become crucial to success.
Another day without a Williams car on track is a huge worry. They are such an iconic part of F1 history, it’s really sad to see them struggling so much. I know most of their problems are money based, and I wonder if they’re still going to be sort of “forced” to give up crucial driver seat time to moneybags Latifi when they do eventually get to Spain?
To keep an eye on today has to be the flood of rookies, returnees, and young drivers in new teams that should be taking to the track for the first time. Leclerc, Albon, Giovinazzi, Stroll, Gasly and Norris are all on the schedule to drive today. Personally, I’m keen to see how young Charles gets on in the Ferrari - I still think he’s going to be a World Champion soon enough.
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