The completion of Friday’s running in Barcelona marks the halfway stage in the 2015 F1 winter testing programme. We’re six days down and have six left to go in Barcelona, and the teams are now pushing hard in the run up to Melbourne.
Friday was another dry and sunny day, giving the teams ideal conditions in which to test. Red Bull took full advantage of this as Daniel Ricciardo bounced back from an early stoppage to finish at the top of the timesheets ahead of Kimi Raikkonen and Felipe Massa.
Once again though, the smart money is on Mercedes after both Lewis Hamilton and Nico Rosberg put in some good laps without using the soft tire like their rivals. The team opted to split the running between its drivers in order to keep Rosberg fresh for his next outing on Sunday.
Compared to Thursday, Friday was a far less eventful day in spite of three red flag periods. Ricciardo, Marcus Ericsson and Carlos Sainz Jr. all warranted a stoppage, but none of the issues turned out to be too critical.
Rounding up all of the news and action in Barcelona today, here’s the latest Paddock Notebook.
SESSION REPORT
NEWS FROM THE PADDOCK
- Nico Rosberg announced today that his wife Vivian is pregnant, with a baby girl due in August.
- Marussia’s hopes of a comeback were dealt a world of good yesterday when it was confirmed that the company had exited administration.
- And the news got better still: Ferrari team boss Maurizio Arrivabene confirmed today that the Italian marque has verbally agreed to power the backmarker team in 2015.
- Speaking exclusively to MotorSportsTalk, Susie Wolff said that she is not fazed by the changes to the FIA super licence requirements.
- Rosberg is very wary of Ferrari’s pace in testing, believing that the team could challenge Mercedes in 2015.
- Lewis Hamilton was back in action on Friday after coming down with a fever on Thursday.
- Pace-setter Daniel Ricciardo was happy with the mileage he managed in Barcelona, finishing with more laps than any other driver.
- Fernando Alonso called his day “beautiful”, and believes that McLaren is making progress with every extra lap it completes in testing.
THOUGHTS FROM THE TRACK
Six days down, six to go. The start of the 2015 Formula 1 season draws ever nearer, giving the teams less and less time to perfect their cars and be in the best possible shape for the Australian Grand Prix on March 15.
After a busy first day in Barcelona, day two was a little more understated. Although there were three red flag periods, none of the problems proved to be too critical for the affected parties, meaning that all of the teams completed some good mileage at the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya.
The man to beat was Daniel Ricciardo. His day started poorly with a small software issue that caused him to stop at the end of the pit lane, but the Australian rallied to post the fastest time and complete more laps than any other driver. It was an impressive showing, particularly with a full race simulation that looked fairly consistent. Time will tell, but Red Bull and Renault are certainly making progress.
Once again, Ferrari appeared towards the top of the timesheets with Kimi Raikkonen finishing in second place. The Finn’s best lap time was just 0.010 seconds slower than Ricciardo’s, but most of his runs did not go beyond 20 laps, meaning that Ferrari will still be looking to fine tune its long-run pace this weekend with Vettel at the wheel.
Mercedes played swapsies once again with its drivers as Nico Rosberg and Lewis Hamilton shared the running. Rosberg was rested for the afternoon due to a minor strain on his neck that he says was caused by a change in his driving position, but Hamilton gladly took up the mantle in the afternoon. Mercedes may not have finished quickest on any of the six days of testing so far, but there is plenty of pace in reserve, it seems.
McLaren also enjoyed its best day of winter testing so far as Fernando Alonso completed some good mileage in the MP4-30. Although his stints were on average around five or six laps, the Spaniard said that he felt good behind the wheel and was learning with every extra lap that was completed. Given that today was thought to be a write-off due to the issue with the MGU-K on Thursday, the productivity may have come as a pleasant surprise to the British team.
Finally, a big talking point of the day was a press conference held by Ferrari team boss Maurizio Arrivabene in Barcelona, in which he spoke about the team’s impressive start to the year. Despite finishing inside the top two in all six sessions so far, he refused to alter his target for the season of two race wins. His presence is certainly an impressive one though, contrasting his predecessor, the more passive Marco Mattiacci. Perhaps Arrivabene is exactly what Ferrari needs to get back to the top?
We’ll be back tomorrow with all of the action from Barcelona, so be sure to join us then.
