Pre-season preparations for the up-coming F1 season continued at the Bahrain International Circuit on Friday, with day three of the second winter test.
Like the previous two days, fortunes were mixed with reliability woes costing several teams track time. Lewis Hamilton set the pace as the second half of testing got underway.
However, it wasn't a straightforward day for the Brit. A hydraulics issue forced Hamilton out of the car for much of the afternoon. The Mercedes team worked hard to get him out with half an hour of the session remaining.
He managed 67 laps over the course of the day and set a best time of 1m34.263, which is the fastest time of the test so far. It was seven tenths faster than the second quickest time, which was set by his former team-mate Jenson Button.
The 34-year-old, who also announced his engagement to long-term girlfriend Jessica Michibata on Friday, was the only driver of the day to complete over 100 laps.
It was a busy session for Button which was largely trouble-free, helping him to gain 103 laps worth of experience in the new MP4-29. Valtteri Bottas and Felipe Massa shared driving duties for Williams on day three, with the former running in the morning and the latter taking over for the afternoon.
Massa finished the day third fastest after another strong day for the FW36, with no signs of the day one reliability issues. The Brazilian said: "It was a very busy afternoon. The car did 116 laps yesterday, and we did 115 laps today combined so that is very positive. We did a lot of pitstop practice, which was the main goal today, and I saw a big improvement from the start of the day to the end which is important for the team to be ready and prepared for the first race.
"I think we are going in a good direction. The car is running well and I am happy. There is still a lot to do and to understand about the car, and improvements to the set-up that we haven't had time to do yet, but it's very positive so far." Bottas failed to set a time despite completing 55 laps, five less than his more experienced team-mate, as he focused on pit stop practice.
Esteban Gutierrez suffered several large lock-ups as he continues to get to grips with the new brake-by-wire system. However, he felt more comfortable with the car and completed 96 laps with the new C33, setting the fourth fastest time of the day. Sergio Perez managed 57 laps of the 3.63-mile Bahrain circuit after another positive day for Force India, despite a short delay early on.
Kimi Raikkonen's running was hampered by a telemetry problem, which involved recalibrating and reactivating the system, but he lapped the track 44 times on Friday. The 'Iceman' set the sixth fastest time, three seconds down on Hamilton. Daniil Kvyat gained crucial experience in the Toro Rosso STR9 after only completing five laps on the opening day of the Bahrain test.
It was a far more productive session for the Russian rookie, with 57 more laps under his belt. Pastor Maldonado's first public day in the new Lotus E22 was a difficult one. Gearbox issues meant the car ground to a halt twice on track and forced him to spectate for most of day three.
He only completed 26 laps in the car and will be hoping to put more mileage on the car on Saturday, although the team is anticipating a delayed start. Daniel Ricciardo's first day in the RB10 at the Bahrain test ended 30 minutes early after the Red Bull team discovered an all-new issue with the car.
The Aussie managed 28 laps before he was forced to hop out of the troublesome 2014 machine. "It was going OK," he said. "I did some good laps and those came off the back of the more than 50 laps Seb did yesterday, so we’re getting there. Obviously, I would have liked to do more this afternoon but we still have tomorrow ahead of us and it’s important to be ready for that.
"The car is definitely making progress though. It’s coming together bit by bit. We’d love a big chunk all at once but obviously that’s not the way these things work, so we have to be a bit patient for now. However, it is coming and we’re heading in the right direction. Tomorrow it would be nice to get more laps in and then roll on next week."
The Caterham CT05 once again looked like the most reliable of the Renault-powered runners, with 2014 rookie Marcuss Ericsson completing 98 laps on his only day of the test in the car. The Swedish driver had a smooth outing in the car and will hand driving duties back to Kamui Kobayashi on Saturday.
He said: "I’m pleased with how my first day on track in Bahrain went. 98 laps is obviously very good news in terms of reliability, and it also means I’ve passed the 300kms I needed to do to qualify for a Superlicence. The boys have worked really hard today and we’ve pretty much had no issues which meant I could just get on with the program, and that was the main goal for today.
"Performance-wise there’s still a lot more to come, both from the car and the engine. The times today didn’t really mean anything, and although it’s always nice to put in a quicker time, we’ve been doing pretty long runs all day and just working through the plan. Now I can’t wait to get back in the car again and hopefully our reliability record so far will hold up."
Max Chilton set the slowest time of the day, but the Brit only managed four laps early in the morning before a problem with his Ferrari power-unit forced him to stop out on track. Marussia was forced to replace the engine and despite the team's best efforts, he failed to return to the circuit.
Valtteri Bottas drove in the morning session for Williams but failed to set a time. His work largely consisted of two-lap runs and pit stop practice.
Testing resumes on Saturday with the final day of the second test, before a four-day break. Pre-season preparations will continue at the final winter test of the 2014 season, ahead of the Australian Grand Prix curtain-raiser.
Day 3 Times:
1. Hamilton (Mercedes) 1m34.263 – 67 laps
2. Button (McLaren) 1m34.976 – 103 laps
3. Massa (Williams) 1m37.066 – 60 laps
4. Gutierrez (Sauber) 1m37.180 – 96 laps
5. Perez (Force India) 1m37.367 – 57 laps
6. Raikkonen (Ferrari) 1m37.467 – 44 laps
7. Kvyat (Toro Rosso) 1m38.974 – 57 laps
8. Maldonado (Lotus) 1m39.642 – 26 laps
9. Ricciardo (Red Bull) 1m40.781 – 28 laps
10. Ericsson (Caterham) 1m42.130 – 98 laps
11. Chilton (Marussia) 1m46.672 – 4 laps
12. Bottas (Williams) no time – 55 laps
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| © Mercedes AMG Petronas |
However, it wasn't a straightforward day for the Brit. A hydraulics issue forced Hamilton out of the car for much of the afternoon. The Mercedes team worked hard to get him out with half an hour of the session remaining.
He managed 67 laps over the course of the day and set a best time of 1m34.263, which is the fastest time of the test so far. It was seven tenths faster than the second quickest time, which was set by his former team-mate Jenson Button.
The 34-year-old, who also announced his engagement to long-term girlfriend Jessica Michibata on Friday, was the only driver of the day to complete over 100 laps.
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| © Williams F1 Team |
It was a busy session for Button which was largely trouble-free, helping him to gain 103 laps worth of experience in the new MP4-29. Valtteri Bottas and Felipe Massa shared driving duties for Williams on day three, with the former running in the morning and the latter taking over for the afternoon.
Massa finished the day third fastest after another strong day for the FW36, with no signs of the day one reliability issues. The Brazilian said: "It was a very busy afternoon. The car did 116 laps yesterday, and we did 115 laps today combined so that is very positive. We did a lot of pitstop practice, which was the main goal today, and I saw a big improvement from the start of the day to the end which is important for the team to be ready and prepared for the first race.
"I think we are going in a good direction. The car is running well and I am happy. There is still a lot to do and to understand about the car, and improvements to the set-up that we haven't had time to do yet, but it's very positive so far." Bottas failed to set a time despite completing 55 laps, five less than his more experienced team-mate, as he focused on pit stop practice.
Esteban Gutierrez suffered several large lock-ups as he continues to get to grips with the new brake-by-wire system. However, he felt more comfortable with the car and completed 96 laps with the new C33, setting the fourth fastest time of the day. Sergio Perez managed 57 laps of the 3.63-mile Bahrain circuit after another positive day for Force India, despite a short delay early on.
Kimi Raikkonen's running was hampered by a telemetry problem, which involved recalibrating and reactivating the system, but he lapped the track 44 times on Friday. The 'Iceman' set the sixth fastest time, three seconds down on Hamilton. Daniil Kvyat gained crucial experience in the Toro Rosso STR9 after only completing five laps on the opening day of the Bahrain test.
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| © Red Bull/Getty Images |
It was a far more productive session for the Russian rookie, with 57 more laps under his belt. Pastor Maldonado's first public day in the new Lotus E22 was a difficult one. Gearbox issues meant the car ground to a halt twice on track and forced him to spectate for most of day three.
He only completed 26 laps in the car and will be hoping to put more mileage on the car on Saturday, although the team is anticipating a delayed start. Daniel Ricciardo's first day in the RB10 at the Bahrain test ended 30 minutes early after the Red Bull team discovered an all-new issue with the car.
The Aussie managed 28 laps before he was forced to hop out of the troublesome 2014 machine. "It was going OK," he said. "I did some good laps and those came off the back of the more than 50 laps Seb did yesterday, so we’re getting there. Obviously, I would have liked to do more this afternoon but we still have tomorrow ahead of us and it’s important to be ready for that.
"The car is definitely making progress though. It’s coming together bit by bit. We’d love a big chunk all at once but obviously that’s not the way these things work, so we have to be a bit patient for now. However, it is coming and we’re heading in the right direction. Tomorrow it would be nice to get more laps in and then roll on next week."
 |
| © Marussia F1 Team |
He said: "I’m pleased with how my first day on track in Bahrain went. 98 laps is obviously very good news in terms of reliability, and it also means I’ve passed the 300kms I needed to do to qualify for a Superlicence. The boys have worked really hard today and we’ve pretty much had no issues which meant I could just get on with the program, and that was the main goal for today.
"Performance-wise there’s still a lot more to come, both from the car and the engine. The times today didn’t really mean anything, and although it’s always nice to put in a quicker time, we’ve been doing pretty long runs all day and just working through the plan. Now I can’t wait to get back in the car again and hopefully our reliability record so far will hold up."
Max Chilton set the slowest time of the day, but the Brit only managed four laps early in the morning before a problem with his Ferrari power-unit forced him to stop out on track. Marussia was forced to replace the engine and despite the team's best efforts, he failed to return to the circuit.
Valtteri Bottas drove in the morning session for Williams but failed to set a time. His work largely consisted of two-lap runs and pit stop practice.
Testing resumes on Saturday with the final day of the second test, before a four-day break. Pre-season preparations will continue at the final winter test of the 2014 season, ahead of the Australian Grand Prix curtain-raiser.
Day 3 Times:
1. Hamilton (Mercedes) 1m34.263 – 67 laps
2. Button (McLaren) 1m34.976 – 103 laps
3. Massa (Williams) 1m37.066 – 60 laps
4. Gutierrez (Sauber) 1m37.180 – 96 laps
5. Perez (Force India) 1m37.367 – 57 laps
6. Raikkonen (Ferrari) 1m37.467 – 44 laps
7. Kvyat (Toro Rosso) 1m38.974 – 57 laps
8. Maldonado (Lotus) 1m39.642 – 26 laps
9. Ricciardo (Red Bull) 1m40.781 – 28 laps
10. Ericsson (Caterham) 1m42.130 – 98 laps
11. Chilton (Marussia) 1m46.672 – 4 laps
12. Bottas (Williams) no time – 55 laps
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