Lewis Hamilton fastest for Mercedes as testing kicks off in Barcelona
Lewis Hamilton was fastest for Mercedes as the F1 season kicked into gear in Barcelona on Monday with the first of just eight days of winter testing prior to the first race in Australia.
Some cars had already completed shakedown filming days, but for other teams it was the first time on track for the new models. Inevitably there were a few teething problems, with McLaren and Red Bull in particularly suffering and running far fewer laps than planned.
The consensus is that in general the new cars look good on track, with their wider tires and new style bodywork creating a favorable impression. In addition, lap times are already significantly faster than last year, with the top time of 1m21.765s comparing with the 1m24.939s set by Sebastian Vettel on the first day of testing this time last year.
Clearly there is much more to come as cars are developed over the two tests, and teams begin to explore the limits with lower fuel loads and the softer compounds from Pirelli’s range.
Hamilton set his best time early in the afternoon, having taken over from Valtteri Bottas after lunch. At the time he was running with a shark fin – which was open at the top and thus looked like a “chimney” - but it was later removed as the team continued to try new parts. Bottas’ morning time left him in fifth place at the end of the day after the Finn ran 79 laps. With Hamilton logging 73 laps the silver car completed an impressive total of 152 laps.
Sebastian Vettel was fastest in the morning in the Ferrari SF70H, the German focusing on medium tires before taking hards late in the afternoon. Like the Mercedes it ran reliably, with Vettel recording 127 laps.
On his return to the cockpit after his brief winter retirement Felipe Massa soon seemed at home in the Williams FW40, setting the third best time of the day and also logging over 100 laps.
Kevin Magnussen became the first driver to sample the Mercedes, Honda, Renault and Ferrari hybrid power units when he took the wheel of the Haas VF-17. His day started badly with an accident, but he bounced back to set the fourth fastest time.
“We had a few issues, but the good thing is that they were small issues," said Magnussen. "Even though they stopped us from some running, it wasn’t something that is at all worrying for the coming days. It’s kind of the typical baby problems you have with the cars when they’re completely new. Except for that, the first feeling of the car is nice. It’s good to finally get that feeling of the car after looking at it, and all the anticipation for the faster cars. It’s a good feeling. Today’s been a day I’ve enjoyed a lot.”
Daniel Ricciardo lost most of the morning after a sensor issue stopped the Red Bull RB13 on track, and a subsequent battery problem caused further delays. He finished the day in fifth place.
Sergio Perez gave the Force India its first mileage, but did relatively few laps after suffering exhaust issues, while Carlos Sainz put more laps on the Toro Rosso after it had a filming day in Italy last week, and Nico Hulkenberg had his first run in the Renault.
“It was a day of two halves," said Perez. "The morning was very productive: we managed to do a lot of what we had planned and we tried some different setup options and tire compounds. Things were looking quite positive throughout the morning and we had the chance to learn a lot from our new car. Unfortunately we didn’t run in the afternoon as a precaution and that cost us some track time. Hopefully tomorrow we can make up the lost ground with Esteban in the car: with a solid day, we can complete the rest of our program and move forward with the plan.”
"Everything felt good and I’d say we’ve made a big step forward compared to last year in terms of downforce and grip," said Sainz. "I felt it straight away during the first laps of the morning and it put a smile on my face. Of course it wasn’t the smoothest of days and we would’ve liked to complete more laps, but you know that this is always going to happen on the first day testing a brand new car."
“It was an exciting first day with a new team and a completely different type of Formula 1 car," reported Hulkenberg. "It feels very different out on track with a lot of new aspects to discover as we’re at the start of a steep learning curve. The car certainly feels faster than those to the previous regulations and it is fun to drive. You certainly realise you’ve got more downforce in the corners. It wasn’t the most trouble-free day, but it’s been a good start in my new home.”
Fernando Alonso ran very few laps after an oil system issue stopped the McLaren in the morning, before suffering more problems in the afternoon. He totaled just 29 laps for the day.
The Sauber of Marcus Ericsson was the slowest car of the day, despite the Swiss car running a respectable number of miles.
Results
1. Lewis Hamilton (Mercedes) 1m21.765s [PM]
2. Sebastian Vettel (Ferrari) 1m21.878s
3. Felipe Massa (Williams)1m22.076s
4. Kevin Magnussen (Haas) 1m22.894s
5. Daniel Ricciardo (Red Bull) 1m22.926s
6. Valtteri Bottas (Mercedes) 1m23.169s [AM]
7. Sergio Perez (Force India) 1m23.709s
8. Carlos Sainz (Toro Rosso) 1m24.494s
9. Nico Hulkenberg (Renault) 1m24.784s
10. Fernando Alonso (McLaren) 1m24.852s
11. Marcus Ericsson (Sauber) 1m26.841s
