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ESPN staff
MONTMELO, Spain — Charles Leclerc kept Ferrari at the top of the timesheets in pre-season testing after a solid start to his first day with the team.
His fastest time was a 1:18.247, roughly a tenth of a second slower than Sebastian Vettel’s best effort on the opening day. Both drivers were using the same compound tyre — the C3 — but Leclerc’s lap was set on a slightly longer run, suggesting it could have been on heavier fuel.
Once again, Mercedes was off the pace of Ferrari but believed to be running heavier fuel loads. Five kilograms of fuel costs 0.2s per lap, so even a difference of a quarter of a tank can account for a difference of over a second in lap time. After setting fastest times in the 1:20s on Monday using the C2 compound, both Lewis Hamilton and Valtteri Bottas dipped into the in the 1:19s on Tuesday using the slightly softer C3s.
Comparisons between the top two teams remain difficult without anything resembling a qualifying or race simulation from either and it should be noted that Mercedes rarely shows its hand in the opening week of testing. In terms of mileage, Mercedes completed 163 laps between its two drivers while Ferrari completed 157 — both very healthy totals for a day of testing.
Red Bull had another low-key day, with Pierre Gasly seventh fastest overall. He completed 92 laps before losing the rear of his car in Turn 13 and rear-ending the barrier. Damage to the rear wing from the collision meant his day was brought to a premature end as Red Bull’s mechanics turned their focus to repairing the car ahead of Max Verstappen’s return to the cockpit on Wednesday.
Renault also lost track time after the upper element of the rear wing broke off its car while Daniel Ricciardo was nudging 200mph on the pit straight. The failure happened while the DRS was open, hinting a potential problem with the design of the overtaking aid at high speed. It brought an end to Ricciardo’s morning but the team managed to get Nico Hulkenberg back on track in the afternoon to complete 95 laps and set the eighth fastest time.
As was the case on Monday, McLaren finished the day in second place, with Lando Norris setting a 1:18.553 towards the end of the day on the C4 tyre, which is a step softer than the C3 used by Leclerc. Norris’ time was 0.005s quicker than teammate Carlos Sainz managed on the same compound on Monday.
Haas finished third fastest for the second day in a row, with Kevin Magnussen clocking a 1:19.206 before an issue with the fit of his seat forced him out. The team’s reserve Pietro Fittipaldi took over for 13 laps at the end of the day, managing a 1:21.849 during his brief stint behind the wheel.
Toro Rosso’s new signing Alexander Albon finished fourth on his first full test day in a Formula One car. Albon had previously completed very limited mileage in a filming day ahead of testing, but Tuesday was his first time in an official F1 session of any kind. His day got off to a bad start when he spun into the gravel on the exit of Turn 4 on his outlap, but the team put the mistake down to a setting change on the steering rather than a lapse from the driver.
Sauber completed another solid day with Antonio Giovinazzi completing 101 laps, while Racing Point started to recover from Monday’s slow start with a total of 79 laps with Lance Stroll at the wheel.
Williams’ new car is due to arrive at the circuit overnight after work on the chassis was finally completed at the team’s factory today. The delay in the build has cost Williams two full days of testing (25 percent of the total pre-season track time available) and the car is not expected to hit the track until tomorrow afternoon.
Day two times
1. Leclerc, Ferrari, 1:18.247, 157 laps (C3)
2. Norris, McLaren, 1:18.553, 104 laps (C4)
3. Magnusen, Haas, 1:19.206, 59 laps (C3)
4. Albon, Toro Rosso, 1:19.301, 132 laps (C4)
5. Giovinazzi, Alfa Romeo, 1:19.312, 101 laps (C4)
6. Bottas, Mercedes, 1:19.535 89 laps (C3)
7. Gasly, Red Bull, 1:19.814, 92 laps (C3)
8. Hulkenberg, Renault, 1:19.837, 95 laps (C3)
9. Ricciardo, Renault, 1:19.886, 28 laps (C3)
10. Hamilton, Mercedes, 1:19.928, 74 laps (C3)
11. Stroll, Racing Point, 1:20.433, 79 laps (C3)
11. Fittipaldi, Haas, 1:21.849, 13 laps (C3)
(Tyre compounds in brackets — hardest to softest C1-C5)