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Formula 1 ... Strong start as Silver Arrows rack up the mileage on Day 1 in Barcelona ... Raikkonen fastest on Day 2


 

Montemelo, 27 February, 2017 

Weather Conditions
Clear, dry, mild

Mercedes-AMG Petronas Motorsport kicked off the first pre-season test of the 2017 season today at the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya, with Valtteri Bottas and Lewis Hamilton taking turns at the wheel of the Mercedes-AMG F1 W08 EQ Power+ 

·         Valtteri emerged for his first run as the track opened at 09:00, completing 79 laps before the hour-long lunch break at 13:00

·         Lewis took over in the cockpit for the afternoon session, completing 73 laps before the pit lane closed at 18:00

·         Today’s programme focused on aerodynamic and vibration data analysis, followed by long runs to better understand the performance of the 2017 Pirelli tyres, with both drivers completing similar programmes.

·         Mercedes-Benz Power Units today completed a total of 1,369km.

·         Lewis will take the wheel of the W08 tomorrow morning, with Valtteri behind the wheel in the afternoon on the second day of pre-season testing in Barcelona

Valtteri Bottas
It was a very good first morning for us. We were doing quite a lot of mechanical tests, checking systems, while trying to do mileage. We did 79 laps, more than a race distance, which is very good for the first morning of running. If we are going to face any issues with the car I hope we can face them now. That’s why we did more than a race this morning. That was our target.

We worked on long-runs, trying to gain all the information we could from these conditions. We didn’t really care at all about lap times today. As a team we still have many more important days ahead of us. The main thing to do is to get the mileage in and the car had no issues. The guys have done an amazing job over the winter. I only started just over a month ago, but the way the car has been running is impressive. It’s a good feeling. 

I did a few laps at Silverstone, but now this is proper testing. It was very special to do the first few laps. This is a new era for Formula 1. The car feels very different to last year. You can definitely feel the impact of the new regulations – the increased loads, the bigger, heavier cars, and more grip. I think they look great. They’re great fun to drive and they’re fast in the corners too. Racing is still unknown, but so far so good. Physically the cars feel more demanding, but luckily I am well prepared for the season ahead.

 

Lewis Hamilton
It’s been a good day, a really positive day for the team. The car looks fantastic and it feels great. We did lots of laps and collected loads of information today, so we can try to improve the car as we move forward. We’ve not done any work to get the balance perfect yet, as today was all about ticking off the list of checkpoints and racking up mileage.

I definitely put my body to the test today. These test days are like training. It was good to feel the wider, beefier car. It’s faster, more physical… it’s a beast! You’ve got to drive it a bit differently. It’s so much better than last year’s cars. The G-Forces are definitely higher. We’re pulling two more G than we’d usually pull around here. There’s so much more downforce, which is something you always want as a driver. You always want to go faster through the corners.

The tyres are so hard that they don’t drop off. Most likely we’ll be doing more one-stoppers. Normally you get a lot of degradation with these tyres – but these ones don’t degrade. They’re very consistent, and there’s not a big difference between the feeling on the first lap and the last lap.

Over the next few days we’ll start to look to improve the car. I still think we’re the team to beat – but we have a lot of work ahead of us to do, the same as every single team on the grid. Right now we’re just focusing on our own job to do the very best that we can.


Consolidated Time Sheet Day 1 & 2

Consolidated Time Sheet

Pos. 

Driver

Team

Chassis #

Time

 Laps

Day

1. 

K. Raikkonen

Ferrari

 

1:20.960

108

02

2. 

L. Hamilton

Mercedes Grand Prix

 

1:20.983

66

02

1. 

L. Hamilton

Mercedes Grand Prix

 

1:21.765

73

01

2. 

S. Vettel

Ferrari

 

1:21.878

128

01

3. 

M. Verstappen

Red Bull Racing

 

1:22.200

89

02

3. 

F. Massa

Williams

 

1:22.076

103

01

4. 

K. Magnussen

Haas F1

 

1:22.204

118

02

5. 

E. Ocon

Force India F1

 

1:22.509

86

02

4. 

K. Magnussen

Haas F1

 

1:22.894

51

01

5. 

D. Ricciardo

Red Bull Racing

 

1:22.926

50

01

6. 

D. Kvyat

Scuderia Toro Rosso

 

1:22.956

68

02

7. 

V. Bottas

Mercedes Grand Prix

 

1:22.986

101

02

6. 

V. Bottas

Mercedes Grand Prix

 

1:23.169

79

01

7. 

S. Perez

Force India F1

 

1:23.709

39

01

8. 

J. Palmer

Renault

 

1:24.139

53

02

8. 

C. Sainz Jr.

Scuderia Toro Rosso

 

1:24.494

51

01

9. 

A. Giovinazzi

Sauber

 

1:24.617

66

02

9. 

N. Hulkenberg

Renault

 

1:24.784

57

01

10. 

F. Alonso

McLaren

 

1:24.852

29

01

10. 

S. Vandoorne

McLaren

 

1:25.600

40

02

11. 

L. Stroll

Williams

 

1:26.040

12

02

11. 

M. Ericsson

Sauber

 

1:26.841

72

01






Day 1

 

Pos. 

Driver

Team

Chassis #

Time

 Laps

Day

1. 

L. Hamilton

Mercedes Grand Prix

 

1:21.765

73

01

2. 

S. Vettel

Ferrari

 

1:21.878

128

01

3. 

F. Massa

Williams

 

1:22.076

103

01

4. 

K. Magnussen

Haas F1

 

1:22.894

51

01

5. 

D. Ricciardo

Red Bull Racing

 

1:22.926

50

01

6. 

V. Bottas

Mercedes Grand Prix

 

1:23.169

79

01

7. 

S. Perez

Force India F1

 

1:23.709

39

01

8. 

C. Sainz Jr.

Scuderia Toro Rosso

 

1:24.494

51

01

9. 

N. Hulkenberg

Renault

 

1:24.784

57

01

10. 

F. Alonso

McLaren

 

1:24.852

29

01

11. 

M. Ericsson

Sauber

 

1:26.841

72

01

 

Day 2

 

Pos. 

Driver

Team

Chassis #

Time

Laps

Day

1. 

K. Raikkonen

Ferrari

 

01:20.960

108

02

2. 

L. Hamilton

Mercedes Grand Prix

 

01:20.983

66

02

3. 

M. Verstappen

Red Bull Racing

 

01:22.200

89

02

4. 

K. Magnussen

Haas F1

 

01:22.204

118

02

5. 

E. Ocon

Force India F1

 

01:22.509

86

02

6. 

D. Kvyat

Scuderia Toro Rosso

 

01:22.956

68

02

7. 

V. Bottas

Mercedes Grand Prix

 

01:22.986

101

02

8. 

J. Palmer

Renault

 

01:24.139

53

02

9. 

A. Giovinazzi

Sauber

 

01:24.617

66

02

10. 

S. Vandoorne

McLaren

 

01:25.600

40

02

11. 

L. Stroll

Williams

 

01:26.040

12

02