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Formula 1
F1: Perez Tops Wednesday Barcelona Times
Sergio Perez is clearly adjusting to his new role as a McLaren driver...
Sergio Perez turned the quickest lap on Wednesday in preseason testing. (Photo: LAT Photographic)
Sergio Perez was fastest for McLaren as the drivers explored the Pirelli soft tires and the pace began to shoot up on the second day of the Barcelona test.
Perez, who has spent his testing miles thus far feeling his way in at McLaren, enjoyed what the team said was a productive day.
The Mexican continued on his learning curve, the team saying that his afternoon work was “aimed at providing Sergio with a better understanding of the methods and systems that will be used by the race team during a race weekend, including cockpit switch adjustments and understanding radio messaging.”
Sebastian Vettel was second fastest for Red Bull, the triple World Champion running an interrupted race distance, and stopping on track at one stage with a loose wheel.
“We had some issues with reliability today and we couldn’t do as many laps as we wanted," said Vettel. "But I think it’s better that this kind of thing happens today rather than in Australia. It was nothing disastrous, just small things that hampered us today. We stopped the car once as we saw a small loss of pressure. The second stop towards the end of the day caused a red flag and it simply took too much time to turn everything around, so we couldn’t get out again.”
After losing time Tuesday with telemetry problems, Kimi Raikkonen was handicapped Wednesday by a gearbox issue. He wasted most of the day but set the third-best time when he finally got some running, completing only 43 laps in total.
“If yesterday wasn’t an ideal day, then today was more of the same,” said Raikkonen. “Fortunately, once we were able to get a lap in, we could see that the car has good pace. We test to find any problems, so in that respect we’re doing a good job, but it’s frustrating. It’s no secret that we want to get more laps on the board, and that’s the target for the rest of this test and the final sessions next week.”
Mercedes made up for time lost from Tuesday as Lewis Hamilton completed 121 laps, representing the day’s highest total. The Briton was fourth fastest.
“We had a good day today and it was nice to get so many laps in,” said Hamilton. “We’re making continual steps forward in terms of our understanding of the setup and the tyres. The hard compound work in particular was pretty good today, although all of the tires are showing degradation so looking after them isn’t easy. The guys are working really hard both here and at the factory, and it’s encouraging to see the amount of work that’s being put in. We’re focusing on our own program, and just getting on with it.”
Fernando Alonso lost time with an exhaust issue, running only 76 laps and finishing the day in fifth place.
Valtteri Bottas had his first outing in the Williams FW35, and his total of 98 laps showed that the car has good reliability.
“I had a really strong first impression of the FW35 today,” said the Finn. “Once we completed the aero work this morning, I was able to complete my first proper run to feel the FW35 and the improvements we have made. Straight out of the box, I knew we had made a step forward from last year, and I am looking forward to working to develop the car even further. It’s great to know we have a really good base to start from, but there are still a number of areas we can improve, so I’m really excited for the season ahead.”
Nico Hulkenberg was back in the Sauber, and despite losing some time, reported good progress.
“We got a lot done but also had some issues today,” he said. “I did quite a lot of running, but it was difficult because the tires degraded quite quickly. In addition, it was not easy for us today to use the full potential of the tires on a single quick lap. There is definitely room for improvement."
Meanwhile, Caterham had a better day as Charles Pic logged 102 laps, although he was a second off Max Chilton’s Marussia.
“There are definitely positives to take from my two days on track this week, and with every lap, I’m getting more comfortable in the car and with the whole team,” said Pic. “There are a few areas for us to look at to extract more performance, but this week hasn’t been about times; it’s been focused on working through various setup options and understanding the tires which are going to be as important this year as they were in 2012. We will continue that work next week, and I’m sure we’ll make more progress there.”
Pos Driver Car Time Laps
1. Sergio Perez McLaren 1:21.848 97
2. Sebastian Vettel Red Bull 1:22.197 84
3. Kimi Raikkonen Lotus 1:22.697 43
4. Lewis Hamilton Mercedes 1:22.726 121
5. Fernando Alonso Ferrari 1:23.247 76
6. Valtteri Bottas Williams 1:23.561 98
7. Daniel Ricciardo Toro Rosso 1:23.718 70
8. Paul Di Resta Sahara Force India 1:23.971 62
9. Nico Hulkenberg Sauber 1:24.205 88
10. Max Chilton Marussia 1:25.115 67
11. Charles Pic Caterham 1:26.243 102
Adam Cooper notched up his 28th season as a racing journalist in 2012. He has written about F1 for SPEED.com since 2005. Follow him on Twitter.
Perez, who has spent his testing miles thus far feeling his way in at McLaren, enjoyed what the team said was a productive day.
The Mexican continued on his learning curve, the team saying that his afternoon work was “aimed at providing Sergio with a better understanding of the methods and systems that will be used by the race team during a race weekend, including cockpit switch adjustments and understanding radio messaging.”
Sebastian Vettel was second fastest for Red Bull, the triple World Champion running an interrupted race distance, and stopping on track at one stage with a loose wheel.
“We had some issues with reliability today and we couldn’t do as many laps as we wanted," said Vettel. "But I think it’s better that this kind of thing happens today rather than in Australia. It was nothing disastrous, just small things that hampered us today. We stopped the car once as we saw a small loss of pressure. The second stop towards the end of the day caused a red flag and it simply took too much time to turn everything around, so we couldn’t get out again.”
After losing time Tuesday with telemetry problems, Kimi Raikkonen was handicapped Wednesday by a gearbox issue. He wasted most of the day but set the third-best time when he finally got some running, completing only 43 laps in total.
“If yesterday wasn’t an ideal day, then today was more of the same,” said Raikkonen. “Fortunately, once we were able to get a lap in, we could see that the car has good pace. We test to find any problems, so in that respect we’re doing a good job, but it’s frustrating. It’s no secret that we want to get more laps on the board, and that’s the target for the rest of this test and the final sessions next week.”
Mercedes made up for time lost from Tuesday as Lewis Hamilton completed 121 laps, representing the day’s highest total. The Briton was fourth fastest.
“We had a good day today and it was nice to get so many laps in,” said Hamilton. “We’re making continual steps forward in terms of our understanding of the setup and the tyres. The hard compound work in particular was pretty good today, although all of the tires are showing degradation so looking after them isn’t easy. The guys are working really hard both here and at the factory, and it’s encouraging to see the amount of work that’s being put in. We’re focusing on our own program, and just getting on with it.”
Fernando Alonso lost time with an exhaust issue, running only 76 laps and finishing the day in fifth place.
Valtteri Bottas had his first outing in the Williams FW35, and his total of 98 laps showed that the car has good reliability.
“I had a really strong first impression of the FW35 today,” said the Finn. “Once we completed the aero work this morning, I was able to complete my first proper run to feel the FW35 and the improvements we have made. Straight out of the box, I knew we had made a step forward from last year, and I am looking forward to working to develop the car even further. It’s great to know we have a really good base to start from, but there are still a number of areas we can improve, so I’m really excited for the season ahead.”
Nico Hulkenberg was back in the Sauber, and despite losing some time, reported good progress.
“We got a lot done but also had some issues today,” he said. “I did quite a lot of running, but it was difficult because the tires degraded quite quickly. In addition, it was not easy for us today to use the full potential of the tires on a single quick lap. There is definitely room for improvement."
Meanwhile, Caterham had a better day as Charles Pic logged 102 laps, although he was a second off Max Chilton’s Marussia.
“There are definitely positives to take from my two days on track this week, and with every lap, I’m getting more comfortable in the car and with the whole team,” said Pic. “There are a few areas for us to look at to extract more performance, but this week hasn’t been about times; it’s been focused on working through various setup options and understanding the tires which are going to be as important this year as they were in 2012. We will continue that work next week, and I’m sure we’ll make more progress there.”
Pos Driver Car Time Laps
1. Sergio Perez McLaren 1:21.848 97
2. Sebastian Vettel Red Bull 1:22.197 84
3. Kimi Raikkonen Lotus 1:22.697 43
4. Lewis Hamilton Mercedes 1:22.726 121
5. Fernando Alonso Ferrari 1:23.247 76
6. Valtteri Bottas Williams 1:23.561 98
7. Daniel Ricciardo Toro Rosso 1:23.718 70
8. Paul Di Resta Sahara Force India 1:23.971 62
9. Nico Hulkenberg Sauber 1:24.205 88
10. Max Chilton Marussia 1:25.115 67
11. Charles Pic Caterham 1:26.243 102
Adam Cooper notched up his 28th season as a racing journalist in 2012. He has written about F1 for SPEED.com since 2005. Follow him on Twitter.
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