BAHRAN TEST TWO – Kimi Antonelli fastest ahead of Oscar Piastri with fastest time of testing by six hundredths
Kimi Antonelli was fastest on the second day of the third pre-season test at the Bahrain International Circuit. The Mercedes driver set a 32.803 to put himself just under six hundredths faster than Oscar Piastri, with the fastest time of the five days of testing in Bahrain by six tenths.
Mercedes, it appears on paper, has started to unleash some of their pace as George Russell was eight thousandths off Lando Norris’s fastest time during the morning session. Antonelli’s outright fastest time was six and a half tenths faster than Russell’s. However, Piastri and Max Verstappen’s times came earlier in the afternoon, before what will be qualifying for the Grand Prix.
After the sun had set and as the track ramped up, teams started to do their first proper qualifying simulations. Before that final hour, which in April will be qualifying for the Grand Prix, the McLarens and Verstappen had spent much of the afternoon trading fastest times at one stage separated by half a hundredth of a second.
McLaren and Mercedes also had the most productive day mileage-wise, with 158 and 156 laps respectively, while Verstappen topped the chart for drivers with 139 laps.
Lewis Hamilton was the fastest of the all-day runners as he completed his final day of testing before Melbourne, going fourth fastest, a quarter of a second off Verstappen. The seven-time champion caught the eye with his practice starts at the end of both sessions.
But Ferrari also caught the eye with an innovative rear wing; the upper flap of the rear wing appears to be able to rotate 180 degrees, meaning it also allows the rear of the flap to open as well. This creates a sort of expansion, with the front centre of the flap becoming the guiding element of the outgoing flows. According to Motorsport.com, Ferrari’s rear wing is only a test item rather than a permanent feature.
Hamilton, meanwhile, was half a tenth faster than Lando Norris. The world champion drove the morning session and was fastest at the lunchbreak with a 33.453, but that was always going to be beaten once the afternoon session moved to the even, thus Norris finished fifth in the all-day time sheet six and a half tenths off Antonelli.
Norris was also the last driver to lap within a second of Antonelli, which once again suggests that the top four at this stage have a comfortable advantage over the midfield. Franco Colapinto put his Alpine sixth fastest; he was another full day runner and nearly four tenths behind the world champion.
Nico Hulkenberg put his Audi seventh fastest with the team’s best lap of testing so far on the harder medium tyres. But once again, technical issues, this time with hydraulics, saw teammate Gabriel Bortoletto lose half his morning session and round out the timing sheet in sixteenth.
George Russell was eighth, having finished his morning second fastest, he was over a second and a quarter off his teammate in the final classification. Esteban Ocon was ninth as he put his Haas three and a half tenths ahead of Liam Lawson, as they completed the top ten.
The top ten were covered by nearly a second and three-quarters. Alex Albon missing out by just over two hundredths, as he went six tenths faster than Bortoletto, with Ollie Bearman putting his Haas a hundredth and a half further behind.
There were more problems for Aston Martin. Fernando Alonso brought the red flag out an hour into the afternoon session, meaning his fastest time was from the morning session and was over four and a half seconds off the pace.
That meant the two-time champion split the two Cadillacs; he was over two seconds behind Perez but was two seconds faster than teammate Valtteri Bottas.
Related
- BAHRAN TEST TWO – George Russell fastest on opening day, a hundredth faster than Oscar Piastri
- BAHRAIN TEST ONE – Kimi Antonelli leads Mercedes one-two by a quarter of a second on final day
- BAHRAIN TEST ONE – Charles Leclerc fastest on the second day, half a second ahead of Lando Norris
- BAHRAIN TEST ONE – Lando Norris fastest by over a tenth on the opening day of testing
- PRIXVIEW – Bahrain Pre-Season Tests