Kimi Raikkonen put Ferrari on top again on the final day of this week’s F1 pre-season testing in Barcelona. The Finn managed to clock a time of 1m 23.477s in the new Pirelli ultrasoft tires, he headed Red Bull’s Daniil Kvyat who was 0.816s down on the Ferrari, setting the day’s second fastest time on 1m 24.293s.
Thursday’s F1 Test Times, Barcelona
1 Kimi Räikkönen Ferrari 1:23.477, 80 laps
2 Daniil Kvyat Red Bull Racing 1:24.293, 96 laps
3 Alfonso Celis Force India 1:24.840, 75 laps
4 Kevin Magnussen Renault 1:25.263,153 laps
5 Max Verstappen Toro Rosso 1:25.393, 110 laps
6 Felipe Nasr Sauber 1:26.053, 121 laps
7 Nico Rosberg Mercedes 1:26.187, 86 laps
8 Lewis Hamilton Mercedes 1:26.295, 99 laps
9 Felipe Massa Williams 1:26.483, 54 laps
10 Esteban Gutiérrez Haas 1:27.802, 89 laps
11 Rio Haryanto Manor 1:28.266, 51 laps
12 Fernando Alonso McLaren, no time– 3 laps
Force India was in good shape again in the hands of test driver Alfonso Celis who logged a lap of 1m 24.840s enough for him to claim third place on the timesheet. Renault also went through a smooth day with Kevin Magnussen setting the fourth fastest time ahead of Toro Rosso’s Max Verstappen.
Mercedes-AMG went ahead to set the highest mileage on 185 laps, 86 from Nico Rosberg and 99 from Lewis Hamilton. The two drivers were on medium rubber and managed to score the 7th and 8th fastest times respectively.
Elsewhere, it was a slow day for McLaren after the MP4-31 suffered a coolant leak with Fernando Alonso on the wheel. He only managed to do 3 laps before the unexpected incident, Jenson Button suffered a similar fate yesterday when his car incurred a hydraulic leak, the Brit was however able to get back on the field ending the day with 51 laps.
The next test will begin on March 1 in Barcelona and will be the final test before the season kicks off in Melbourne on March 20.
