Max happy after valuable final F3 test day
Published on 19 December 2013 by Niels Hendrix
After a successful debut in Formula 3, clocking times faster than the official F3 track record at the Valencia circuit, Max Verstappen geared up on Thursday for the second and final day of his first F3 test session. Of the drivers in a ATS Formel 3 Cup spec car, the Dutchman was second fastest in the rain and third quickest on a dry track. Max took to the Circuito Ricardo Tormo in an F3 provided by the German Team Motopark.
Verstappen junior's debut on Wednesday took place in splendid sunshine. However, on Thursday the drivers were greeted by a wet circuit which meant Max had to prepare for his first F3 run in the wet. Unfortunately, it meant the sixteen-year-old would be at a slight disadvantage as the Yokohama tyres used by Team Motopark are slightly slower in the rain than the rubber of the competition. In contrast, the dry compound provided by the Japanese manufacturer performs slightly better in comparison to the other brands used.
Nevertheless, Max was keen to go out on track. In tricky conditions, in his first wet F3 outing, the talented youngster set a 1:41.6, resulting in the sixteenth position at the end of the first one hour session. The second session saw times drop significantly as the track dried. This meant the fastest dry laps were almost ten seconds quicker than the wet lap times. Meanwhile, Max drove back where he belonged as he set the second fastest lap, a tenth shy of Santino Ferrucci. The Italian drove a similar spec F3 car to Max, as both single seaters are used in the German F3 championship.
Despite the changing conditions in the first two sessions, Max remained upbeat: "The first hour in the rain was a bit tricky as you have completely different racing lines on a wet track. But during the second session, on a dry track, I was among the fastest again. Regardless, I have to say, F3 cars are just really good fun to drive."
Session three saw the drivers go out on slicks, with lap times getting faster and faster. Unfortunately, the session was red flagged after forty minutes, as the rain came pouring down again. By that time, Max clocked a 1:25.925 which put him in the top three behind Ferrucci and Sebastian Balthasar.
"It was a bit of shame the session was cut short as I was on my way to put on fresh rubber. The track was still damp at the beginning of the session, so we opted for a used set of tyres so we could use the fresh rubber whenever the track would be at its best. Unfortunately, we never got that chance."
The fourth and final session was all about gaining valuable track time and experience as the circuit was once again wet. Max got plenty of action as he managed 23 laps under conditions that made it impossible to set a top time. Despite Max finishing the last session in seventeenth, the track time proved a valuable experience for the youngster as he prepares for his first full season in motorsport.
The second and final day of the test session with Team Motopark, marked the end of Max' more than successful 2013. After several Formula Renault 2.0 tests, in which Max was consistently among the fastest, the world and double European karting champion will, together with his management and father Jos, decide on 2014. Max: "So far we have not made any decisions yet, but I'm hopeful we can announce the plans soon."
Similar to the first, the second day of the Valencia F3 test saw several different specs of F3 cars take to the track. FIA F3 Championship, European F3 Open series and ATS Formel 3 Cup spec vehicles were seen in action. The three categories each use a different tyre manufacturer (Yokohama, Hankook and Dunlop). The general perception is that the Yokohama compound gives an advantage on a dry track, whereas the wet wetter tyre provided by Hankook, performs slightly better in the rain.
Apart from the tyres, the various F3 specs differ in weight as they are separated by roughly 15kg (between 550 and 565kg). This means lap times are fairly difficult to compare. Therefore, we split the lap times per team, spec and tyre supplier. Both the fastest dry and wet lap are displayed.
Lap times Formula 3 test Valencia, December 19:
Motopark ATS Formel 3 Cup 2013, Yokohama Max Verstappen 1:25.925 / 1:40.493 Gustavo Lima 1:26.958 / 1:41.535 EuroInternational ATS Formel 3 Cup 2013, Yokohama Santino Ferrucci 1:25.507 / 1:43.757 Riccardo Agostini 1:26.830 / 1:39.357 Performance Racing ATS Formel 3 Cup 2013, Yokohama Sebastian Balthasar 1:25.918 / 1:41.755 Tomasz Krzeminski 1:32.027 / 1:42.734 ADM Motorsport ATS Formel 3 Cup 2013, Yokohama Nikita Zlobin 1:27.250 / 1:44.554 Maxim Kim 1:29.033 / 1:44.729 Müke Motorsport F3 European Championship 2014, Hankook Lucas Auer 1:26.387 / 1:38.851 Müke Motorsport F3 European Championship 2013, Hankook Roy Nissany 1:27.525 / 1:40.075 Carlin F3 European Championship 2014, Hankook Sean Gelael 1:26.822 / 1:39.994 Carlin F3 European Championship 2013, Hankook Ed Jones 1:26.787 / 1:39.747 Tatiana Calderon 1:26.994 / 1:39.534 Prema Powerteam F3 European Championship 2013, Hankook Esteban Ocon 1:27.014 / 1:39.189 Antonio Fuoco 1:27.562 / 1:40.346 Nicholas Latifi 1:27.680 / 1:38.831 Dennis van der Laar 1:38.725 / 1:39.954 Van Amersfoort Racing F3 European Championship 2013, Hankook Michele Beretta 1:27.607 / 1:39.683 Jules Szymkowiak 1:27.794 / 1:41.324 EmiliodeVillota European F3 Open 2013, Dunlop Yu Kanamaru 1:29.341 / 1:39.927 Konstantin Tereshchenko 1:30.305 / 1:41.284 Team West-Tec F3 European F3 Open 2013, Dunlop Gerardo Nieto 1:29.913 / 1:39.850 Tanart Sathienthirakul 1:30.282 / 1:40.705 Dzhon Simonyan 1:30.561 / 1:40.656 Nicolas Pohler 1:31.627 / 1:41.482 Che Won Lim 1:35.894 / 1:39.995 Campos Racing European F3 Open 2013, Dunlop Alex Palou 1:30.470 / 1:39.832 Diego Borrelli 1:34.086 / 1:44.270 Sean Walkinshaw 1:35.515 / 1:41.445 DAV Racing European F3 Open 2013, Dunlop Falco Waver 1:31.234 / 1:40.599 Kevin Giovesi 1:34.432 / 1:39.548
Johan Peeters / Stefan Meens
