Nico Rosberg tops final day of testing

Published on 24 June 2015 by Stefan Meens

Nico Rosberg set the fastest lap at the second and final day of the mid-season collective test at the Red Bull Ring. The Mercedes driver and winner of Sunday's Grand Prix lapped the Austrian track in a 1:10.113. Ferrari's third driver Esteban Gutiérrez finished second with Valtteri Bottas completing the top three in his Williams.

After Max Verstapppen finished Tuesday's test session in third, reigning DTM champion Marco Wittmann took over from the Dutchman. The German, who earned this test by taking the DTM crown last year, ended the day in fourth.

Wittmann: “This has been an amazing experience for me. I was surprised at the power of the car: if I compare it to DTM, it’s got quite a lot more power! I enjoyed the whole day, which was trouble free, so I was able to do a lot of laps. I’m happy with my day, I hope the team is too. I would like to thank Red Bull, Scuderia Toro Rosso and BMW for giving me this great opportunity.”

After rain had halted most of Tuesday's on-track action, Wednesday's brighter conditions offered the teams the chance to test all day. Despite a few rain drops, all teams, apart from Williams, managed over a centenary of laps. Wittmann lapped the Red Bull Ring the most, 158 times.

As expected, Mercedes set the pace. The drivers' quickest lap times were, bar Nico Rosberg, all within a second of each other. Behind the top four of Rosberg, Gutiérrez, Bottas and Wittmann, Pascal Wehrlein – who switched to Force India after Tuesday's stint for Mercedes – Jolyon Palmer and Fernando Alonso occupied the midfield places. Red Bull's Daniel Ricciardo and Sauber's Felipe Nasr finished the day at the bottom of the timing tables.

Red Bull Ring - Collective Test - Wednesday 24 June

P Driver             Team	  Time              Laps
1 Nico Rosberg       Mercedes     01:09.113          117   
2 Esteban Gutierrez  Ferrari      01:09.931  +0.818  110   
3 Valtteri Bottas    Williams     01:10.029  +0.916   79   
4 Marco Wittmann     Toro Rosso   01:10.103  +0.990  158   
5 Pascal Wehrlein    Force India  01:10.253  +1.140  132   
6 Jolyon Palmer      Lotus E23    01:10.373  +1.260  110   
7 Fernando Alonso    McLaren      01:10.718  +1.605  104   
8 Daniel Ricciardo   Red Bull     01:10.757  +1.644  116   
9 Felipe Nasr        Sauber       01:10.922  +1.809  138