Verstappen happy with P4 in rained out FP2
Published on 09 October 2015 by Mike Motilall
In a completely rained out free practice for the Russian Grand Prix, Max Verstappen noted the fourth best time. During the driest moment in the session, the Dutchman clocked a 2:00.806 on the Sochi Autodrom. Because of the wet conditions, only a handful of drivers got a time on the board. Felipe Massa was the quickest of the bunch during this session.
To Verstappen.nl, Max shortly recaps: “It was not a very eventful day, as we didn’t get a lot of track time unfortunately. This morning in FP1 we were not able to do a proper run because of the diesel on the track in sector 2, which remained quite wet. This wasn’t great for us, because we didn’t learn as much as we wanted to. Then just before FP2 it started to rain heavily, so there was a lot of waiting as the track was very wet.” Yet the Dutchman is happy after having been able to be on track for a short while: “In the end we did some wet running and it was very positive. I think we can be happy with our afternoon!”
The second free practice starts in wet conditions. The first free practice was hampered by slippery conditions and the possibility of a rain shower, but in the second one, the track was practically inundated. So it was pretty obvious the drivers were not very anxious to get out on track when the lights turned green.
After twenty minutes, it’s Sebastian Vettel who separates the men from the boys as he ventures out. By now, it has stopped raining, but the track is a far cry from dry. The German does an installation lap on the full wets, and shows that especially in the third sector, there is still a lot of water. Fernando Alonso follows him shortly. However, the two former champions are not putting any time on the board. The Spaniard manages to do that half an hour later: his first full lap is done on the full wets in 2:05.599. Moments later, he improves to a 2:01.077, and remains the only one with a timed lap.
With half an hour remaining, the pit starts to come alive. Max also gets out on track. His first lap is a 2:04.848, after which he improves to a 2:02.642. Together with team mate Carlos Sainz, they are the only ones on the circuit, when the down pour starts again. Max does a 2:00.806 in his next lap, at that moment, the fastest time in the entire session. Sainz is trailing by two seconds. On the radio, the Dutchman is heard saying that some parts of the track are still slippery: “That bit of tarmac out of turn 16 is unbelievable.”
As the heavens opened up more and more, it becomes apparent that nobody is able to touch Verstappen’s time. The majority of the drivers, decide not to head out anymore. As the checkered flag was about to drop, Felipe Massa, Sebastian Vettel and Valtteri Bottas still manage to beat the Dutchman’s time. He also asks his team if he is allowed to do one more lap, but hears that he needs to save his tyres as he might need them coming Sunday.
Sochi - Russian Grand Prix - Friday 9 October
RESULTS FREE PRACTICE 2 P No Driver Team Time Gap Laps 1 19 Felipe Massa Williams 2:00.458 6 2 5 Sebastian Vettel Ferrari 2:00.659 +0.201s 8 3 77 Valtteri Bottas Williams 2:00.688 +0.230s 8 4 33 Max Verstappen Toro Rosso 2:00.806 +0.348s 7 5 14 Fernando Alonso McLaren 2:01.077 +0.619s 12 6 26 Daniil Kvyat Red Bull 2:01.418 +0.960s 6 7 55 Carlos Sainz Toro Rosso 2:02.805 +2.347s 7 8 22 Jenson Button McLaren 2:02.845 +2.387s 8 9 6 Nico Rosberg Mercedes 6 10 9 Marcus Ericsson Sauber 3 11 44 Lewis Hamilton Mercedes 3 12 11 Sergio Perez Force India 3 13 27 Nico Hulkenberg Force India 3 14 3 Daniel Ricciardo Red Bull 1
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