Max Verstappen rounds up test day as the fastest: “I enjoyed it again”
Published on 18 May 2016 by Mike Motilall
Max Verstappen rounded up the second day of Formula 1-testing in Barcelona as the fastest one on track. The brand new Grand Prix-winner did his fastest lap, a 1:23.267 just before lunch already, on a set of the soft compound tyres. Stoffel Vandoorne, in his McLaren, came in second. However, the Belgian did this on a set of the super softs. Pascal Wehrlein, driving the Mercedes for this test, clocked the third time. The German did his fastest time in the afternoon.
“I enjoyed it again today”, Max shares with Verstappen.nl. “We were able to do some very good mileage and the car is very good to drive.”
Just like yesterday, an improved spec of the TAG Heuer-engine was mounted in the rear of Red Bull Racing’s RB12. On Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya the 18-year-old Dutchman got acquainted with the new weapon of choice that is supposed to close the gap to Mercedes and Ferrari.
“Also the first impression of the new engine is positive. We were able to run the car without any problems. You always want more power, but if we are going to use this engine in Monaco, we need to wait and see. I enjoyed it to being able to get more used to the car and get to know the RB12 even better, also try a lot of things on the steering wheel of the car. There were some points I was able to improve on.”
Just like Max, Renault’s Kevin Magnussen was also high-spirited regarding the new power unit earlier that day. “The new engine feels quite good. You feel that there is more power and that the drivability is also better compared to the old one.”
The Barcelona-track is known for having the fastest times usually done in the morning session. Today was no exception, but in the final half an hour, we saw the results getting somewhat reshuffled again. Max’s fastest time however, remained unthreatened.
Action on track was halted twice today by means of a red flag situation. Fifteen minutes before the end of the morning session, Manor test-driver Jordan King triggered one by leaving the track at turn seven, only to end up in the gravel. With a little over 45 minutes remaining on the clocks, Daniil Kvyat caused the second and final red flag situation. The Russian was forced to park his Toro Rosso between turns four and five as a result of engine issues.
Sebastian Vettel was, looking at the two days, the fastest driver overall. With his 1:23.220, driven on Tuesday, he was 0,047 faster than Max. After this two-day’s testing session, the youngster is looking forward to the race in Monaco. “It’s looking good for Red Bull Racing, but first we need to build it up slowly and then we’ll see where we end up. Monaco is always something special and especially in qualifying when you are pushing the limits, it gives you quite a great feeling.”
Official Formula 1 test - Circuit de Catalunya - Wednesday 18 May:
1. Max Verstappen Red Bull Racing 1:23.267 118 2. Stoffel Vandoorne McLaren 1:24.006 +0.739 108 3. Pascal Wehrlein Mercedes 1:24.145 +0.878 132 4. Esteban Gutierrez Haas F1 1:24.592 +1.325 103 5. Antonio Fuoco Ferrari 1:24.720 +1.453 117 6. Daniil Kvyat Toro Rosso 1:24.737 +1.470 116 7. Alfonso Celis jr Force India 1:25.016 +1.749 103 8. Kevin Magnussen Renault 1:25.133 +1.866 121 9. Felipe Massa Williams 1:27.167 +3.900 94 10. Jordan King Manor F1 1:27.615 +4.348 91
