Max fourth in FP2: "Positive day"
Published on 25 November 2016 by Stefan Meens
After P3 in the first Friday free practice session, Max Verstappen clocked the fourth fastest lap in FP2 at the Yas Marina Circuit in Abu Dhabi. Lewis Hamilton was once again fastest in front of his Mercedes team mate Nico Rosberg and Ferrari’s Sebastian Vettel.
“It was a positive day, but there’s room for improvement. We had a few issues with the car today which meant aborting the last run was the sensible thing to do so we can check the car and make sure we are ready to go in the morning. Nothing is broken and there is nothing to worry about, just safe to stop early. Our speed in the long runs was good and we have the right balance”, explains Max. “It’s going to be tough to start from the second row of the grid. Ferrari are strong around here. But I’m convinced we can beat them.”
Looking ahead to the race, Max warns for risky strategies to try and undercut the Mercedes. “It might be possible but Mercedes aren’t crazy. If you try an undercut, you can get stuck in traffic. So we’re just going to focus on ourselves and qualifying. Mercedes look strong and always have something extra in qualifying.”
Both Haas F1 drivers are the first drivers out on track setting a lap time. Six minutes into the session, Max heads out in the RB12.
The first incident follows soon after. Daniil Kvyat spins off the track at high speed. Like in FP1, the Russian’s Toro Rosso suffers a puncture. Straight after the first session, Pirellis announced that the first puncture was not a result of a tyre issue. FIA delegate Jo Bauer’s presence at the Toro Rosso pits after Kvyat second puncture, indicates it is a recurring issue.
Half an hour into the session, several drivers head out on the ultra-soft Pirellis. Max sets the quickest second sector time but loses the advantage in the other two sectors. In the end, his fastest effort is good enough for P4, behind Vettel and both Mercedes.
In the second part of FP2, the teams focus on long runs. Both Max and Daniel Ricciardo show encouraging pace on the ultra-softs, but as they are running a used set, the times are not improved upon.
Thus far, Scuderia Toro Rosso has had the toughest start to the weekend. Daniil Kvyat managed only four laps, team mate Carlos Sainz only four. Sebastian Vettel, showing good pace in third, had to abandon his Ferrari track side due to gearbox problems.
Abu Dhabi Grand Prix - Yas Marina Circuit - Friday 25 November
FREE PRACTICE RESULTS 01 44 Lewis Hamilton Mercedes 1:40.861 35 02 6 Nico Rosberg Mercedes 1:40.940 +0.079s 37 03 5 Sebastian Vettel Ferrari 1:41.130 +0.269s 31 04 33 Max Verstappen Red Bull Racing TAG Heuer 1:41.389 +0.528s 24 05 3 Daniel Ricciardo Red Bull Racing TAG Heuer 1:41.390 +0.529s 32 06 7 Kimi Räikkönen Ferrari 1:41.464 +0.603s 33 07 77 Valtteri Bottas Williams Mercedes 1:41.959 +1.098s 34 08 11 Sergio Perez Force India Mercedes 1:42.041 +1.180s 34 09 27 Nico Hulkenberg Force India Mercedes 1:42.264 +1.403s 35 10 19 Felipe Massa Williams Mercedes 1:42.268 +1.407s 35 11 14 Fernando Alonso McLaren Honda 1:42.366 +1.505s 32 12 22 Jenson Button McLaren Honda 1:42.823 +1.962s 23 13 21 Esteban Gutierrez Haas Ferrari 1:43.012 +2.151s 34 14 8 Romain Grosjean Haas Ferrari 1:43.108 +2.247s 17 15 30 Jolyon Palmer Renault 1:43.272 +2.411s 32 16 31 Esteban Ocon MRT Mercedes 1:43.600 +2.739s 34 17 94 Pascal Wehrlein MRT Mercedes 1:43.754 +2.893s 32 18 12 Felipe Nasr Sauber Ferrari 1:43.903 +3.042s 35 19 9 Marcus Ericsson Sauber Ferrari 1:44.045 +3.184s 33 20 20 Kevin Magnussen Renault 1:44.117 +3.256s 24 21 55 Carlos Sainz Toro Rosso Ferrari 1:44.478 +3.617s 5 22 26 Daniil Kvyat Toro Rosso Ferrari 1:45.948 +5.087s 4
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