Max rounds up Wednesday in Barcelona with 109 laps: “A positive day”

Published on 20 February 2019 by Mike Motilall

On his second day of working in the RB15, Max Verstappen lapped the Barcelona track 109 times. The Aston Martin Red Bull Racing-driver ended up being fifth fastest with a 1:18.787. Daniil Kvyat was the quickest in his Toro Rosso on the Wednesday, setting a 1:17.704. The Russian was also the most productive driver with 137 laps to his name.

After the session, Max informs Verstappen.nl: “We tried out many set ups and learned a lot as well. It is a completely new car with new aerodynamics, so we looked at in which direction we needed to go. We didn’t have many problems, just minor issues. It’s difficult to say something about the lap times, but when you’ve done more than 100 laps, you can always be happy. It was a positive day.”

In the afternoon, Romain Grosjean takes over the Haas F1-steering wheel from Pietro Fittipaldi and at Renault, Ricciardo replaces team mate Hülkenberg. At Mercedes, Hamilton and Bottas swap places. The first one to trigger a code red is the Haas. When the track has been cleared, we, for the first time, see a Williams getting out on the asphalt. Russel will, however, finish the day at the bottom of the board, with 23 laps and at a considerable distance.

It appears that during the afternoon session speed is not of any relevance, because all the drivers are busy with somewhat longer stints. Max has, after being on the track for over an hour, sets a 1:18.787, coming in third fastest. We see the Dutchman leave the pits a number of times, during which he does some practice starts. All maneuvers that are required to be performed during a Grand Prix-weekend are simulated and practiced.

While Max adds some more mileage to his total during the final half hour, Kvyat goes purple as he tops the board. The day finishes when Grosjean, with just a few minutes of the session remaining, halts once again. Kimi Raikkonen (Alfa Romeo) is second fastest, ahead of Daniel Ricciardo (Renault).

Pre-Season Test 1 - Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya - Wednesday 20 February 2019