Max positive on penultimate day of pre-season testing

Published on 27 February 2020 by Stefan Meens

Despite the tricky weather conditions and a spin in the early stages of the session, Max Verstappen was positive when he reflected on the penultimate morning of pre-season testing. Although he beached his RB16 in the gravel early on, the Aston Martin Red Bull Racing driver completed 31 laps. His best effort resulted in a 1:17.738 set on the C2 Pirelli compound.

Sebastian Vettel was the most productive on Thursday morning. The Ferrari driver lapped the Circuit de Barcelona Catalunya 49 times. The German was also quickest, topping the charts with a 1:16.841, set on the C5 tyres.

“The weather wasn’t really helping this morning but we were still able to do our thing”, said Max after the morning session. "The main thing was to test new parts and gather data. We got what we needed. It might not have been ideal, but it’s the same for everyone. Everything appears to work well though.”

Max is not worried he lost out on some track time due to his spin. “Last week we put in a lot of laps, which is positive. We know the car and engine are doing well so we’re trying out some stuff. That means it sometimes takes a bit longer to change the car as it’s all pretty complex.”

Regarding his spin in turn 5, Max was clear: “I’ve seen the footage and I hit a damp patch I couldn’t see from the car. There was no damage, but by the time the car is brought back to the pits and all the gravel is removed, you’ll easily lose half an hour.”

Nevertheless, Max remains optimistic about the general direction the team is heading in: “We’re improving and learning every day. That’s exactly what we want to do”, concludes the Red Bull ace. Unlike the previous four days of pre-season testing thus far, Thursday’s running started on a damp track caused by overnight rain. Because of the treacherous conditions, the circuit remains relatively quiet in the first half of the morning.

During the session, several drivers experience spins and minor offs, leading to a total of three red flags. The first one is caused by Antonio Giovinazzi. The Italian lost his Alfa Romeo at turn 4 and ended up in the tyre barrier. Although Giovinazzi was able to drive back to the pits, the scattered debris left behind is enough to bring about a red flag.

Max was the second driver to prompt a red flag. The Dutchman, who spun earlier on in the session, hit a damp patch breaking into turn 5, resulting in his RB16 sliding into gravel trap. Unfortunately for Max, the car beached itself, meaning the session was halted temporarily.

Sebastian Vettel, the fastest and most productive driver of Thursday morning’s test, was the final driver to cause a red flag. Although the Ferrari driver was able manoeuvre out of the gravel traps, the gravel left on the circuit prompted a red flag to allow the marshals to clean the track.

The damp conditions and red flags ultimately led to the least productive test session in terms of lap count overall. However, with both the weather and the track improving, more running is expected in the afternoon session.