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George Russell has ended the second and final day of Bahrain in-season testing on top of the timesheets.
The Briton, who drove the Mercedes W10 crossed the in the dying minutes to lay down a 1:29.029, which was almost three seconds quicker than his qualifying lap last Saturday.
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Sergio Perez was second, climbing into the Racing Point after Lance Stroll drove the morning session.
Sebastian Vettel was third, and held the lead at the top of the timesheets for much of the day in the Ferrari. Carlos Sainz, who tested for both McLaren and Pirelli, was fourth.
Daniil Kvyat, who once again tested for Pirelli was fifth, ahead of Schumacher in the Alfa Romeo. Having driven the Ferrari on Tuesday, the German got his eye in at another team, offering him some valuable experience.
There was another handful of drivers receiving some F1 experience, as Dan Ticktum tested for Red Bull, ending the day ninth fastest.
Jack Aitken and Nicholas Latifi tested or Renault and Williams respectively, setting over 100 laps each.
Fernando Alonso was also back in action for McLaren, driving 69 laps in the afternoon session for Pirelli.
Bahrain International Circuit - 03 April 2019
Azerbaijan Grand Prix
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Replies (8)
Login to replyzorba
Posts: 1,728
Wat een ontgoogeling moet dit voor die jongen zijn om terug naar die tractor te moeten.
Commando
Posts: 3,968
Dat dacht ik ook. Vandaag in een S-Klasse gereden en volgende week weer terug in de Smart. Hmmm wat een weelde bij Williams.
ajpennypacker
Posts: 2,475
Hard to draw any conclusions from these tests. Unlike previous years, the times were not faster than from Saturday. They were actually quite slower. Probably due to the rain. Nevertheless, I think it was fair to say that (1) Mick Schumacher did a fine job driving the Ferrari and (2) the hype around him has been excessive and will likely hurt his chances (not that that will stop him from getting to F1). I think Mick is F1-worthy, but I haven't seen star potential yet in any category. Maybe the second half of the F3 season. Byt I will withhold judgement until I see him do a few more F2 races. He definitely faded in Bahrain after being on pole for the sprint race. That being said, I do wish him the best, it would be a great story to have a Schumacher back in F1.
calle.itw
Posts: 8,527
Easy answer is we probably can draw no real conclusions from it, other than potential issues apparent during the tests. I doubt the goal for the teams was going full speed this round. STR, RB and Honda were allegedly just looking for data, and seemed to have gotten what they wanted. Im sure the others had similar goals. Mick is an interesting one. I'd agree with you, but it's impossible to say at this stage. We've had people with awesome merits go in and just be 'meh' in F1, and we've had nobodys go in and just blast off.
ajpennypacker
Posts: 2,475
@calle I think the least we can expect from F1 prospects if merits in junior formulae. Granted, that's no guarantee as you mentioned, Vandoorne being a prime example of this. On the other hand we also do have those that won almost nothing in junior categories, but enjoyed of tremendous hype around them, Jules Bianchi (RIP) was one that always puzzled me. Everyone seemed to think he was a future star, but I never saw anything a whole lot of justification for that.
calle.itw
Posts: 8,527
Yeah, and Stroll have won 3 different series, and he doesn't look like anything all that special either. Well, taste differ, but personally, I was enchanted by the way he drove. To me, he looked like what Leclerc now is. The car he had back then was kinda a dog, and yet he managed to push it very well. Of course, for all we know he could've been just another Wehrlein, looking good at first, only to get promoted and it turns out he is nothing special, but sadly he never even got the chance to do that. I find earlier merits to be an unreliable marker, looking at how different the series can be from each other. I've been pleasantly surprised by Albon and Norris though, I wasn't all that optimistic about them, I'll admit, but so far so good. Neither appear to be too far behind their team mate.
zorba
Posts: 1,728
Sorry I write in flemisch.
What I said is:what a disseption for this guy must it be ,to go back driving a tractor
calle.itw
Posts: 8,527
Interesting just how much Flemish one can understand the gist of just from knowing a Scandinavic language, German and English.