Max Verstappen was able to test his RB18 again. In Bahrain, the Oracle Red Bull Racing driver was allowed to take care of the entire second day of testing.
The Limburger came to a number of 86 laps and the second time of all drivers who took action on Friday.
tinker
After teammate Sergio Pérez was allowed to enter the circuit on behalf of Red Bull Racing on Thursday, it was Max Verstappen’s turn all day on Friday. The Limburger let no grass grow and was one of the first on the circuit on Friday morning. During the first test days in Barcelona, Verstappen drove a lot of test rounds, in Bahrain the Limburger was seen more often in the pit box to have his car tinkered with.
Fire
After less than two hours, the red flag was shown. A problem with the brakes of Nicholas Latifi’s Williams caused a small fire. As a result, the session was stopped for half an hour. The fire turned out to have major consequences for Williams, as they were out of action on the track for the rest of the day.
After four hours of racing, at the planned break, Verstappen had completed 45 laps. He came on the hard tire until the third time of the morning: 1.35.874. Esteban Ocon was fastest on the soft tyre, Mercedes driver George Russell drove the most laps: 69.
Exchange
In the afternoon some teams switched drivers. Lewis Hamilton and Carlos Sainz, among others, could be seen in the Bahrain (early) evening. After a quiet start to the session, the return of Kevin Magnussen was one of the first notable moments. Magnussen replaces Russian Nikita Mazepin at Haas, who was fired because of the war in Ukraine.
flow fish
After 1.5 hours, Verstappen also showed up again. The flow-vis, a kind of paint, was also applied to the RB18 to get a better look at the airflows. Just like in the morning hours, Verstappen mainly drove on the hard tire during the second part of the day.
The afternoon session was again interrupted by a red flag. Esteban Ocon’s car suddenly came to a stop, interrupting the session for half an hour. It was the start of more delays, as shortly after the restart Lando Norris came to a halt just outside the pit lane. The result was a new red flag.
soft tires
In the last part of the training, Verstappen drove a number of laps on the soft tire, the softest tire. As a result, Verstappen improved his time a number of times. He eventually drove his fastest lap in 1.34.011. The fastest time of all drivers who came into action on Friday was Carlos Sainz (Ferrari). He was the only one to drive under 1 minute and 34 seconds: 1.33.532. Verstappen eventually drove 86 laps.
Fast laps
Saturday is the last day of testing. Then Pérez comes into action in the morning and Verstappen in the afternoon. Pérez told the on Friday NOS that Red Bull was not yet busy with the fast laps. This means that not much value should be attached to the times that have been driven so far. The Mexican also reported that there will be “something new to the car on Saturday”.
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