Mercedes finished 1-2 on Day 3 testing. Drivers and teams will now break until Wednesday when they resume another three days of testing–the final tests before the 2020 season begins.
MONTMELO, Spain—February 21st—Mercedes’ drivers Valtteri Bottas and Lewis Hamilton showed their usual 1-2 finish on Friday in the third and final day of testing at the Circuit de Catalunya. Bottas bettered teammate Hamilton, who is the current and six-time world champion, by setting a 1:15:732 for a total of 65 laps.
No driver had a huge number of laps around the circuit except for Antonio Giovinazzi of Alfa Romeo/Orlen with 165.
Several red flags–three, in fact–were out on the circuit on this week’s final day of testing. Vettel began with an engine failure two hours before the lunch break, while the Haas F1 team’s Kevin Magnussen, who ended up finishing 16th and last, had his day cut short when he lost control of his car at turn eight, the result of a wheel space breaking the left rear rim.
Max Verstappen of Red Bull Racing practices a pit stop in Formula 1 Testing, Day Three, Barcelona, Spain. Friday. (www.xpbimages.comCopyright: Batchelor/XPB Image)
Renault, following a very few laps, had a more productive day with Esteban Ocon finishing third, while teammate Daniel Ricciardo ended up seventh. Ricciardo put a good lap in with fresh tires, and that performance came during a day of spins with the car breaking down in the afternoon. But he was still able to complete 93 laps. Ocon did 76 turns in the morning.
Nicolas Latifi finished 15th overall but was the last red flag culprit. His Williams car broke down at the end of the pit lane. The Canadian managed to return in the afternoon.
For the rest of the field, Dani Kvyat took fifth in his Alpha Tauri with teammate Pierre Gasly coming in ninth. Red Bull’s Max Verstappen and Alex Albon were eighth and tenth, respectively, as they put many miles on the car. The two McLaren’s of Carlos Sainz Jr. and Lando Norris were 11th and 14th, respectively. The second Haas F1 Team driver, Romain Grosjean, finished 12th.
Despite all that action on the track, there was plenty of paddock discussion about Mercedes and its DAS steering system. While it was learned that the F.I.A. (the automobile sanctioning body of Formula 1) is aware of the device, two teams–Red Bull and Ferrari–are protesting. Other teams may follow. At issue is whether the system will be allowed in 2020. It’s already known via the new Concorde agreement that the device will be illegal in 2021.
It’s likely that DAS will continue to be a hot topic as the drivers and their teams take a break until next Wednesday when there will be another round of texts through Friday. It will be the team’s last chance to adjust set-ups before the 2020 season begins three weeks later.
