Testing – Barcelona Day 4: Kubica leads at noon with Alfa Romeo
The session was turbulent this morning with two red flags and mechanical troubles for Red Bull and AlphaTauri. Currently, it's Robert Kubica who is leading the way ahead of Gasly and Albon.
The session this morning began under such cool temperatures that the teams weren’t in a hurry to be the first on the track. The first laps served as a test to see if everything was working properly on the cars since last Friday when they hadn’t been driven.
Renault, Williams, and Mercedes went out with sensors to test the aerodynamics while at the same time Red Bull and AlphaTauri only completed a single warm-up lap before returning to the pits for a few hours, noticing a problem with their single-seater.
The first red flag of the session is due to Sebastian Vettel. The Ferrari driver went too wide at turn 8, cutting through the gravel. He returned to the track in a spin. The SF1000 sustained very little damage and went back on track as soon as the green flag was deployed by the marshals to allow for gravel cleanup.
The second red flag is against Nicholas Latifi’s Williams, who had to abandon his car at the side of the track due to a mechanical issue.
Note that Red Bull experienced a suspension issue, forcing Albon to return to the track only around 11:30, just like the AlphaTauri, which had an exhaust issue. Both drivers have less than 30 laps to their name this morning, while Hamilton and Vettel already have more than 80.
Results of winter tests for Wednesday, February 26 at 1:00 PM:
N° | Driver | Team | Times | Gap | Laps |
1 | Kubica | Alfa Romeo Racing | 1:16.942 | 53 | |
2 | Gasly | Scuderia AlphaTauri Honda | 1:17.540 | +0.598 | 25 |
3 | Albon | Aston Martin Red Bull Racing | 1:17.550 | +0.608 | 29 |
4 | Hamilton | Mercedes AMG Petronas Motorsport | 1:17.562 | +0.620 | 89 |
5 | Stroll | SportPesa Racing Point F1 Team | 1:17.787 | +0.845 | 43 |
6 | Vettel | Scuderia Ferrari Mission Winnow | 1:18.113 | +1.171 | 84 |
7 | Ricciardo | Renault F1 Team | 1:18.214 | +1.272 | 53 |
8 | Sainz Jr. | McLaren F1 Team | 1:18.221 | +1.279 | 46 |
9 | Latifi | ROKiT Williams Racing | 1:18.300 | +1.358 | 48 |
10 | Grosjean | Haas F1 Team | 1:18.670 | +1.728 | 42 |