Private Testing – Day 2: Two French at the Top, Two French at the Bottom

Jean-Eric Vergne has finished at the top of the young drivers’ private test rankings for the second consecutive time. The Frenchman, testing with Red Bull Renault this week, set his best time this morning. He encountered suspension problems in the morning and KERS issues in the afternoon, preventing him from completing qualification laps.

Second, Jules Bianchi has significantly closed in on the lead. He is less than a tenth of a second behind his fellow Frenchman. The Ferrari test driver performed very well in the qualifying laps in the afternoon, achieving his best time at the end of the session. The Frenchman tested many new features on the Ferrari and analyzed the behavior of the car with the 2012 Pirelli tires.

Gary Paffett ranks one and a half seconds behind. The McLaren protégé improved his times compared to the day before. He is more than 5 tenths ahead of Bottas’ Williams. The Finn once again put on a good show. He had a minor wing issue early in the afternoon but delivers a strong performance in an improved Williams.

Cecotto in Force India is ahead of Esteban Gutierrez in Sauber. The Mexican hadn’t driven in F1 since the previous rookie tests last year. Sam Bird in 7th continues the development of the Mercedes GP. He is ahead of the Lotus Renault GP of Korjus, who notably won a race in F3 this season.

12th and 13th, Charles Pic and Nathanaël Berthon share the bottom of the standings. The French drivers were racing for Virgin and HRT. Pic experienced an engine problem with the Virgin in the late morning, which forced him to stop at the pit for an hour. Nathanaël Berthon, on his part, only drove in the last half hour, taking Jan Charouz’s place. He will drive all day tomorrow.

Results of the Abu Dhabi Private Tests – Day 2: