#F1 Bahrain Test Day 2: @ZhouGuanyu24 tops time-sheets as @GeorgeRussell63 stops on track.

Zhou tops time-sheets – Alfa Romeo’s Zhou Guanyu topped the overall time-sheets in the evening of the second day of pre-season testing at the Bahrain International Circuit where Mercedes brought out a red flag as George Russell’s F1 W14 racer came to a halt.

 

 

Friday morning’s running saw Ferrari’s Carlos Sainz posted the early benchmark of a 1:32.486, a time which stood at the top of the classifications until Red Bull’s Max Verstappen emerged in the afternoon. The reigning world champion jumped to second on his opening flying lap and half-an-hour into the afternoon he was at the top.

 

Under the bright lights in the desert, Zhou ousted the Dutchman’s effort by 0.040 seconds when he put on a set of softer compounds and set a 1:31.610, although his session was forced to end early as his C43 racer refused to enter first gear at the end of the pit-lane with ten minutes remaining.

 

Reflecting on his day, Zhou explained:

 

“We are well aware this is testing, of course, and everyone is trying different settings, but it feels nice to see my name and that of the team up there in the timing sheets. It’s been a positive day overall, we got more mileage in and went through all the targets and tasks we had set for ourselves, so I can say I am happy. The car felt reasonably good, both in daytime and night-time conditions, and I felt more confident pushing as the day progressed. Today was the final day of pre-season testing for me, and I am very much looking forward to the start of the season next week. I feel ready and excited about the new campaign, and I can’t wait to be racing again.” Zhou concluded. Credit to Alfa Romeo for the quote.

 

Eight-time Constructors Champions Mercedes hit trouble just as the sun set in Sakhir, where George Russell (P13 on the classification) came to a stop with a hydraulics problem. The Briton was unable to return to action and clocked 26 laps in the afternoon running, whilst his team-mate Sir Lewis Hamilton completed 72 laps and placed 15th on the timesheets. The seven-time world champion’s morning was briefly interrupted by some floor damage and the resulting repairs to the F1 W14.

 

Hamilton commented on a troubling morning for the Brackley-based outfit:

 

“It was a difficult morning. The hot temperatures made it challenging with the tyres overheating, as we often see here in Bahrain. We got through our run plan though and it was good to get that mileage in. Everyone is working incredibly hard, staying focused, and we’re discovering everything we can about the W14. We’ve got lots of work planned for the final day of pre-season testing tomorrow.” Hamilton concluded. Credit to Mercedes for the quote.

 

Double World Champion Fernando Alonso racked up 130 tours on the mileage charts for Aston Martin as the Spaniard placed third overall for the Silverstone based-outfit.

 

Alonso said on a solid day of running:

 

“It was a good day for us with a lot of laps completed – just what you need in a new car. We had a busy programme and tried a lot of different things. After a long winter it is good to get strong mileage under your belt early on and there is no better training than driving a Formula One car. I now feel fitter and sharper ahead of next week, which will be my first race with Aston Martin, and I am very excited about that. I have another half day tomorrow so we will use this to continue learning and collecting as much data as possible. I am looking forward to getting back in the car tomorrow afternoon.” Alonso concluded. Credit to Aston Martin for the quote.

 

Scuderia AlphaTauri’s Nyck de Vries ended the day fourth and was 0.612 seconds adrift of Zhou’s benchmark and clocked 74 tours in mileage of the Bahrain International Circuit and Haas F1 Team’s Nico Hulkenberg rounded out the top five setting a 1:32.466 with 68 laps of mileage.

 

Sainz’s morning stint saw the Spaniard fall to sixth in the order with 70 laps completed in the SF-23, with Ferrari team-mate Charles Leclerc clocking 68 tours and finishing eighth on the time-sheets.

 

Sainz on his morning commented:

 

“It’s been another positive day. Reliability was again very good, and we’ve been able to explore all the set-ups we targeted to test. We keep exploring the limits of the car and finding potential areas where we can maximise performance. The main target is to keep up the good work tomorrow and get ready for next week” Sainz concluded. Credit to Ferrari for the quote.

 

Leclerc added on his afternoon:

 

“We ran various tests today, with our main focus on the car’s set-up. We are working hard and it’s still too early to make any judgement yet. It was good to get some more laps down and we will keep pushing forward by analysing our data ahead of the last day of testing tomorrow.” Leclerc concluded. Credit to Ferrari for the quote.

 

Splitting the Ferrari drivers was Williams Racing’s Logan Sargeant, who like Alonso and Zhou drove the entire day. The rookie placed seventh overall and lead the mileage charts – with a solid 154 laps under his belt. The American returned to the pits with 15 minutes left on the clock and hopped out of the FW45, with what suspected to be an electrical problem.

 

It was later revealed that the Grove-based squad were having Sargeant practice exiting the car in the event of an issue, during which a small electrical problem did happen.

 

McLaren’s Oscar Piastri finished ninth in the afternoon season, whilst his team-mate Lando Norris was 16th in the overall classifications after a productive morning for the Woking-based outfit.

 

Piastri reflected on his afternoon:

 

“It was a solid day for the team with everything running smoothly. Today’s session has increased my learning of the car and I feel like I am improving with every lap. It was good to focus on different areas throughout my drive, including the race simulation. We are going in a good direction which is pleasing to see on day two of testing and I’m looking forward to getting back out on track in the session tomorrow morning.” Piastri concluded. Credit to McLaren for the quote.

 

BWT Alpine F1 Team’s Pierre Gasly completed the top ten, 1.576 seconds off Zhou’s benchmark effort with Haas F1 Team’s Kevin Magnussen 11th in the order as Gasly’s team-mate Esteban Ocon was 12th and faced interruptions in his morning stint. The Frenchman however, completed 49 laps of the Bahrain International Circuit in the A523.

 

Red Bull’s Sergio Perez split the Mercedes duo after setting 76 tours in the morning session with the Mexican’s best effort a 1:33.751.

 

Scuderia AlphaTauri’s Yuki Tsunoda brought up the rear, managing 85 tours in the morning before handing the AT04 racer to de Vries for the afternoon.

 

2023 Formula 1 Pre-Season Testing Day 2 Classification

 

 

Watch the highlights of day two of pre-season testing right here at the link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ojzrk6ALUqM

 

---

Catch up on what happened on the opening day of testing along with exclusive driver quotes:

#F1 Bahrain Test Day 1: @Max33Verstappen edges out @alo_oficial.