Categories: FeatureFeatures

The final test in numbers

After 12 days of testing, pre-season is finally over and the next time the cars will be run in anger will be first practice for the Australian Grand Prix.

Mercedes showed itself to have the quickest car throughout the three pre-season tests, with the 2014 double championship-winning team really displaying its pace during the final test at Barcelona. Both Nico Rosberg and Lewis Hamilton topped the times, with neither driver using the supersoft tyre to do so.

There was encouragement for Williams at the final test while Ferrari also looked strong, but Red Bull struggled with reliability issues on the final day and Daniel Ricciardo says it has yet to show its true pace.

One encouraging day of more than 100 laps for McLaren was surrounded by more limited running, with Force India's 2015 car almost surpassing the total number of laps McLaren managed this pre-season despite the VJM08 only running for the first time on Friday lunchtime.

The final rundown of laps completed and best times set - including the tyre used - at the final test is available below.

Tyre compound key: (ss) = supersoft, (s) = soft, (m) = medium, (h) = hard, (p) = prototype, (i) = intermediate, (w) = wet

Pos Driver Team Time (tyre) Laps
1 N. Rosberg Mercedes 1:22.792 (S) 254
2 L. Hamilton Mercedes 1:23.022 (S) 124
3 V. Bottas Williams-Mercedes 1:23.063 (SS) 179
4 F. Massa Williams-Mercedes 1:23.262 (SS) 205
5 K. Räikkönen Ferrari 1:23.276 (SS) 215
6 S. Vettel Ferrari 1:23.469 (SS) 271
7 F. Nasr Sauber-Ferrari 1:24.023 (SS) 299
8 C. Sainz Toro Rosso-Renault 1:24.191 (SS) 218
9 R. Grosjean Lotus-Mercedes 1:24.200 (SS) 191
10 M. Ericsson Sauber-Ferrari 1:24.276 (SS) 245
11 M. Verstappen Toro Rosso-Renault 1:24.527 (SS) 224
12 D. Ricciardo Red Bull-Renault 1:24:638 (S) 200
13 N. Hülkenberg Force India-Mercedes 1:24.939 (SS) 235
14 S. Pérez Force India-Mercedes 1:25.113 (SS) 130
15 K. Magnussen McLaren-Honda 1:25.225 (S) 39
16 J. Button McLaren-Honda 1:25.327 (SS) 138
17 D. Kvyat Red Bull-Renault 1:25.947 (M) 158
18 P. Maldonado Lotus-Mercedes 1:26.705 (S) 176

With differing programmes throughout the back-to-back tests in Barcelona, some drivers were actually quicker during the second test. Below are the combined lap totals and best times for each driver from both the second and third tests at the Circuit de Catalunya, with only 2015 cars included.

Pos Driver Team Time (tyre) Laps
1 N. Rosberg Mercedes 1:22.792 (S) 451
2 L. Hamilton Mercedes 1:23.022 (S) 325
3 V. Bottas Williams-Mercedes 1:23.063 (SS) 357
4 F. Massa Williams-Mercedes 1:23.262 (SS) 348
5 K. Räikkönen Ferrari 1:23.276 (SS) 379
6 S. Vettel Ferrari 1:23.469 (SS) 453
7 F. Nasr Sauber-Ferrari 1:24.023 (SS) 452
8 R. Grosjean Lotus-Mercedes 1:24.067 (SS) 302
9 C. Sainz Toro Rosso-Renault 1:24.191 (SS) 406
10 M. Ericsson Sauber-Ferrari 1:24.276 (SS) 411
11 P. Maldonado Lotus-Mercedes 1:24.348 (SS) 349
12 M. Verstappen Toro Rosso-Renault 1:24.527 (SS) 447
13 D. Ricciardo Red Bull-Renault 1:24:574 (S) 402
14 N. Hülkenberg Force India-Mercedes 1:24.939 (SS) 235
15 S. Pérez Force India-Mercedes 1:25.113 (SS) 130
16 K. Magnussen McLaren-Honda 1:25.225 (S) 39
17 J. Button McLaren-Honda 1:25.327 (SS) 183
18 D. Kvyat Red Bull-Renault 1:25.947 (M) 375
19 F. Alonso McLaren-Honda 1:25.961 (S) 79
20 J. Palmer Lotus-Mercedes 1:26.280 (S) 77
21 P. Wehrlein Mercedes 1:28.489 (H) 48
22 S. Wolff Williams-Mercedes 1:28.906 (M) 86

And the combined lap totals for each team from the final four days of testing, with Mercedes for once not top of the pile...

Pos Team Laps
1 Sauber-Ferrari 544
2 Ferrari 486
3 Toro Rosso-Renault 442
4 Williams-Mercedes 384
5 Mercedes 378
6 Lotus-Mercedes 367
7 Force India-Mercedes 365
8 Red Bull-Renault 358
9 McLaren-Honda 177
Andrew Lewin

Andrew first became a fan of Formula 1 during the time when Michael Schumacher and Damon Hill were stepping into the limelight after the era of Alain Prost, Nigel Mansell and Aryton Senna. He's been addicted ever since, and has been writing about the sport now for nearly a quarter of a century for a number of online news sites. He's also written professionally about GP2 (now Formula 2), GP3, IndyCar, World Rally Championship, MotoGP and NASCAR. In his other professional life, Andrew is a freelance writer, social media consultant, web developer/programmer, and digital specialist in the fields of accessibility, usability, IA, online communities and public sector procurement. He worked for many years in magazine production at Bauer Media, and for over a decade he was part of the digital media team at the UK government's communications department. Born and raised in Essex, Andrew currently lives and works in south-west London.

Recent Posts

Team Talk – Sunday afternoon in Shanghai

  Pirelli Dario Marrafuschi – Pirelli Motorsport Director 'Firstly, I would like to congratulate Kimi…

13 hours ago

Russell braced for Ferrari drivers’ collision in Chinese GP

Those who weren't watching Sunday’s Chinese Grand Prix with their heart in their, weren't watching…

18 hours ago

Wolff overwhelmed by China podium: ‘One of the best I’ve ever had'

For Kimi Antonelli, victory at the Chinese Grand Prix was the moment a dream became…

19 hours ago

Verstappen tears into F1 after Shanghai DNF: ‘For me, it’s a joke’

The frustration boiling inside Max Verstappen finally spilled over in Shanghai, where another bruising weekend…

20 hours ago

Chinese GP: Sunday's action in pictures

The 2026 Chinese GP will go down in history for Mercedes teenager Kimi Antonelli who…

21 hours ago

Hamilton mentally and physically ‘back to my best’ after China podium

Under the afternoon sun and the roar of the grandstands at the Shanghai International Circuit,…

22 hours ago