F1 News, Reports and Race Results

Mercedes and Bottas ahead mid-day in Barcelona

Mercedes' Valtteri Bottas topped the timesheet before mid-day at the Circuit de Catalunya on the fourth and final day of Week 1 of pre-season testing.

After yesterday's frustrating wash-out which deprived everyone of crucial mileage, teams resumed their test respective programmes this morning, although track conditions remained damp despite rising temperatures.

Bottas was among the front runners all morning but the emergence of a dry line just before the session's half-way point prompted the Finn to shed his intermediate rubber and bolt on the medium compound tyres.

Ultimately, the Mercedes driver, with 58 laps under his belt, put in the fastest lap of the day with a 1:22.789s, but Renault's Nico Hulkenberg was hot on heels of the Finn.

The session will run uninterrupted, with no lunch break, to compensate for yesterday's botched dat.

As the only drivers running on slick tyres, Bottas and Hulkenberg were comfortably ahead of the field although Red Bull's Max Vesrtappen and the smooth running Honda-powered Toro Rosso of Pierre Gasly had both previously paid a visit to the top of the timesheet.

The single red flag of the session was provided by Marcus Ericsson when he beached his Sauber at Turn 2.

Running for Ferrari, Sebastian Vettel was conspicuously absent among the front-runners, as the Scuderia driver focused on his specific programme rather than any search for performance.

It was a troubled session however for Sergio Perez however who was left stranded in the Force India garage for the bulk of the morning, achieving just 11 laps compared to Bottas' 60-lap session.

Timing at 13:11 local time

Pos Driver Team Time Laps Tyre
1  Bottas  Mercedes 1:22.789 60 M
2  Hülkenberg  Renault 1:23.462 44 I
3  Gasly  Toro Rosso 1.26.464 49 S
4  Verstappen  Red Bull 1:27.362 18 I
5  Vandoorne  McLaren 1:29.252 72 I
6  Ericsson  Sauber 1:29.866 66 I
7  Sirotkin  Williams 1:31.979 47 I
8  Magnussen  Haas 1:33.514 24 I
9  Vettel  Ferrari 1:36.162 35 I
10  Pérez  Force India 1:41.706 11 I

Gallery: The beautiful wives and girlfriends of F1 drivers

Keep up to date with all the F1 news via Facebook and Twitter

Michael Delaney

Recent Posts

Alonso pushed through agonizing pain to complete Sao Paulo GP

Fernando Alonso braved both physical agony and mechanical challenges in the Sao Paulo Grand Prix,…

1 hour ago

Alpine double-podium in Brazil could deliver $30 million windfall

Alpine’s remarkable double podium at the São Paulo Grand Prix with Esteban Ocon and Pierre…

16 hours ago

F1i's Driver Ratings for the 2024 São Paulo GP

Alexander Albon, Williams (Did Not Start): 5.5/10 Alex Albon is definitely going through something of…

17 hours ago

Jos Verstappen rips British media after Brazilian Max fest

Jos Verstappen wasted no time after his son spectacular win at the São Paulo Grand…

19 hours ago

Leclerc left with ‘mixed feelings’ after disappointing Sao Paulo GP

Charles Leclerc's weekend in Sao Paulo was unfortunately a stark contrast to Ferrari's recent triumphs…

20 hours ago

Back when Kimi knew exactly what he was doing

Twelve years ago on this day, Kimi Raikkonen took a popular win at the 2012…

22 hours ago