Fernando Alonso continued on top form in the second day of pre-season testing for Aston Martin at Bahrain International Circuit.
On Thursday, Alonso came close to deposing Red Bull's Max Verstappen from the top spot, finishing just 0.029s behind the reigning world champion.
And on Friday he proved it was no fluke, once again coming in just behind Verstappen - although on this occasion, Alfa Romeo's Zhou Guanyu pipped them both with a run using a set of the softest compound tyres.
But Alonso was particularly happy to complete 130 laps during a full day in the AMR23, with no signs of reliability problems like the ones that soured his time at previous team Alpine.
“It was a good day for us with a lot of laps completed," he reported after the end of the day's running. "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 1 car," he continued. "I am looking forward to getting back in the car tomorrow afternoon.”
"I have another half day tomorrow so we will use this to continue learning and collecting as much data as possible," he added.
"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.
Aston Martin team principal Mike Krack was also pleased with the progress made during the second day of pre-season testing.
"Fernando completed 130 laps, allowing us to run through our full test plan and gather further valuable data," he commented. "We are continuing to get to know Fernando’s driving style and what he wants from the car.
"His feedback has been incredibly constructive and the changes we implemented overnight were received well," he continued. However he remained wary about whether Aston really had leapt to the front of the 'midfield' teams.
"It is very difficult to make predictions on competitiveness based on a few days of testing," he said. "We have the full range of tyres available, different fuel levels and so many other variables to consider.
"We are just focussing on ourselves, preparing as much as we can, and getting through the job list," he added. "It will be next week after qualifying when we get a much clearer picture of how competitive we are."
Meanwhile doubts remain about who will be alongside Alonso for next week's Bahrain Grand Prix, after team mate Lance Stroll suffered hand and wrist injuries in a training accident.
It has ruled him out of the three-day pre-season test, with Aston Martin reserve driver Felipe Drugovich taking his place. The 22-year-old Brazilian will be back in the car again on Saturday morning, with Alonso driving again after lunch.
With it appearing increasingly likely that Stroll will not be sufficiently recovered in time for the season opener, it could mean that Drugovich might be handed his F1 debut on March 5.
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