Fernando Alonso quickest in FP1, Hamilton fastest in FP2
Fernando Alonso and Kimi Raikkonen were third and seventh quickest respectively in the second free practice session for the Australian Grand Prix. At Albert Park the Spaniard, who did 28 laps, posted a 1.30.132, half a second off the quickest time set by Lewis Hamilton, with his Mercedes team-mate Nico Rosberg second. The Finn did 32 laps on his way to a best time of 1.30.898.
Both drivers worked on evaluating the Soft tyres for wear and performance, which appears to be almost two seconds quicker than the Mediums. They also worked on car set-up and in the final half hour, both drivers did a long run, practicing starts through the session. One small problem for Raikkonen when a failed sensor meant he could not select first gear at the end of pit lane. But the F14 T was brought back to the garage where it was fixed with no effect on the planned programme.
Fernando Alonso: “On the first Friday of the season, there’s always a bit more tension. It’s the start of a new championship and there is the feeling of general expectation to see how things we worked on during the winter are functioning. Overall, this was a positive day for us and even if there was an element of nervousness because of the complexity introduced by the new technical regulations, everything went well. The team did a super job and we had no problems. The track improved from the first session to the second, with more grip compared to the morning and there was also more wind. Running the soft tyre certainly helped, as the extra grip meant the times came down, but it’s impossible to have a clear idea of how competitive we are, because as usual, Friday results don’t mean much. To know more, we must wait until everyone is running in the same trim”.
Kimi Raikkonen: “That was a pretty demanding day, because although we managed to complete our programme, it wasn’t trouble-free. In the first session we lost a bit of time, but that didn’t prevent us acquiring enough data to evaluate the overall handling of the car and the Pirelli compounds. This evening there will be a lot of work to do, especially to understand what didn’t work and to try and improve for qualifying and the race”.
Pat Fry: “Today, we tried to make the most of the good weather and track conditions to work on different strategies and mapping for the race, because this weekend the forecast is very uncertain, especially for tomorrow. During the first session, we concentrated on car set-up, especially in terms of improving the balance under braking and on optimising the drivers’ feeling. In the second session, we ran an evaluation of the soft tyre, completing the programme with a series of long runs. It’s very complicated getting the new systems to work perfectly and then, once you’ve reached that level, to get the maximum performance out of the car. There’s a long way to go and now it’s important to stay focused and pay full attention to the smallest details”.
FP1
Pos/Driver/Team-Car/Time/ap 1. Fernando Alonso Ferrari 1m31.840s 20 laps2. Jenson Button McLaren-Mercedes 1m32.357s +0.517s 233. Valtteri Bottas Williams-Mercedes 1m32.403s +0.563s 274. Felipe Massa Williams-Mercedes 1m32.431s +0.591s 195. Daniel Ricciardo Red Bull-Renault 1m32.599s +0.759s 266. Nico Rosberg Mercedes 1m32.604s +0.764s 177. Sebastian Vettel Red Bull-Renault 1m32.793s +0.953s 108. Kevin Magnussen McLaren-Mercedes 1m32.847s +1.007s 289. Kimi Raikkonen Ferrari 1m32.977s +1.137s 1810 Jean-Eric Vergne Toro Rosso-Renault 1m33.446s +1.606s 3011 Nico Hulkenberg Force India-Mercedes 1m33.533s +1.693s 2312 Sergio Perez Force India-Mercedes 1m33.855s +2.015s 2413 Daniil Kvyat Toro Rosso-Renault 1m34.272s +2.432s 2714 Esteban Gutierrez Sauber-Ferrari 1m35.578s +3.738s 715 Adrian Sutil Sauber-Ferrari 1m36.445s +4.605s 1316 Jules Bianchi Marussia-Ferrari 1m40.859s +9.019s 617 Max Chilton Marussia-Ferrari 1m46.922s +15.082s 418 Marcus Ericsson Caterham-Renault 119 Lewis Hamilton Mercedes 120 Kamui Kobayashi Caterham-Renault 121 Pastor Maldonado Lotus-Renault 2
FP21. Lewis Hamilton Mercedes 1m29.625s 372. Nico Rosberg Mercedes 1m29.782s +0.157s 313. Fernando Alonso Ferrari 1m30.132s +0.507s 284. Sebastian Vettel Red Bull-Renault 1m30.381s +0.756s 415. Jenson Button McLaren-Mercedes 1m30.510s +0.885s 336. Daniel Ricciardo Red Bull-Renault 1m30.538s +0.913s 387. Kimi Raikkonen Ferrari 1m30.898s +1.273s 328. Valtteri Bottas Williams-Mercedes 1m30.920s +1.295s 389. Kevin Magnussen McLaren-Mercedes 1m31.031s +1.406s 3410 Nico Hulkenberg Force India-Mercedes 1m31.054s +1.429s 3311 Jean-Eric Vergne Toro Rosso-Renault 1m31.060s +1.435s 3512 Felipe Massa Williams-Mercedes 1m31.119s +1.494s 3113 Sergio Perez Force India-Mercedes 1m31.283s +1.658s 3614 Adrian Sutil Sauber-Ferrari 1m32.355s +2.730s 3615 Esteban Gutierrez Sauber-Ferrari 1m32.468s +2.843s 2616 Daniil Kvyat Toro Rosso-Renault 1m32.495s +2.870s 3617 Jules Bianchi Marussia-Ferrari 1m33.486s +3.861s 2918 Romain Grosjean Lotus-Renault 1m33.646s +4.021s 1219 Max Chilton Marussia-Ferrari 1m34.757s +5.132s 2920 Marcus Ericsson Caterham-Renault 121 Pastor Maldonado Lotus-Renault22 Kamui Kobayashi Caterham-Renault
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