Mercedes completed a whopping 168 laps of the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya on the second day of testing at the Circuit de Catalunya as they continued with their 2017 pre-season testing programme.
Both drivers were back in action again for day two with Lewis completing a total of 68 laps and Valtteri 102 at the wheel of the F1 W08 EQ Power+
Lewis emerged for his first run as the track opened at 09:00, kicking off the day's programme with aero data collection and vibration logging, before moving on to analysis of the softer tyre compounds and setup work.
“Today's been a really positive day. It was an easier morning and we started off on the right foot. Yesterday, there was an element of brushing off the cobwebs, it being the first day in the car, so it took a little longer than normal to really acclimatise in the car and to find exactly where to exploit the its ability,” Lewis said.
“I didn't do a huge amount of laps today but I got a really good feel for the car. I think we've made some steps forward in development. My quick lap felt fast and tidy. We've not really exploited the potential of the car, so it's all good foundation building at this stage. These new tyres seem to be lasting a lot better than they did previously, so I think you can push them more and fight harder, lap after lap, so that's a good step in the right direction.”
“I'm finding the car is much more physical to drive than in the past. It's so much faster in the corners. The force you feel on your body and on your neck is much higher. I've got bruises and bumps where I've never really had them before. Physically I feel fine though, as it's only half a day of testing. I've trained enough over the winter to be ready for more.”
After the hour-long lunch break at 13:00, Valtteri took over in the cockpit where he completed a race simulation before rounding off the day with further aero tests…
“I think it was another good test day for the team. We did so many laps again and completed all the runs that we had planned to do,” the Finn said. “I worked on race simulations this afternoon. It was quite tricky with the windy conditions but I'm sure that we can learn a lot from the data.”
“I had a small off but it wasn't anything serious. I lost the rear end with a gust of tail wind that was quite sudden. This is testing - you need to find the limits. It's interesting to learn more about the new car - not just for me personally, but for us as a team. All the set-up work we've done has been very valuable. Two more days to go - I'm looking forward to it.”
On day two, Mercedes-Benz Power Units completed a total of 1,238km.
