BARCELONA, Spain – Daniel Ricciardo is behind the wheel of the RB11 in Barcelona today and tomorrow with Daniil Kvyat taking over for day three and four.
Formula One’s second pre-season test of 2015 got underway in Barcelona today, with Daniel Ricciardo recording 59 laps of the Circuit de Catalunya. The bulk of Daniel’s laps were completed in the afternoon, as the team made a late start to the morning session due to a number of upgrades needing to fine-tuned before the Australian took to the track. Thereafter, the team’s running was trouble-free, with Daniel enjoying a brief run on the soft tire to slot into third place on the timesheet, with a lap of 1:25.547.
“The car felt good today. We got a bit of running done on a few different [tire] compounds, which was interesting and we got a lot of data, which is always good,” said Daniel. “I think we’re chipping away. We’re definitely making progress but it takes time. However, I think come Melbourne we’ll be there.”
Head of Race Engineering Guillaume Rocquelin added: “A slightly difficult morning for the team but not wholly unexpected given that we had some new parts here which needed to be dialled in. There were some software issues in the morning, which held us back a bit, but while those were being sorted out we were able to get through some aero mapping work, which was useful. Then the car got better and better through the day and in the end Daniel was able to run on the pace. We did mostly short runs today as that suited the game plan for the updates we have, but by the afternoon I think we could have sent him out for as long as we wanted as the car was running well at that stage. Ultimately, what we got today is pretty much what you’d expect from the first day of a test at which there are quite a few new things to factor in.”
Driver: Daniel Ricciardo
Car: RB11
Laps: 59
Best time: 1:25.547
Circuit length: 4.655km
Fastest Lap: P. Maldonado (1:25.011)
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