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Barcelona day 2 summary: Leclerc on top, Gasly in the wall

Barcelona day 2 summary: Leclerc on top, Gasly in the wall

19-02-2019 17:26
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Adam Newton

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With two days now gone in the first test ahead of the 2019 F1 season, what have we learnt so far and what can we expect from the rest of the week?

Charles Leclerc is QUICK

Charles Leclerc topped the timesheets on Tuesday with a 1:18:247, less than a tenth slower than his team mate Sebastian Vettel managed on Monday.

We already knew that he was likely to impress, but being so on the pace compared to a four-time world champion is a quality showing from the 21-year old.

Ferrari look strong

Ferrari have now topped both days of testing. Obviously, we all know that testing isn’t a true show of a team’s real pace, but topping two days in a row will not go unnoticed.

Vettel and Leclerc having such similar pace could suggest that we’re going to see an epic battle for supremacy at Ferrari, but let’s not get ahead of ourselves just yet.

Mercedes could be hiding their pace

Valtteri Bottas and Lewis Hamilton were 6th and 10th respectively for the day’s running, over a second from Leclerc’s pace. Surely Mercedes aren’t really that far off the pace, are they?

Mercedes employed a similar strategy last year, where they did not show their true speed until the first race weekend in Australia, and it wouldn’t be a surprise to see them do the same again this year.

Some drivers need more track time

Alex Albon made a nightmare start to his testing week by spinning off and beaching his Toro Rosso in the gravel trap after just four corners, bringing out the red flag immediately.

Albon was able to get back on track after his car was recovered, but the same could not be said for Pierre Gasly.

Pierre Gasly slammed into the barriers after a spin, bringing his session to a close with just over an hour left, and the car will need to go under some repairs overnight to be ready for tomorrow.

It wasn’t Daniel Ricciardo’s fault, but Renault’s new Australian driver also had an excursion off the track. Ricciardo’s rear wing flew off dramatically on the start-finish straight, and he was pitched into a spin, coming to rest before hitting the barriers.

Williams are really behind now

Missing two days of running could have a huge impact on the Williams team. They’ve missed out on gathering a lot of data, with four drivers racking up over a century of laps.

If they manage to get out tomorrow, which we hope they do, they could be a long way behind the rest of the pack when it comes to tweaking their cars for Australia.