MoneyGram Haas F1 Team drivers Kevin Magnussen and Nico Hulkenberg completed a total of 135 laps on the second day of pre-season testing at the Bahrain International Circuit.
Magnussen was behind the wheel of the VF-23 for the opening session, focusing his efforts on three areas. Aero testing was completed during the installation lap, while a large part of the morning was spent on developing mechanical balance to compare against data from the day before. The final stint of the morning was spent on high-fuel runs, racking up a total of 67 laps before the lunchbreak. Magnussen set a fastest lap time of 1:33.442 (P11).
Hulkenberg returned for the afternoon with reliability being the main objective for the session. As dusk descended with 90 minutes left on the clock, a red flag was brought out for the stricken Mercedes of George Russell. 15 minutes later running resumed, and the German headed back out on track with the C4 tire for the first time. An additional three runs to the end of the session resulted in a total of 68 laps, with a fastest lap time of 1:32.466 (P5).
Kevin Magnussen:
“It feels good but it’s always hard to see where you are against your competitors. So far, we feel good and we’re happy with what we’ve got. We need to do more work to understand the car better and today we got into a different area, trying things we didn’t yesterday, so we’re learning. There have been very few problems and we’re now getting into more performance related testing which is nice and more interesting for us.”
Nico Hulkenberg:
“Today was a positive day – it was a good, busy afternoon where we got lots of things done I feel and a lot of interesting data collected as well. Also for myself I’m building more of a connection with the car and trying it in different conditions, as you do in testing. I don’t think a qualifying run is the number one priority for me – I’ve done enough and I know what’s coming – and I drive in the morning tomorrow where the temperatures are not as representative.”
Simone Resta – Technical Director:
“Today our plan was to start, in the morning, with some aerodynamic measurements while still targeting to stay as much as possible on track and get mileage in. We were then testing through different compounds, different fuel levels and several test items including various procedures. This afternoon we repeated a similar program with different compounds and a wider range of fuel levels. We ended up completing 135 laps on the day, so it’s been quite a positive day. We’ve learned a lot of things and we’re putting together all the best conclusions approaching the third day of testing – we try to put everything together to end the test on a high.”
Haas F1 Team PR
