5 Observations from the Final Day of Formula 1 Preseason Testing in Barcelona
The final Formula One preseason test ended on Sunday afternoon in Barcelona, Spain. With just two weeks until the first grand prix of the season, the teams will now return to their factories for some last-minute adjustments based on the information gleaned over the previous four days at the Circuit de Catalunya.
Williams' Valtteri Bottas set the pace on the final day of testing, although his best time of one minute, 23.063 seconds was slightly slower than the fastest times clocked by Mercedes over the last two days.
But aside from the time sheets, there was a lot happening as winter testing wrapped up, from Ferrari's act of protest to McLaren's ongoing struggles. Here are the five stories that caught our attention on Sunday.
More Problems for McLaren
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McLaren's problems this preseason are well-documented. Teething issues were always expected, with Honda returning to F1 as the team's engine supplier one year after all the other power-unit manufacturers had switched to the new hybrid V6 formula.
The extent of McLaren's struggles has been surprising, though.
On Saturday, Kevin Magnussen—filling in for the recovering Fernando Alonso—completed just 39 laps in the MP4-30, and B/R colleague Oliver Harden wrote "it's imperative that the team end preseason on a high on Day 4."
So what happened? On Sunday, McLaren managed even fewer laps—just 30 with Jenson Button at the wheel.
And not only did the team struggle to put mileage on the car, but it was still miles off the pace as well. Button's best lap of one minute, 25.327 seconds was over two seconds slower than Bottas' fastest time.
Racing director Eric Boullier lamented on Saturday, per ESPN F1: "I think it's going to take a few races but we should be at least maybe by Europe ready to be more competitive." McLaren's abbreviated running on Sunday seemed to confirm that assessment, and the team will surely be on the back foot when it arrives in Melbourne.
Maurizio Arrivabene: Man of the People
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Ferrari's new team principal, Maurizio Arrivabene, watched some of the day's action from the grandstands in protest over rumors that the number of paddock passes available in Australia would be restricted.
"I said to the guys 'OK, if we are going to have a situation where the paddock is going to be empty, it's better if we start training to go to the people and we sit in the grandstands," Arrivabene told reporters, per Reuters' Alan Baldwin.
"Exclusivity doesn't mean having an empty paddock," he continued. "This is my clear statement."
".@ScuderiaFerrari boss Maurizio Arrivabene & @EstebanGtz have been enjoying #f1 with the fans this afternoon #bbcf1 pic.twitter.com/Goagpvkvgo
— BBCF1 (@bbcf1) February 28, 2015"
The current F1 leadership is not exactly known for embracing the fans, so Arrivabene's move will no doubt be met with appreciation. Whether it actually makes a difference—well, that may be a different story.
Force India Making Up for Lost Time
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Force India missed the entire first preseason test. Then it used its 2014 car at the second preseason test. Then it missed the first day-and-a-half of the third and final test. Then—finally—the new VJM08 made its debut on Friday afternoon.
Force India's 2015 challenger immediately demonstrated its reliability, and although they have not demonstrated any blazing speed, drivers Nico Hulkenberg and Sergio Perez have held their own against the teams with nearly 10 extra days of running in the new cars.
That trend continued on Sunday, with Perez turning in 130 laps and clocking the sixth-fastest time—ahead of Mercedes, McLaren and Lotus—despite it being his first time in the car.
Chief race engineer Tom McCullough praised the team's spirit in a press release, saying:
"We are making rapid progress with the car and we have a lot of material to analyse back at the factory ahead of the first flyaways. This last week's work highlights the spirit of this team: credit must go to everyone involved with the design, manufacturing and assembly of the car. It has been a massive effort from everyone in the team and to get so many laps is testament to the great work done by all.
"
Force India started the 2014 season strongly, scoring a podium in Bahrain, but it began to fade near the end of the season and fell just short of its goal of beating McLaren to fifth in the constructors' standings.
After missing so much testing, will the Silverstone-based team be able to get off to a hot start again?
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Have We Seen Mercedes' Real Speed Yet?
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Mercedes' Nico Rosberg set the fastest lap of the test by nearly three-tenths of a second, but you get the feeling the team is still holding back.
"We made some mechanical setup changes on the car which was very interesting to me," Rosberg said on Sunday after completing 148 laps, per a team press release. "I also did a long run at the end today on the soft tyres which was OK. In Melbourne we will have the soft tyre and it will be a challenge to manage them well, so we need to look at that."
In other words, while some teams—cough, McLaren, cough—are still struggling to get their cars to run a full race distance, the defending champs were testing setups for Melbourne and maybe beyond.
Rival drivers are under no illusions that the gap from last season has closed. Asked to predict the qualifying order in Australia, Ferrari's Sebastian Vettel responded, "The first two is easy unless they have some issues, it's the Mercedes unfortunately," according to ESPN F1.
Lap Times Keep Tumbling
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After the first Barcelona test, it was clear the 2015 cars had made a big leap in performance compared to last year's models.
On the final day of testing, seven drivers had at least one lap quicker than Lewis Hamilton's 2014 Spanish Grand Prix pole time of one minute, 25.232 seconds (and Button was less than one-tenth away).
At this rate, by the time the F1 circus returns to the Circuit de Catalunya in May, the comparison will not be with 2014 but rather with 2013, the last year of the V8 engines. Rosberg's best lap this week—one minute, 22.792 seconds—was just over two seconds slower than his 2013 pole time.
But enough about testing—the countdown is on to Australia and some real racing!
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