The offseason flew by surprisingly quickly. The short winter tests are over and the new season starts next week. Let’s hope that the drainage pit problems that arose on the second and third days of testing do not repeat themselves during the weekend at the FIA-certified circuit. Otherwise it will be a shame.
The schedule for the third day had to be adjusted again. Just like the day before, the first test session was stopped due to a broken drainage hatch in Turn 11. This time he was collected by Sergio Perez, who complained to the team about a hit on the bottom.
The driver returned to the pits, where even Adrian Newey personally climbed under the car to inspect it. An FIA representative arrived at the scene of the incident. They brought a welding machine and a grinding machine. And for almost an hour and a half they tried to solve a seemingly small problem.
The stage organizers and the FIA still have six days to prevent a repeat of such incidents at the upcoming Grand Prix, as training starts in Bahrain on Thursday. Well, today the racers didn’t have a lunch break.
Summarizing the results of the tests, everyone said that the balance of power had not changed and that Verstappen would become champion again. The rivals have adjusted the cars, but Red Bull has not been idle and was the first to stop the adjustments last year. With such an advantage, it simply made no sense, and now it could become even greater. As Fernando Alonso said on day three: “Nineteen drivers know they will not win the title this year.”
We added RB to Visa, abandoning solutions we had previously developed ourselves and now source from Red Bull Racing. Ferrari and Mercedes improved, but both cars suffered from sway on the straights. Mercedes still had problems with stability and Ferrari led the protocol on the third day.
We’ll find out what the real balance of power will be next week when the Bahrain Grand Prix takes place from Thursday to Saturday.
Results of the third test day
| Pilot | Team | Time | Circles | Tyres |
| 1. S. Leclerc | Ferrari | 1:30,322 | 74 | C4 |
| 2. D. Russell | Mercedes | 1:30,368 | 67 | C4 |
| 3. G.Zhou | Sauber | 1:30,647 | 85 | C4 |
| 4. M. Verstappen | Red Bull | 1:30,755 | 66 | C3 |
| 5. Yu.Tsunoda | RB | 1:30,775 | 53 | C4 |
| 6. A. Elbon | Williams | 1:30,984 | 121 | C4 |
| 7. O. Piastri | McLaren | 1:31,030 | 91 | C3 |
| 8. F. Alonso | Aston Martin | 1:31,159 | 75 | C3 |
| 9. K. Sainz | Ferrari | 1:31,247 | 71 | C3 |
| 10. S. Perez | Red Bull | 1:31,483 | 53 | C3 |
| 11. N. Hulkenberg | Hare | 1:31,686 | 89 | C3 |
| 12. L.Hamilton | Mercedes | 1:31,999 | 49 | C5 |
| 13. L. Walk | Aston Martin | 1:32,038 | 46 | C3 |
| 14. L.Norris | McLaren | 1:32,108 | 20 | C3 |
| 15. P. Gasly | Alps | 1:32,149 | 47 | C3 |
| 16. K.Magnussen | Hare | 1:33,053 | 80 | C3 |
| 17. E.Okon | Alps | 1:33,079 | 55 | C3 |
| 18. V. Bottas | Sauber | 1:33,528 | 28 | C3 |
| 19. D. Ricciardo | RB | 1:37.015 | 70 | C1 |
Source: F1 News
I am Christopher Clyde, an experienced journalist and content writer with a passion for sports. I have been writing about Formula 1 news for the past five years and am currently employed as an author at athletistic.com, one of the top sports websites in the US.
