Barcelona Test No.1: Day 2 Recap
February 19, 2019
Date: Tuesday, February 19
Location: Circuit de Barcelona – Catalunya, Spain
Layout: 4.655-kilometer (2.892-mile), 16-turn circuit
Driver: Kevin Magnussen / Pietro Fittipaldi
Laps Completed: Magnussen 59 laps / Fittipaldi 13 laps
Distance Completed: Magnussen 274.645 kilometers (170.628 miles)
Distance Completed: Fittipaldi 60.515 kilometers (37.596 miles)
Best Lap Time: Magnussen 1:19.206 (3rd overall) / Fittipaldi 1:21.849 (12th overall)
Fastest Lap: 1:18.247 by Charles Leclerc of Scuderia Ferrari
Most Laps: 157 laps by Charles Leclerc of Scuderia Ferrari
Kevin Magnussen took over the Haas VF-19 during the second day of preseason testing Tuesday at Circuit de Barcelona – Catalunya after teammate Romain Grosjean recorded 65 laps around the 4.655-kilometer (2.892-mile), 16-turn track on Monday.
Cooler track conditions were prevalent for Magnussen’s early running, the Dane first venturing out on-track shortly after 10 a.m. local time. By the lunch break three hours later Magnussen had 33 laps banked, including the second-fastest time of the morning, a 1:19.234 set on the C3 Pirelli tire compound.
The afternoon saw Magnussen drop his best lap time to a 1:19.206, also on a fresh set of C3 rubber, good for third fastest on Tuesday from 12 participating drivers. A seat-fit issue curtailed his run program earlier than expected, Magnussen exiting proceedings with 59 laps set on his maiden VF-19 outing.
With 30-minutes remaining in the day, test driver Pietro Fittipaldi assumed driving responsibilities, the Brazilian enjoying two timed stints for 13 laps prior to the checkered flag.
Charles Leclerc of Scuderia Ferrari set the day’s fastest time (1:18.247) and ran the most laps (157).
Fittipaldi will remain behind the wheel of the VF-19 on Wednesday morning, with Grosjean testing in the afternoon – the team opting to swap the driver order from its original plan. Fittipaldi and Magnussen will then complete the first week of testing on Thursday.
Kevin Magnussen:
“First impressions of the VF-19 were very good. The car seems to be handling well, it was showing consistency. I certainly have a good feeling to start off with. Of course, there’s a lot more work to be done when it comes to the details, but there’s no worries at this point.”
Guenther Steiner:
“It was a little bit of a mixed day today. Again, in the morning we struggled to get going, we had a few small issues on the car. It got better in the afternoon. Unfortunately, Kevin (Magnussen) didn’t like his seat, so we put Pietro (Fittipaldi) in for the end of the day so he’s ready for tomorrow morning. The day didn’t start as we wanted it, but in the end, we got a handle on it and finished it on a high.”
Ends