Gutiérrez Closes Out Day 2 of Barcelona Testing Fourth Fastest
May 18, 2016
Haas F1 Team driver Esteban Gutiérrez logged a total of 105 laps during the final day of in-season testing at the Circuit de Catalunya – Barcelona. Gutiérrez’s fastest lap of 1:24:592 came on his 74th tour around the 4.655-kilometer (2.892-mile), 16-turn circuit, placing him fourth among the 10 drivers participating.
The morning session began with cool temperatures under a party cloudy sky. Gutiérrez’s VF-16 was shod on the Pirelli P Zero White medium tires, and it was fitted with instrumentation to measure aerodynamic performance. The mediums stayed on the car throughout the morning as the team moved to aero mapping and fundamental setup and development work. By the midday break, Gutiérrez had recorded 41 laps and with a best time of 1:26.402.
As afternoon temperatures climbed, Gutiérrez and the team continued development work on the car’s setup, specifically, by running softer and softer Pirelli tire compounds. They began the afternoon session on the P Zero Yellow softs before the team switched to the P Zero Red supersofts. It was during his stint on the supersofts that Gutiérrez set his fastest lap of the day (1:24.592). Toward the end of the session, the team transitioned to the P Zero Purple ultrasofts, which will make its debut in race conditions next weekend at the Monaco Grand Prix.
Combined with the 96 laps made by teammate Romain Grosjean on Tuesday, the 105 laps Gutiérrez logged on Wednesday gave Haas F1 Team a total of 201 laps.
Max Verstappen of Red Bull set the day’s fastest time (1:23:267) on the very same track where he scored his first career Formula One victory Sunday in the Spanish Grand Prix. Pascal Wehrlein of Mercedes ran the most laps (133).
Esteban Gutiérrez, Driver No. 8, Haas F1 Team
“It was a very interesting day. We completed almost everything we needed to achieve, so we can be happy with that. It was all very positive. We were able to run a lot of programs, so I’m looking forward to Monaco.”
Guenther Steiner, Team Principal, Haas F1 Team
“Another successful day for us. We’ve got a lot of data from the test. Now, we need to go through it and try to use it for the next race in Monaco. We achieved over a hundred laps quite flawlessly. The team has worked very hard and we’re very happy with the results.”
Next Up
Round 6 of the 2016 FIA Formula One World Championship is the Monaco Grand Prix. Practice begins May 26, qualifying takes place May 28 and the race runs May 29.