Scuderia’s new car, with Charles Leclerc and Carlos Sainth, was at the top of the table for most of the day at the Monmelo circuit, setting the fastest laps with a Pirelli center tire (C3).

But in the end, McLaren chose to steal the glory by putting the soft rubber (C4) on Lando Norris’ MCL36 in the final hour, with the result of the Brit putting in two consecutive faster laps and climbing to the top.

Although at the end of the day they were wary of what they said about the new Ferrari F1-75, the Scuderia drivers were particularly pleased not only with its speed but also with its reliability – as it was the car doing the most (153) laps completed of the day.

“It was the first time we could push our new car and it felt good to be back in the cockpit.” said Leclerc. “We did what we set out to do all day without any problems, which is good for our new car. We did a lot of laps today, more than any other team, and that’s a great base to continue.”

Monegasque Castle: “It’s impossible to even have a clear picture. The first feeling I have is not good but we shouldn’t get carried away with the laps today as it’s still the first few days and everyone hides their true speed. “

For his part, Carlos Saint said: “We were finally able to push today and start learning about these cars. Times don’t matter in this initial phase, but it was very positive that we did a satisfactory number of laps and got a good feel for the car.

We still have a lot of work to do, but we are already feeling some changes compared to last year. I don’t think it will take long to get used to (the new car). No doubt finding the last tenths of its speed will be difficult, but this is the most interesting part. Anyway, that’s not our goal here in Barcelona because we still have a lot of tests ahead of us before the first game,” concluded the Spaniard.

As for McLaren, Lando Norris also pointed out that his first year with MCL36 at the start of winter testing. “It’s too early to say anything” said the Brit “We are in first place and everyone will think that we will win the (first) race, but nothing. The car gives me a good feeling, we’ve made some improvements from the start but we’re still at the beginning and although we were great today everything can change up to the first race, then again in the second.

The pace of development that each team will bring to its car in the first half of the season will be very high. I just hope the car is fast. It certainly feels good, and there’s definitely a lot to do – some things don’t feel so good. “But for something we’ve never done before, with so much new information, I think we’re off to a remarkable start.” concluded the Brit, who will hand over his seat to Daniel Ricciardo on Thursday (February 24).