Formula 1: Fertappen at 87 mm from Leclerc in the second test in Bahrain

The picture of competition at the top of F1 began to emerge when, in Shakir’s second free stage, Max Ferstappen and Charles Leclerc confirmed the winter performance of RBR and Ferrari – as did Mercedes’ Lewis Hamilton.

As Max Ferstappen and Charles Leclerc with RB18 and Ferrari F1-75 at the top separated by 0.087 seconds, Lewis Hamilton struggled with the Mercedes W13 – which, in addition to porpoise and reversing problems, also had problems operating the DRS. This relegated the Brit to 9th place, 1.2 seconds off the Dutch champions.

With all drivers now setting fast laps with the softest of the three erasers, the second tests of Formula 1’s inaugural 2022 GP began to show the first signs of balance at the front. Both RBR and Ferrari have confirmed they are currently a step ahead and may be a short distance apart.

Of course, we don’t know the fuel levels each driver was running on these tests, but the fact that they all ran their first realistic ranking test simulation this year, and did it at night – which is representative of the ranking tests and the Bahrain race – on Afternoon These times give a good indication of the dynamics of each team.

George Russell has once again shown that he is in a better position when it comes to Hamilton fielding the Mercedes W13 – but even in Russell’s case this situation is far from satisfactory. The champions’ rookie closed by 9mm on Ferrari’s Carlos Sainte as the two were six tenths adrift of Ferstappen.

In about a second, the top six were closed by Fernando Alonso with the Alpine A522 and Valteri Botas, leaving a good and encouraging sign for Alfa Romeo’s progress with the new C43 – having lost the entire first phase of testing in Bahrain with engine performance issues . Alonso shows Alpine’s performance remains a mystery to be solved in tomorrow’s ranking tests.

Haas rebounded from his poor midday tests and this year finished eighth with Mick Schumacher – half a tenth ahead of Hamilton – and tenth with Kevin Magnussen. The American team thus confirmed the very good image of the winter tests and their big step forward this year.

McLaren, Alpha Tauri and Aston Martin, on the other hand, were not in the top ten, with Nico Hulkenberg – on his return after a year and a half as a replacement for Sebastian Vettel recovering from coronavirus – being a tenth slower than Lance Stroll.

The only incident of the second Test in Bahrain was the closure of Yuki Chunoda to Charles Leclerc in a fast Monegasque round – an event the judges will consider in the second year. The 3rd free test period begins tomorrow, Saturday (March 19th) at 2:00 p.m. and the qualification tests at 5:00 p.m.