F1 pre-season testing: Lewis Hamilton says Ferrari still have work to do to improve
Hamilton spoke ahead of the afternoon meeting and was optimistic about his first preseason test with the new team.
“I think we’ve built a really good foundation, but these guys look really competitive and look very close,” he said.
“This is the most positive feeling I have felt in a long time.”
But his day ended early, and he reduced his running prematurely before Ferrari was able to complete the planned race distance.
Hamilton was nearly 0.5 seconds faster than teammate Charles Leclerc, but ran a step on the tires. When Leclerc went in the morning, he was also driving at the afternoon meeting.
Pre-season testing is an unreliable sign of true competitiveness, as there are many factors that distort the picture.
The team did not disclose the specifications they were running the car, fuel load and engine mode had a significant impact on performance.
Additionally, Friday’s weather conditions are very different from the day before – it’s sunny on Friday, warm and windy, which means the track is slower than Thursday.
Despite Verstappen’s pace, Red Bull looks difficult to drive, and the team is trying to do different setups and configurations on the car, including switching between two different front wing specifications.
The four-time world champion spins in the first round.
