Haas F1 Team driver Kevin Magnussen knocked down an impressive 119 laps Thursday in his final preseason testing drive of the Haas VF-17 at Circuit de Barcelona – Catalunya. It was the highest single-day lap tally for Haas F1 Team so far this season, with Magnussen besting his own 118-lap mark set Feb. 28 during the first week of testing at the 4.655-kilometer (2.892-mile), 16-turn circuit and equaled by teammate Romain Grosjean March 2.
Romain Grosjean takes over the Haas VF-17 for the final day of testing Friday, but in the penultimate day of on-track running, Magnussen brought his testing total to 369 laps or 1,717.695 kilometers (1,067.326 miles).
Magnussen’s best lap of the day was his best lap of the entire two-week test – a 1:20.504 set on his 62nd lap while utilizing the Pirelli P Zero Purple ultrasoft tire. The time placed Magnussen fifth among the 13 drivers participating in Thursday’s session.
Haas F1 Team’s morning run plan consisted of a series of early reconnaissance laps followed by ongoing setup work. Magnussen ran on the White medium tire for his installation lap and first three timed stints to log 22 laps. A change to the Yellow soft tire brought increased track performance, which was elevated further when Magnussen switched to the Red supersoft tire 30 minutes prior to the mandatory lunch break. His best time of the morning came on supersofts – a 1:20.863 secured on his 39th lap.
Following a brief outing on a set of used softs to begin the afternoon, Magnussen switched to the Purple ultrasofts for two timed stints. With the grippiest tire in Pirelli’s lineup, Magnussen delivered his quickest lap. The latter part of the day was spent in race simulation, with Magnussen securing a mileage total just short of a race distance. He ran twice on Yellow softs for a combined 35 laps before a 15-lap outing on White mediums that concluded the day’s activities.
Scuderia Ferrari’s Sebastian Vettel set the quickest time (1:19.024) and ran the most laps (156). |
