F1-EL2: Hamilton and Mercedes at the top in Australia

Si Lewis Hamilton immediately encountered a mechanical problem requiring an engine change, the pilot Mercedes was able to make up part of his deficit this afternoon by stringing together laps and setting the best time of the day with a time of 1'29"625 with partially worn soft tires. The W05s showed promising performances with Nico Rosberg following in second position with a little over a tenth behind. Fernando Alonso, the best performer of the first session, is the closest to the Silver Arrows with half a second behind.

Red Bull Racing seems to have progressed since the last winter tests. Sebastian Vettel ranks in fourth position without any problempine mechanical damage occurred on the RB10. The four-time world champion took the opportunity to be the most diligent this afternoon with 40 laps covered while his teammate Daniel Ricciardo ranked sixth behind McLaren by Jenson Button who set the fifth fastest time on medium tires. Kimi Räikkönen encountered a slight problem with the gearbox when leaving the pits, but the Finn was able to complete his day with the seventh fastest time ahead. Valtteri Bottas, Kevin Magnussen et Nico Hulkenberg who ended up in the gravel trap at the end of the session.

Jean-Éric Vergne ranks just outside the top ten ahead of Felipe Massa and Sergio Pérez, while Daniil Kvyat ranks 16th behind the Saubers of Adrian Sutil and Esteban Gutiérrez. THE Toro Rosso were victims of numerous track exits following poor braking distribution even if the Frenchman seemed to note slight progress at the end of the day. The Marussias complete the timesheet with the Lotus of Romain Grosjean. Lotus F1 Team and Caterham hardly ran at all today following serious mechanical problems. Pastor Maldonado remained in the garage following his battery problem this morning just like Kamui Kobayashi and Marcus Ericsson who also remained on foot due to unreliability. Only Romain Grosjean was able to complete a dozen laps, setting the penultimate time of the afternoon before hitting the wall and losing control of his car. car on braking.

The final free practice session for the Australian Grand Prix will take place from 4 a.m. French time and can be followed live on AUTOhebdo.fr. Discover the photos of the tests on this link.