Vettel leads first day of F1 2019 testing

The winter times should certainly always be taken with a grain of salt, but the performances of Sebastian Vettel on the opening day of the Barcelona tests left no one indifferent. 

At the wheel of a SF90 yellow C3 compound (Medium) pavement from Pirelli, the four-time world champion slams a time of 1’18″161 to claim the first honors of the 2019 pre-season at the Circuit de Barcelona. Vettel completes his performance by also showing himself to be the most diligent on the track with no less than 169 rounds covered on the Catalan route that the drivers know by heart.  

The German is almost four tenths ahead of McLaren MCL34 motor Renault de Carlos Sainz. The Spaniard's time must however be put into perspective since he won with the softer red C4 tire, therefore more efficient. Despite an engine alert during the day, Sainz also managed to easily eclipse the mark of 100 laps completed.

At the wheel of the Haas VF-19, Romain Grosjean completes the Top 3, despite running time limited by a loss of fuel pressure in the morning. 

Scrutinized from all sides, the beginnings of the association Red Bull-Honda conclude with a solid 4th time and a copious program since Max Verstappen grinds the Catalan bitumen at the rate of 128 rotations.

Just behind the Dutchman is Kimi Räikkönen's Alfa. The Finn took care of his return under the colors of Hinwill by visiting the gravel of turn 5 from his first flying lap, without consequences for the rest of his working day, concluded with 114 laps under his belt. 

After a blank year as a development pilot at Ferrari, Daniil Kvyat finished 6th in the first day of on-track action behind the wheel of his Toro Rosso STR14 with Honda engine. Sergio Pérez follows a little further with the Racing Point 19 powered by the block Mercedes M10. 

The Mexican is ahead of the two factory drivers of the German manufacturer, Valtteri Bottas, who was driving in the morning, and Lewis Hamilton, who took over from the Finn in the afternoon. The two representatives of the star emerge two seconds from Vettel's reference but they signed their best mark with the harder white-striped C2 compound. 

Same tire program for the Renault duo, Nico Hulkenberg et Daniel Ricciardo bringing up the rear after passing the baton aboard the RS19. 

Remember that only nine of the 10 teams participated in this first day, Williams having been the victim of delays in launching his FW42 on the track on time. The Grove stable has already announced that the curtain will also remain down on Tuesday for the second day, which you will be able to experience again in live commentary via our live text.