Sergio Perez 0.3s ahead of Charles Leclerc as Red Bull up the ante at Test F1; Lando Norris in third place for McLaren; Max Verstappen and Lewis Hamilton both work in an afternoon session, with four hours remaining of 2021 before the season
By Matt Morlidge
Last updated: 14/03/21 11:17 am
Red Bull lifted the ante on the final morning of the F1 Test in Bahrain as Sergio Perez renamed the fastest time of 2021 so far to put the pace ahead of Ferrari ‘s Charles Leclerc.
Perez had quietly settled into Red Bull’s life heading into the third and final day of the season but showed a glimpse of his ability and RB16B in Sunday’s busy and impressive opening session. .
The Mexican driver stopped at 1: 30.187 on soft tires, which was a tenth of a second faster than the previous Valtteri Bottas test best in the Mercedes – in Bahrain conditions typically faster.
Red Bull’s pre-lunch signal shifts their desire perfectly for the final four hours of testing, when Max Verstappen and Lewis Hamilton are both in action and when the pace is expected to increase. more.
3:33 Sky F1’s Karun Chandhok believes Mercedes are looking back to the best, with Valtteri Bottas unlocking the W12’s potential on the final day of testing
Mercedes opted to focus on a longer run Sunday morning, with Bottas finishing 84 laps but finishing more than two seconds off the distance in seventh place.
Instead, fighting against was Ferrari, which immediately ended their slow start to F1 2021 on Sunday when Leclerc put 1: 31.4 on one of his first laps of the day. The Ferrari driver would not develop the lap, interestingly posted on medium tires.
McLaren, who are showing more confidence about their 2021 opportunities and have an innovative diffuser design on their new Mercedes-powered car, continued their robust testing program as Lando Norris finished the opening session in third place, 0.474s off Perez, while AlphaTauri also made a big impact. .
1:56 The talk and perhaps the envy of this year’s paddle is McLaren’s rear diffuser, an explanation that is coming up due to revised design rules at the rear of the car
Pierre Gasly was the only other driver within a second of Red Bull.
Kimi Raikkonen topped the mile records in the morning with 91 laps in his Alfa Romeo, while Lance Stroll also focused only on long runs in the Aston Martin.
F1 rookie 2021 Mick Schumacher was sixth in his Haas.
Day Three Morning Diary
1. Sergio Perez, Red Bull, 1: 30.187, 49 laps, soft tires (C4)
2. Charles Leclerc, Ferrari, +0.299, 80 laps, medium tires (C3)
3. Lando Norris, McLaren, +0.474, 56 lap, medium tires (C3)
4. Pierre Gasly, AlphaTauri, +0.641, 76 laps, soft tires (C4)
5. Esteban Ocon, Alpine, +1.123, 61 laps, medium tires (C3)
6. Mick Schumacher, Haas, +1.866, 78 laps, medium tires (C3)
7. Valtteri Bottas, Mercedes, +2.219, 86 laps, medium tires (C3)
8. George Russell, Williams, +2.544, 77 laps, hard tires (C2)
9. Kimi Raikkonen, Alfa Romeo, +5.087, 91 laps, hard tires (C2)
10. Lance Stroll, Aston Martin, +5.913, 80 lap, medium tires (C3)