Sebastian Vettel kept Ferrari ahead as he posted another new fastest time of pre-season on the final morning of Formula 1 testing.
Much like teammate Charles Leclerc, the German set three new improvements in the final hour on the C5 tyre compound, ending with a 1m16.221s, just 0.01s faster than the Monegasque on Thursday.
There was another lap, however, that will have caught the attention of many as, during the flurry of short runs, Vettel also posted a 1m16.720s on the C3 rubber which, based on Pirelli’s projection, would equate to a 1m15.5s on the C5.
Valtteri Bottas would be a third of a second behind in P2 for Mercedes, highlighting the improvement made during the winter and a few less sandbags!
Daniil Kvyat’s Toro Rosso and Carlos Sainz’s McLaren would be the other two cars in the 1m16’s.
Romain Grosjean would complete the busiest morning for a driver with 73 laps in the Haas in P5 with Daniel Ricciardo only sixth in the Renault, suggesting the French manufacturer is either holding back or has work to do.
Kimi Raikkonen’s best time came on the C4 in the Alfa Romeo which, if tyre corrected, would have put him third. There was a small setback, however, as the Finn stopped out on track soon after heading out in the final 10 minutes.
Red Bull’s final day is hampered by having to use old parts following Pierre Gasly’s crash on Thursday, therefore, Max Verstappen only did 29 laps with his fastest time coming on the C3 tyre.
Sergio Perez was only ninth in the Racing Point with a 1.2-second gap back to Robert Kubica in 10th for Williams.
A full look at the lap times from the final morning can be seen below:
