OK, that's the live action all finished for today. Thanks, as always, for your company. Andrew Benson's day-two report will be live on the website shortly.

There are two more testing days to come this weekend and we'll bring you all the action, starting tomorrow at 08:00 GMT.

See you then.

1. Nico Rosberg (Mercedes) 1:22.792 (106 laps)

2. Valtteri Bottas (Williams) 1:23.995 (90)

3. Felipe Nasr (Sauber) 1:24.071 (141 laps)

4. Sebastian Vettel (Ferrari) 1:25.339 (143)

5. Jenson Button (McLaren) 1:25.590 (101)

6. Pastor Maldonado (Lotus) 1:26.705 (140)

7. Max Verstappen (Toro Rosso) 1:26.766 (139)

8. Daniil Kvyat (Red Bull) 1:26.965 (84)

9. Nico Hulkenberg (Force India) 1:28.412 (77)

And on that rather confusing note testing is completed for the day.

The headline of the day is Nico Rosberg's quite stunning lap for Mercedes that has really thrown down the gauntlet to the rest of the grid.

The McLaren ran for 100 laps, comfortably the best display for the team so far this winter, while the Sauber again showed encouraging pace and reliability and the new Force India was quick and reliable straight out the box, managing a mighty 77 laps from half a day's running.

Full times coming up.

Image source, Getty Images

Oooh, that's got to be annoying.

Lotus's Pastor Maldonado has caused the late, late delay, stopping in the pit entry. At least it won't take much retrieving.

The handful of drivers still in the game have seven minutes to squeeze out a little more precious mileage.

Williams tweet:, external "With 20 minutes left of the day we have completed our programme so car is being prepped ready for tomorrow."

Williams call time on their day with Valtteri Bottas having completed 90 laps and sitting second only to the lightning Mercedes.

We see it with cricketers all the time. A batsman brings up his century and then - wallop - out next ball. Well, that's just what's happened to Jenson Button.

The McLaren man had just ticked off his 100th lap of the day (against the seven managed yesterday) but on his very next lap out of the pits he ground to a halt at turn seven.

It's frustrating for the team after a good day, but they can take comfort from the fact that their lap total today is fully half the amount they managed in all the nine previous test days put together.

Of course, by 'glory runs' I meant red flags.

It's been fairly quiet since Nico Rosberg blew all our doors off with that searing soft-tyre run.

Still, that should change as the chequered flag looms ever closer. Expect a few glory runs in the next 20 minutes.

"A race distance here is 66 laps. With just over 40 minutes to go in the session, Nico Hulkenberg did his 66th lap of the day, so now every driver has done at least 66 laps. Felipe Nasr, Sebastian Vettel, Pastor Maldonado and Max Verstappen have all completed more than two race distances."

Toro Rosso tweet, external to say their Friday running is done due to an electrical problem.

They won't be down about that though, with 139 hitherto trouble-free laps from Max Verstappen safely in the bank.

Max seems pretty satisfied.

Image source, Toro Rosso

Andrew Benson
Chief F1 writer

"That fastest time by Nico Rosberg on soft tyres - 0.7secs quicker than Williams driver Felipe Massa managed yesterday and 1.2secs ahead of Valtteri Bottas's second fastest lap today - is stunning, but not surprising in the context of what the testing has revealed so far.

"We reported at last week's test that Lewis Hamilton had been more than 0.8secs quicker than both Red Bulls and Bottas's Williams during race simulations. And the medium-tyre times set by the Mercedes drivers previously - and the length of the runs - had also suggested that sort of margin.

"Of course we don't know the fuel loads the cars are on, but you have to say that all the evidence is that 0.7-0.8secs looks about the advantage Mercedes hold over the field right now."

Image source, Getty Images

While I was busy wittering on about Azure-blue skies, Mercedes' Nico Rosberg went out and metaphorically glove-slapped his rivals with a thumping lap of 1:22.792 on the soft tyres.

Have it.

That's the fastest time of the two Barcelona tests so far, the small matter of seven-tenths quicker than the previous best, posted by Felipe Massa in the Williams yesterday.

Image source, Getty Images

I was cooing over a nice picture from the chaps at Sauber yesterday, which showed the smart C34 idling in a crisp Barca pit lane.

But I think today's offering from Ferrari might just edge it: Sebastian Vettel at full-chat in a scarlet Ferrari with a glorious expanse of Azure-blue sky above.

Sniff.

Image source, Ferrari F1

Sam Payne: "So glad to see @ManorF1Team back on the grid. Great team and would be weird having less than 20 cars racing."

Claire Fleming: "Anyone else hoping McLaren Honda is hustling us and they actually have no problems with the car?"

Andy Kitney: "I hope the Manor F1 turn a few heads in Melbourne. #loveanunderdog"

Jonathan Bowdin: "Stuffing envelopes at my desk so I can multitask and keep an eye on #bbcf1 testing."

This is more like it from McLaren-Honda.

Jenson Button has put on soft tyres for the first time and the MP4-30 quickly vaults up the order to fifth place. The Briton has done a 1:26.362 and has 'Passed Go' 83 times.

It's still way off the pace of the best soft-tyre runners, but don't forget it is believed the Honda engine is still running at reduced capacity.

Red Bull tweet:, external "A precautionary stop on track to check a hydraulic sensor issue. The Team hope to be back running soon."

Image source, Getty Images

A few of you have reported a broken link to Lee McKenzie's Force India story. Apologies. This is now fixed in the original entry so fill your boots.

The whole Brawn GP thing was a belting tale, wasn't it? A fairytale, if you will.

In fact, it was a tale that emerged at just around this time six years ago, in the spring of 2009.

If somehow it passed you by - or you are, say, eight - it was the story of how a team went from near extinction to become world champions, all the space of a few months.

I recommend reading it here. But then I would...

Image source, Getty Images

"The covered Red Bull got a lot of coverage when it was returned to the pits with more than half a dozen TV cameramen plus a number of photographers on hand as the car was unloaded."

Image source, knutson