Summary

  • Final four days of pre-season testing

  • Nico Rosberg fastest

  • Bottas second, Alonso third

  • Get involved #bbcf1

Live Reporting

Gary Rose

  2. Lewis Hamilton provided a bit of excitement over the weekend with this teasing tweet. 

    It had a few tongues wagging on the twittersphere, with some people thinking he was set to release a song, announce another part in a film or even say he was returning to McLaren.

    It was nothing as exciting as that in the end, as he announced a corporate partnership.

    A bit of me was hoping he would let that tweet linger for a couple of days before tweeting: "Guess who's world champion? @nico_rosberg"

  3. Get involved #bbcf1

    Fail to prepare and prepare to fail and all that...

  4. Andrew Benson
    Chief F1 writer

    McLarenGetty Images

    Honda has already, according to McLaren, more or less solved its biggest weakness in 2015 - the efficiency of hybrid energy deployment. The engine is still significantly down on outright power, but Honda is running this week a new-specification 2016 engine, fitted with improvements over the one used in the last test. 

    The engine in the McLaren this week is the specification that has been homologated as the one with which Honda will start the season. But the company will be running at this test some new parts that are not related to homologation, so are hoping for a further step up in performance for the first race of the season in Australia. 

    Manufacturers are allowed to use 32 development ‘tokens’ - ascribed to various parts of the engine based on their influence on performance, with the total engine making up 66 tokens - through the season. So as the five engines are used this season, there is the facility to make significant further steps in performance. 

  5. So far so good for McLaren. Fernando Alonso has a time on the board and is six laps to the good and no sign of any issues at the moment. 

    They made a promising start to the first test, so here's hoping Friday's troubles were just a blip.

  7. And as I pop that update out, Esteban Gutierrez slams the foot down on the accelerator and goes fastest of all with 1:27.243.

  8. Testing latest

    Install laps done, Esteban Gutierrez is up and running with a 1:35.471. Here are the latest times at 09:00 GMT.

    1. Kevin Magnussen (Renault) 1:27.891

    2. Daniil Kvyat: (Red Bull) 1:28.333

    2. Fernando Alonso (McLaren) 1:30.246 

    3. Nico Rosberg (Mercedes) 1:33.250 

    4. Esteban Gutiierez (Haas) 1:36.471  

  9. Manor completed 254 laps over the four days of the first test. Rio Haryanto has managed just the one lap so far today.

    Meanwhile, Daniil Kvyat puts in his first timed lap of the day with 1:28.333. That's the second fastest of the four drivers that have times on the board.

  11. Fair point Matt. The installation lap is when teams send their driver out to gather data rather than try to set any sort of competitive time so to my knowledge there's no installation being done.

    Although, I suppose in Mercedes' case they could use it to install a computer game to stop their drivers getting bored while on their 999th lap of the circuit....

    GamesGetty Images

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  13. F1 journalist Dan Knutson in Barcelona: "During the break, the Haas team took all the components off the monocoque that had been used for the first four days of testing and put them on the new second monocoque. The plan is to run both monocoques before Australia while at the same time putting as much mileage on the suspension, gearbox etc."

  14. Half-an-hour in and Esteban Gutierrez makes his first appearance of the day in the Haas. 

    All 11 cars have been out on track at some point now.

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  16. Times they are a-changin

    On his return to the circuit, Kevin Magnussen, on medium tyres, goes to the top of a two-man time sheet with 1:28.147.

    Nico Rosberg improves with a 1:33.250 before Fernando Alonso comes to the party by clocking 1:30.246.

  18. Splashing sweat it is then...

  19. F1 journalist Dan Knutson in Barcelona: "A nice, clear and sunny morning here at the circuit. Temperature is 5 degrees Centigrade, heading for 16 degrees. There is a 0 percent chance of rain."

  20. No rain in Spain

    No Phil, lovely at the moment. 

    The below would appear to suggest there is a 65% chance of rain, although when I hovered my mouse over what I thought was the rain symbol it described it as "splashing sweat".

    Wouldn't fancy that much.

    F1Circuit BCN-CAT EN
    F1Circuit BCN-CAT EN