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The highest
track temperatures in recent memory were recorded at Sepang in Malaysia at
the start of FP2, hitting the 61 degree centigrade mark.
Track temperatures fluctuated throughout the day, which had an effect on lap
times as the drivers and teams completed qualifying simulations and longer
race runs, using all three of the compounds available: hard, medium, and
soft.
The main focus of the work today was to understand the new asphalt at
Sepang, which has smoothed out all the bumps and altered the racing line, as
well as making the surface less abrasive. So far, the track seems quite a
lot quicker, with the fastest lap times today already smashing the fastest
times of the entire weekend last year.
However, it was quite hard for the teams to get an accurate picture of wear
and degradation, due to time lost in FP1 following a red flag, variable
track temperatures, and track evolution. Adding to the complication is the
fact that qualifying tomorrow takes place in the late afternoon, three hours
after the FP2 start time, meaning that today’s data is not necessarily
representative. Also, the weather could turn cloudier for the rest of the
weekend, with a risk of rain on race day.
The fastest time of the day was set by Mercedes driver Lewis Hamilton in
FP2, who set a 1m34.944s on the soft tyre: around 1.3 seconds faster than
the medium at the moment.
Paul Hembery, Pirelli motorsport director: “The new asphalt in Malaysia
seems to be quicker, and despite the hottest track temperatures seen in
recent memory, all three of our compounds here stood up extremely well to
the punishment, allowing times that were sometimes nearly five seconds
faster than the equivalent sessions last year. But with the chance of
different weather conditions for the remainder of the weekend, there are
still a number of complex variables left to play out, which makes planning
the strategy quite tricky at this point.”
Pirelli fact of the day: There has already been a Malaysian FIA World
Champion, driving a Pirelli-equipped Malaysian car. In 2002, Karamjit Singh
won the Production Car World Rally Championship driving a Proton.
Spotted in the paddock: No celebrities today but instead brand new pit
buildings to accommodate all the team hospitality units, which were built as
part of the circuit redevelopment earlier this year. |
FP1 - TIMES
Rosberg 1m35.227s Soft New
Hamilton 1m35.721s Medium New
Raikkonen 1m36.315s Soft New
Hamilton 1m34.944s Soft New
Rosberg 1m35.177s Soft New
Vettel 1m35.605s Soft New
FP1 - BEST TIME PER COMPOUND
Hard Ricciardo 1m36.753s
Medium Hamilton 1m35.721s
Soft Rosberg 1m35.227s
FP2 - BEST TIME PER COMPOUND
Hard Hamilton 1m35.956s
Medium Rosberg 1m36.543s
Soft Hamilton 1m34.944s
MOST LAPS BY COMPOUND
Hard Ocon 24 laps
Medium Grosjean 20
Hamilton 20
Soft Gutierrez 20
Vettel 20
Wehrlein 20
Tyre statistics of the day:
Hard Medium Soft
kms driven * 1257 2860 2233
sets used overall ** 22 39 33
highest number of laps ** 24 20 20
* The above number gives the total amount of kilometres
driven in FP1 and FP2 today, all drivers combined.
** Per compound, all drivers combined.
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