Leclerc fastest at Day 2 lunch break in Abu Dhabi

Charles Leclerc
Charles Leclerc

Proving the car is 99% of the equation in F1 and any decent driver can jump into a good car and be quick, Charles Leclerc beat Sebastian Vettel's Tuesday benchmark on Day 2.

He topped the times as the second day of Pirelli tire testing began in Abu Dhabi, setting a 1m36.559s time – almost three tenths clear of Vettel's best.

Pierre Gasly was 2nd quick for Red Bull while Lance Stroll showed well in 3rd for Racing Point Force India.

Despite 39 laps, Robert Kubica was 7.6 sec off the pace in his Williams.

Mid-Day Times

POS DRIVER TEAM CAR TIME GAP LAPS
1 Charles Leclerc Scuderia Ferrari Ferrari 1m36.559s 0.000s 54
2 Pierre Gasly Red Bull Racing Red Bull/Renault 1m37.976s 1.417s 63
3 Lance Stroll Racing Point Force India F1 Force India/Mercedes 1m38.044s 1.485s 47
4 Valtteri Bottas Mercedes AMG Petronas Mercedes 1m38.590s 2.031s 78
5 Daniil Kvyat Red Bull Toro Rosso Honda Toro Rosso/Honda 1m38.862s 2.303s 52
6 Artem Markelov Renault Renault 1m39.240s 2.681s 47
7 Louis Deletraz Haas F1 Team Haas/Ferrari 1m40.154s 3.595s 51
8 Carlos Sainz McLaren F1 Team McLaren/Renault 1m40.383s 3.824s 59
9 Antonio Giovinazzi Alfa Romeo Sauber Sauber/Ferrari 1m40.435s 3.876s 41
10 Robert Kubica Williams Martini Racing Williams/Mercedes 1m44.208s 7.649s 39