Jerez Day 3: Nasr pips Raikkonen to give Ferrari power 1-2 (Update)

UPDATE Article has been updated with photos and quotes.

02/03/15

The new Sauber

Felipe Nasr topped the third day of Formula 1 testing at Jerez in his Ferrari powered Sauber using soft tires while everyone else was on the harder tires.

The Swiss team opted for a quick run on the yellow-sidewalled Pirelli tires to allow Nasr to beat Kimi Raikkonen to fast time on Tuesday.

Nasr's lap came just a couple of minutes after Raikkonen had gone quickest on a set of medium-compound tires. Nico Rosberg was also on the medium tires in third while Mercedes continues to sandbag.

Felipe Nasr said afterward, "It was another positive day. We did a lot of mileage, and we were able to get a better understanding of the car. On top of that, we used different tires in different conditions, and we played with the set-up. In the end I had the chance to do some long-runs to get a feeling for the car with high fuel loads like they would be in race conditions. It was important for me to get used to all these different things. Overall they were two very positive days. I'm glad that I already feel comfortable in the new environment, and I'm really happy with everything I've seen so far with the team. I'm already looking forward to Barcelona."

Kimi Raikkonen – Ferrari has been the real surprise so far, but Mercedes is sandbagging

Nico Rosberg has admitted that Ferrari's table-topping pace in pre-season testing has been an "eye-opener".

While the long-running Rosberg and reigning world champions Mercedes have dominated the lap count during the opening exchanges at Jerez, a Ferrari-powered car has topped the timesheets on each of the first three days of winter testing in Spain.

After the Scuderia's new signing Sebastian Vettel led the way on Sunday and Monday, only the Ferrari-engined Sauber of Felipe Nasr, running on soft tires, prevented Kimi Raikkonen from clinching a clean sweep on Day Three.

While lap times set during testing are notoriously unreliable, Mercedes insiders have admitted they were impressed by the 1:20.984 set by Vettel on Day Two in Jerez with the Silver Arrows' best effort so far a 1:21.982 from Rosberg.

"Of course we are keeping an eye on the opposition and Ferrari have been an eye-opener for us during the last couple of days," acknowledged Rosberg. "Still, we are confident we will start the season well and be strong in development."

Rosberg went on to say that "reliability was our main issue over the last year, so our goal for 2015 is to sort this out. That is why I can be happy with my first pre-season test as I did a lot of mileage on both days. A big thank you to the team for a reliable Silver Arrow so far. They did a really good job over the winter. Performance wise I don't know where we are but the Ferrari times look very encouraging for them, so it will be an interesting year for Formula One, I guess.

"However, I recently heard about the discussions concerning the German Grand Prix and it's really sad for me and the German fans to hear that nothing is confirmed yet for 2015. For as long as I can remember, the German Grand Prix was part of the Formula One World Championship, so I really hope our Grand Prix will be held this year and beyond that. The fans deserve to have a great show every year because there are so many great supporters out there. Also there is plenty of Germany in F1, with us German drivers like Sebastian, Hulk and myself, plus of course Mercedes-Benz. So I really hope that Bernie and the promoters find a good solution for everybody."

Red Bull boss Christian Horner accused Mercedes of "showing off" when Rosberg set 157 laps on Sunday, a tally he all-but matched on Tuesday in the course of registering a best-of-day count of 151. But the German has insisted that Mercedes' determination to rack up the miles was a strategic decision rather than a mischievous tactic.

"Our goal has been mileage because reliability was our weakness last year and so we are focused on that," he explained. "It's important to see the problems now because you then have time before Melbourne. If you have problems in Barcelona there is only a short time to Melbourne so it's more difficult to solve them. Anything you can find here will be easier to fix and that's why it's so important to get the miles down."

Felipe Massa said he was happy after a good first day in the car. "The FW37 is another step forward from where we left the FW36, which is promising. I am also confident in the car set-up. The feeling in the car was good even for a first impression and it's well balanced. We lost a bit of time in the morning due to the wet weather so hopefully tomorrow we can continue to get the miles in and head to Barcelona well prepared."

Carlos Sainz, in the Toro Rosso, was encouraged after Tuesday. "It's been a really nice day for me and I enjoyed what I consider my first real day of Formula 1 testing. Hitting a target of 137 laps was quite an achievement. The fact we managed to do such a big distance is down to all the hard work of everyone in the team, the mechanics working day and night here at the track and also everyone back in the factory. They did a brilliant job and, thanks to them, I was able to learn a lot. All these laps also meant I was able to evaluate my physical condition and, on this front, I am quite pleased, as it seems the work we did over the winter has paid off."

Day 3 Results