Hamilton sets fastest time for Ferrari on final day of F1 shakedown

Lewis Hamilton set the fastest time of the Barcelona shakedown on the final day of running in Spain, as Aston Martin completed its first significant running.

Ferrari ran both drivers once again on Friday and Hamilton was in the car for the afternoon, posting a 1m16.348s that was just under a tenth of a second quicker than George Russell had managed on Mercedes’ final day on Thursday. Hamilton completed 67 laps to go with the 78 delivered by Charles Leclerc in the morning, with Leclerc’s best time a 1m16.653s.

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The two Ferraris were split on the timing screens by McLaren, as defending champion Lando Norris posted a 1m16.594s. That was the third-fastest time of the week, but of more importance to McLaren will be strong mileage after a reliability issue for Oscar Piastri on Thursday. Norris drove in the afternoon and completed 86 laps, adding to 80 from Piastri, who clocked a best time of 1m17.446s to end up fourth overall.

Red Bull got back down to work after missing the previous two days following Isack Hadjar’s crash in the wet on Tuesday, with spare parts allowing Max Verstappen to complete 118 laps. It was important track time for Verstappen in dry conditions, and a 1m17.586s was 1.2s off Hamilton’s benchmark.

There was similar key mileage for Aston Martin after the team finally hit the track for just five laps late on Thursday, with Fernando Alonso at the wheel on the final day. After arriving late with the car, the 61 laps for the Honda-powered AMR26 was a solid return on its first full outing, with the best time of 1m20.795s marginally quicker than Cadillac produced across its first three days.

Cadillac’s first group test as a Formula 1 team was rounded out by Valtteri Bottas on Friday, but the Finn only managed 54 laps – the lowest number of any driver. Bottas logged a 1m20.920s, although lap times will be an area of greater focus in Bahrain, and the week will still have provided valuable learning for the new addition to the grid.

Many teams placed a premium on reliability to start pre-season and the highest single lap count for a driver went to Pierre Gasly as he amassed 164 laps for Alpine – ending up sixth fastest on a 1m17.707s – but just below him on the timing screens were the impressive Haas pair of Esteban Ocon and Oliver Bearman. Between them, the two drivers completed 195 laps, the most of any team in one day of running, with Bearman topping 100 laps in the morning.

Audi split running between both Nico Hulkenberg and Gabriel Bortoleto on the final day, and enjoyed its most productive spell of running of the week. Hulkenberg completed 81 laps and dipped below the 1m20s mark with a 1m19.870s, while Bortoleto added a further 67 laps and was 0.3s further back.

Mercedes and Racing Bulls had already completed their allocated three days of running for the week prior to Friday, while Williams missed the test altogether but has confirmed its has now passed all the necessary crash tests and will be ready to run in Bahrain.

The first official pre-season test takes place in just under two weeks’ time, running from Feb. 11-13 at the Bahrain International Circuit, with the second test from Feb. 18-20 at the same venue.

Unofficial times:

Lewis Hamilton (Ferrari), 1m16.348s, 67 laps

Lando Norris (McLaren), 1m16.594s, 86 laps

Charles Leclerc (Ferrari), 1m16.653s, 78 laps

Oscar Piastri (McLaren), 1m17.446s, 80 laps

Max Verstappen (Red Bull), 1m17.586s, 118 laps

Pierre Gasly (Alpine), 1m17.707s, 164 laps

Esteban Ocon (Haas), 1m18.393s, 89 laps

Ollie Bearman (Haas), 1m18.423s, 106 laps

Nico Hulkenberg (Audi), 1m19.870s, 81 laps

Gabriel Bortoleto (Audi), 1m20.179s, 67 laps

Fernando Alonso (Aston Martin), 1m20.795s, 61 laps

Valtteri Bottas (Cadillac) - 1m20.920s, 54 laps