George Russell was the fastest long-run driver carrying a heavy fuel load during Friday’s practice sessions ahead of the Formula 1 Spanish Grand Prix. His closest challenger was Red Bull’s Max Verstappen, who was just 0.13 seconds per lap slower after accounting for differences in tyre compounds and stint lengths.
World championship leader Kimi Antonelli ranked third in long-run pace, finishing 0.55 seconds per lap behind Russell.
Ferrari and McLaren struggled across the board in race simulations. Both Ferraris were roughly nine tenths of a second per lap slower than Mercedes, while Oscar Piastri’s long run was a significant 1.51 seconds per lap off the pace. Teammate Lando Norris was unable to complete any long runs due to technical issues.
Has Mercedes Held Anything Back?
The competition may have particular cause for concern when looking back at last weekend’s race in Italy. There, Mercedes was level with Ferrari in long runs on Friday, while McLaren trailed by two tenths of a second.
On race Sunday, however, the Silver Arrows ultimately finished eight tenths of a lap faster than both teams.
Mercedes therefore traditionally reveals less on Fridays than its rivals, which could be an ominous sign for the rest of the weekend. That said, caution is warranted: the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya is making its debut, and larger setup changes can be expected on Saturday.
The competition also appears closer on a single lap. Combining each driver’s fastest sector times, Charles Leclerc could theoretically have set the overall fastest lap with a 1:33.478. Among the top six drivers, however, only Arvid Lindblad managed to combine all his best sector times into a single consistent lap.
What Gives Mercedes the Edge?
The question remains where Mercedes’ advantage stems from, particularly in long runs. The answer appears straightforward: the competition is losing too much time in the final sector.
Mercedes was already able to set the fastest time in the third sector during qualifying simulations, and with a heavy fuel load, the team can apparently extend that advantage even further.
Ferrari appear to be off the pace of Mercedes
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Examining the telemetry data, it is noticeable that Mercedes appears to use less battery power in the first sector while remaining only marginally slower than the competition. In the final sector, Mercedes holds a clear top-speed advantage that appears to pay off particularly in long-run mapping.
While Mercedes excels in the final sector, Ferrari can score points in the first sector, and Max Verstappen and Red Bull are very strong in the fast second sector. McLaren is the only team that is consistently too slow across all three sectors.
Midfield: Surprise Pace from Haas?
Racing Bulls once again made headlines in the midfield on Friday — for two reasons.
Firstly, Arvid Lindblad finished fourth in the second practice session, just 0.228 seconds off the pace. Shortly afterwards, however, he caused a heavy crash that brought out a red flag.
As a result, Racing Bulls was unable to complete any truly representative long runs. Teammate Yuki Tsunoda was also running a different programme and completed his qualifying and race simulations in a single stint, likely with a low fuel load.
Racing Bulls had a strong Friday
Photo by: Sam Bagnall / Sutton Images via Getty Images
That meant Haas actually recorded the best long-run pace in the midfield. Esteban Ocon was just 0.92 seconds per lap behind Mercedes’ Russell during his stint, placing the Frenchman practically on Ferrari’s level.
Alpine (+1.60), Audi (+2.20), Williams (+2.58), Cadillac (+4.00), and Aston Martin (+4.33) followed behind, with considerable gaps separating them.
However, caution is also required given that this is the Madrid track’s debut. There is still plenty of potential for setup changes to alter the picture.
“Six Stops”: How Severe Is Tyre Degradation in Madrid?
The performance of some teams was not the only surprise on Friday. Tyre behaviour was also unexpected. As a street circuit with essentially a smooth asphalt surface, high tyre degradation was not initially anticipated. However, that may now be changing.
“At the beginning it was tricky because the track has so much grip, even though it is completely new asphalt,” Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff explained to Sky. “And interestingly, we have the opposite problem to what we expected. We can’t quite get the tyre up to temperature. It takes a lap and then it gets a little better. But of course, the tyre degradation is incredible because of the grip.”
When asked more specifically, Wolff spoke of “eight tenths of degradation per lap” in the first free practice session.
“We’ve never seen that before,” said Wolff. “Our strategy chief said six stops. But I think in the end it will be one stop.”
Toto Wolff warned about tyre degradation in Spain
Photo by: Sam Bagnall / Sutton Images via Getty Images
Nevertheless, degradation in the second free practice session was also around three tenths of a second per lap during long runs. At this stage, that points more towards a two-stop race than a one-stop strategy.
However, more running should bring more grip to the track, which could reduce tyre degradation over the course of the weekend.
Just how unclear the tyre situation remains can also be seen in a contrasting statement from Pirelli’s motorsport chief Dario Marrafuschi, also speaking to Sky:
“The grip of the asphalt is really good, so we will most likely have less degradation than expected.”
The further course of the weekend in Madrid will show who ultimately gets their prediction right.
