2022 F1 Testing Day One Report | Ferrari impress, Verstappen high lap count

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23 February 2022 at 17:00
Last update 23 February 2022 at 17:54
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  • Matt Gretton
  • Editor-in-Chief

McLaren and Lando Norris have topped the timesheets after the first day of the 2022 Formula 1 test in Barcelona. Norris ended the day around three seconds behind the pole position time for the 2021 Spanish Grand Prix. Most teams recorded a high amount of laps with very little on-track drama. No red flags were recorded across the eight hours of testing. Only Haas and Alfa Romeo struggled to record many laps as car issues kept them inside the garage for longer than they would've wanted. 

In the morning session, Max Verstappen led the way on the lap counter. The 2021 World Champion didn't set the timesheets alight, but the RB18 looked strong in the Barcelona sun. Charles Leclerc recorded 80 laps in his four-hour stint and sat at the top of the leaderboard for much of the day until Norris stole P1 in the final hour. 

In the afternoon, Lewis Hamilton took over from George Russell. In the final 30 minutes, Mercedes changed the front suspension to Hamilton's car. Similar moves were mirrored up and down the pitlane as teams tested these cars for the very first time following the rule and regulation reprint. 

Quiet Alfa Romeo

Alfa Romeo appeared with a camouflage livery. Robert Kubica, the test driver for Alfa Romeo, only managed to record nine laps as "little niggles" with the car kept the Polish driver inside the garage. Valtteri Bottas took over in the afternoon and managed to increase the mileage on the Alfa Romeo but not significantly. 

Haas also had a difficult and quiet morning. Team boss Guenther Steiner reported that Haas had a leak in the tank this morning before a cooling line broke later on. As they look to climb through the Formula 1 standings, Mick Schumacher and Nikita Mazepin will need better days on Thursday and Friday. 

The only other notable issue came with McLaren. Norris stopped at the end of the pitlane and needed to be pushed back by his mechanics under a yellow flag. The Brit returned to the garage where mechanics worked on the car. He then topped the timesheets in the final hour of the day. 

A variety of parts

The variety of parts stood out from the first day of testing in Barcelona. Almost every team had a noticeable difference to the sidepods, rear-wing and front-wing. When the track went green this morning, Red Bull surprised the paddock with a very unique sidepod. 

The rule and regulations were bought in by Formula 1 with the hope of improving overtaking and the ability to follow another car behind. Throughout the day, most drivers spent a significant amount of time tucked in behind another car to test the dirty air. The results of these experiments will be confirmed in the coming days.