(Photo credit score: Lucas Peltier-Imagn Images)
Aston Martin ended its F1 preseason testing two hours early Friday on the ultimate day on the Bahrain International Circuit amid ongoing technical points.
Lance Stroll accomplished simply six laps Friday, struggling a heavy lock-up and an off-track tour, earlier than the workforce introduced it was limiting runs whereas investigating the issues.
Friday’s shortened session follows a number of days of challenges for Aston Martin, which not too long ago switched from Mercedes to a Honda engine provide, making them the one F1 workforce to make use of the Japanese energy items.
Fernando Alonso’s Thursday afternoon session additionally was interrupted by an influence unit downside, and the Adrian Newey-designed automotive spent 4 hours within the storage Wednesday as a consequence of an influence unit concern.
‘Our final run with Fernando Alonso yesterday confirmed a battery-related concern that impacted our take a look at plan with the Aston Martin F1 workforce,’ Honda introduced by way of social media on Friday morning.
‘Since then, we now have been finishing up simulations on the take a look at bench in HRC Sakura. Due to this and a scarcity of energy unit components, we now have tailored as we speak’s run plan to be very restricted and consist solely of brief stints.’
Aston Martin workforce consultant and former F1 driver Pedro de La Rosa informed F1 TV they aren’t the place they wished to be at this stage and that ‘there’s a number of work to be executed nonetheless behind the scenes’ to arrange for the beginning of the season on the Melbourne Grand Prix in March.
‘It’s a brand new set of rules, all the pieces is new. We have a brand new companion in Honda, new gearbox, new rear suspension. There’s so many issues, truly, that we have already got an excellent understanding on, and we actually know the locations and the areas of the automotive we have to deal with,’
de La Rosa stated.
‘So, it isn’t the place we wished to be. We would have most popular to do many extra laps, however the quantity of laps we now have executed is exhibiting us a path for the longer term.’
However, de La Rosa expressed confidence within the new partnership.
‘But we now have nice companions, we now have Honda. We have a implausible campus and folks working flat-out, attempting to get us to the very best compromise for Australia,’ de La Rosa stated.
–Field Level Media