(Motorsport-Total.com) – The Formula 1 test sessions at the Nürburgring are already history again. For two days, Formula 1 cars were finally back on German soil because Pirelli held a tire test on the Eifel race track with the two top teams Mercedes and McLaren.
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After George Russell and Oscar Piastri were initially behind the wheel of their respective cars on Tuesday, on Wednesday World Championship leader Kimi Antonelli and World Champion Lando Norris took their turn to drive in front of numerous fans on the so-called “sniffing grandstand”.
In the first phase of the program, the two drivers continued the work started by their respective teammates on the various construction variants of the C3 compound and completed several runs of eight laps each.
In the last hours of track time, the two softer compounds were also evaluated during longer runs. Antonelli drove the C4, while the C5 was mounted on Norris’s car.
Norris covered a total of 108 laps, significantly more than teammate Piastri, who had to finish early after 65 laps the day before due to a defect. Antonelli completed one lap more than the McLaren driver.
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The best lap times of the day were 1:33.640 minutes for the McLaren driver and 1:32.990 minutes for the Mercedes driver, both faster than Tuesday’s best time set by Russell in 1:33.899 minutes.
For comparison: At the last Formula 1 appearance in 2020, the pole time of Valtteri Bottas in the Mercedes was 1:25.269 minutes.
A total of 2,106 kilometers were covered on the Eifel circuit over the two days.
The next Pirelli development test is planned for mid-May in Magny-Cours, where rain tires will be tested. The slick compounds for the next season will return to the track in Barcelona, following the Grand Prix weekend.
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