Ferrari advantage in F1 testing proven by Pirelli comparison

Judging the pace of the Formula 1 field from pre-season testing is never easy. Different fuel loads, set-ups and particularly tyres have huge impacts on the running of each driver. With Pirelli having given us a clue as to how each compound of tyre changes a lap time, can we glean any more information?

Nico Hulkenberg ended the first test at the top of the timesheets for Renault, but most in the paddock suggested that it was Ferrari who were quickest, despite the red cars sitting in the middle of the timesheets.

However, Sebastian Vettel and Charles Leclerc's best times were set on the middle tyre compound, with many above on the two softer, and faster, options.

Pirelli Motorsport chief Mario Isola said: "It's still early days, but so far the tyres seem to be performing largely as we expected, with a performance gap of around 0.6 to 0.7 seconds between each compound.

"In more detail, it's something around 0.6 seconds between C2 and C3 so far, and roughly the same gap between C3 and C4, which were the most used tyres in this session."

So taking into account a 0.6 second gap between compounds, here's a reworked order, with what compound the lap was actually set on for reference.

Charles Leclerc [Ferrari] 1:16.846 (C3 –1.2 seconds)
Sebastian Vettel [Ferrari] 1:16.961 (C3 –1.2 seconds)
Romain Grosjean [Haas] 1:17.363 (C3 –1.2 seconds)
Lewis Hamilton [Mercedes] 1:17.377 (C4 -0.6 seconds)
Nico Hulkenberg [Renault] 1:17.393 (C5)
Kevin Magnussen [Haas] 1:17.520 (C3 –1.2 seconds)
Pierre Gasly [Red Bull] 1:17.580 (C3 –1.2 seconds)
Max Verstappen [Red Bull] 1:17.587 (C3 –1.2 seconds)
Alexander Albon [Toro Rosso] 1:17.637 (C5)
Daniil Kvyat [Toro Rosso] 1:17.704 (C5)
Kimi Raikkonen [Alfa Romeo] 1:17.762 (C5)
Daniel Ricciardo [Renault] 1:17.785 (C5)
Lando Norris [McLaren] 1:17.831 (C4 -0.6 seconds)
Valtteri Bottas [Mercedes] 1:17.857 (C5)
Lance Stroll [Racing Point] 1:17.864 (C2 -1.8 seconds)
Carlos Sainz [McLaren] 1:17.958 (C4 -0.6 seconds)
Antonio Giovinazzi [Alfa Romeo] 1:18.511 (C5)
Pietro Fittipaldi [Haas] 1:18.649 (C4 -0.6 seconds)
Sergio Perez [Racing Point] 1:18.744 (C3 –1.2 seconds)
Robert Kubica [Williams] 1:19.742 (C2 -1.8 seconds)
George Russell [Williams] 1:19.797 (C3 –1.2 seconds)

How does that compare to what we actually saw? Check it out here.

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