17/04/2015
NEWS STORY
It was another constructive day of running for the Manor Marussia F1 Team in Bahrain today, as they tackled the first two free practice sessions for Sunday's 2015 Formula 1 Gulf Air Bahrain Grand Prix.
FP1 was held in daylight conditions, in which track temperatures of over 50°C made for a very challenging session for both team and drivers. FP2 took place in race representative floodlit conditions, with Will Stevens and Roberto Merhi both getting the chance to try the Soft tyre and bringing the lap tally for the day to 74 laps.
Will Stevens: "I'm pleased to say we've had another predominantly smooth day of running and that has been important in reaching a good baseline set-up and getting to grips with the track conditions. We're really starting to get into the swing of things in terms of our run plan and the improved pace is coming off the back of that, so I feel well prepared for tomorrow."
Roberto Merhi: "It has been a very good and straightforward opening day and as this is another new circuit for me, we've been able to get into a good rhythm to help with acclimatisation. We made good progress through our set programme and now the focus tomorrow is on extracting a little more of the pace. A good day for the team."
John Booth, Team Principal: "It is very encouraging to have the benefit of another smooth and consistent day of running. Once again we've been able to make incremental steps with the setup of the car and understand the spectrum of track conditions in preparation for race representative conditions later in the day. Both drivers have done a solid job and consequently we have been able to start the weekend by edging a little closer to the midfield in terms of our early pace, steadily reducing that delta in line with our objectives for this stage of the season."
Check out our Friday gallery, here.