Renault F1 completed their final day of pre-season testing at the Circuit de Catalunya on Friday with both drivers taking to the wheel of the R.S.17.
Nico Hulkenberg started the day with short runs, setting a number of then fastest laps, with his best a 1:19.885 after a total of 45 laps.
โIt was a productive final morning of the test for me with a lot of work completed,โ the German explained. โWe answered some of the questions we had from the previous days and we made some more progress with the car, which is all you can want. We've tried a lot of set-ups over the course of the two tests; some were good and some were not so good, but the result is we know where to go with the car. It was good to get out there and have a few more performance orientated runs, but we know there's a lot more to come.โ
Meanwhile, teammate Jolyon Palmer took over the driving duties in the afternoon, with a similar program. He completed a total of 43 laps with a best of 1:20.205.
โThe R.S.17 is awesome to drive and there is a lot of further potential yet to come,โ he said. โThe car feels good in all the areas you'd want and it is definitely a strong improvement from the R.S.16 in every area. My final afternoon was promising in terms of pace and we made another step forward with a pretty much full afternoon in the car too. Australia is going to be really special with these cars and I am very positive for the season ahead.โ
Renault will next be seen in action at the Australian Grand Prix in Melbourne on March 24-26.
Fast Facts:
Track: Circuit de Catalunya, Spain, 4.7km
Chassis: R.S.17 - 01
Weather: Crisp to hot and sunny. Ambient 13ยฐC - 25ยฐC Track 15ยฐC - 34ยฐC
Programme: Set-up assessments and evaluations.
Laps Completed: 88: Nico 45, Jo 43.
Classification: Nico P6 1:19.885, Jo: P8, 1:20.205.
Interruptions: Set-up changes, various red flags, exhaust change
