We might fortunately get used to this. For the third race weekend this season, it seems like a detailed battle is brewing between Mercedes and Purple Bull.
A well-known theme developed from Friday follow, with little or no to select between the highest two groups on each single-lap tempo and lengthy runs.
If something, Mercedes could maintain the sting over a single lap and Purple Bull over a race distance, however a lot will rely upon how every driver is ready to handle the interplay between their tyres and Portimao’s easy observe floor.
Pirelli has introduced its three hardest tyre compounds to Portugal, and in consequence, constructing and retaining tyre temperature is a key consider efficiency.
It was the identical story at this circuit final 12 months, when a newly-laid observe floor had drivers scrambling for grip whereas their tyres got here as much as temperature.
A 12 months’s weathering has given Portimao’s floor a bit extra chew, however setting a fast lap time nonetheless requires good tyre preparation.
“It is very related [to last year],” Max Verstappen stated after getting out of his Purple Bull on Friday afternoon. “In fact the tyres have modified and naturally we have misplaced a little bit of grip from the automotive [due to regulation changes] in comparison with final 12 months, nevertheless it’s very tough on the market and it is a disgrace.
“It is all about tyre prep, tyre temperature, and it should not be like that.
“However, after all, it is the identical for everybody.”
Lewis Hamilton ended up with the quickest lap of the day, a 1:19.837, and unusually it got here on his third lap out of the pits moderately than his second — highlighting how troublesome it’s to realize the fitting tyre temperature on a single outlap.
He ended up zero.143s sooner than Verstappen and zero.344s sooner than Mercedes teammate Valtteri Bottas.
A comparability between the laps of Hamilton and Verstappen exhibits Purple Bull gaining in high-speed corners, similar to Flip 1 the place Verstappen carried practically 10km/h extra apex pace, whereas Hamilton recovered time within the slow-speed corners, similar to Flip three and Flip 5 the place he had a 5km/h benefit.
Each groups will look to refine their setups to handle their relative weaknesses forward of qualifying, whereas guaranteeing they keep or prolong their strengths.
As soon as once more, the midfield drivers had been in contact with the highest two groups throughout Friday follow, however based mostly on what we have seen on the first two races, that hole will seemingly prolong in qualifying.
Lengthy-run tempo
Purple Bull and Mercedes took completely different approaches to their lengthy runs on the finish of Friday’s second follow session, with Mercedes splitting its drivers’ time between the comfortable and medium tyres whereas Purple Bull centered solely on the medium.
From the small amount of laps we noticed, it seems as if the medium compound was a greater race tyre than the comfortable, so anticipate to see the highest drivers try to make it by the second session of qualifying on the medium tyre in an effort to begin the race on that compound.
Bottas had one of the best long-run tempo on the medium tyres, with a mean lap time of 1:23.062 over six laps.
Hamilton’s common lap time on the medium compound was a comparatively disappointing 1:23.802 over eight laps, whereas Verstappen accomplished a wholesome ten laps on the medium with a mean of 1:23.116.
“I feel by way of tempo it wasn’t a nasty begin,” Bottas stated. “It is good to see we’re there or thereabouts though, once more, it is going to be shut, little doubt.
“I acquired a fairly related feeling to final 12 months. It is nonetheless a fairly slippery tarmac and particularly the rear of the automotive is fairly free in some locations, so it wasn’t the simplest of days.
“It is not simple to get clear laps, and for me, personally, the softer we went with the compounds, the trickier the automotive turned.
“So I feel the medium tyre is one of the best working tyre to date, however there’s nonetheless work to do.”
Each Mercedes automobiles picked up aerodynamic harm throughout their lengthy runs, nevertheless it was clear Hamilton was the much less comfortable of the 2.
“It is troublesome to say whether or not or not it is the automotive or it is the wind or the observe, nevertheless it’s undoubtedly been an actual problem immediately to maintain the automotive on observe,” the world champion stated.
“We got here right here final 12 months and the tyres had been too arduous, and we have come right here once more and the identical tyre, so it is just about… in truth they’re more durable this 12 months, so it seems like we have include too arduous a compound in my view.”
Verstappen’s stable tempo, roughly matching Bottas regardless of finishing extra laps on the medium compound, hints at his potential within the race and simply how shut the battle may very well be between Mercedes and Purple Bull.
“I feel it is going to be a detailed run; it seems like we’re shut [with Red Bull],” Hamilton added.
“I do not understand how Max’s [fastest] lap was however mine wasn’t good. We have undoubtedly acquired a while to return from the automotive and a few enhancements to make, however I am certain they’ve too.
“But it surely’s shut, because it has been the final couple of races, so it is thrilling.”
Purple Bull’s Sergio Perez can be eager to hitch the battle after a scrappy run on low gasoline noticed him set his quickest time, a 1:20.516, on his fifth lap out of the pits and find yourself tenth quickest general.
Nonetheless, his future on medium tyres appeared extra aggressive, inserting him in between Verstappen and Hamilton with a mean lap time of 1:23.455 over eight laps on the mediums.
“I feel we have now fairly good tempo so undoubtedly we ought to be within the combine tomorrow to struggle for pole,” Perez stated after the session.
Has Alpine made progress?
The presence of each Alpine drivers within the high six on Friday got here as a shock after the struggles of the French workforce on the first two races.
Alpine, the renamed Renault workforce from final 12 months, seems to have slipped backwards relative to its rivals this 12 months, which the workforce’s managing director, Marcin Budkowski, places right down to points within the wind tunnel over the winter that prevented it profiting from its improvement time.
“Sadly it is not fully a shock as a result of we had a number of points over the winter that we knew would have an effect on our efficiency and naturally we went to the Bahrain take a look at and our fears had been true,” he stated. “So we knew we had been on the again foot going into testing after which going into the primary races.
“We’re working arduous on attempting to enhance the automotive. We introduced some developments to Imola, we have now performed some extra testing this morning, so we’re making small steps by way of enhancing the efficiency of the automotive.
“However the hole to the blokes we would wish to struggle with, the McLarens and the Ferraris, is a bit an excessive amount of in the intervening time, so we’re nonetheless working to shut it, however will probably be tough to do this within the subsequent few races.”
An indication of progress got here on Friday afternoon as two-time world champion Fernando Alonso completed the day fifth quickest, zero.023s off Ferrari’s Carlos Sainz in fourth place, and simply zero.383s off Hamilton in first place.
However, if something, Alpine’s look within the high six exhibits simply how shut the midfield is that this season and the way vital it was to get the tyres attached for a fast lap of Portimao on Friday.
“It was good, I feel we had been pleased with the automotive immediately,” Alonso stated. “Clearly it is solely Friday however we had been comfy from lap one and we did not contact the set-up a lot as a result of the whole lot felt moderately OK.
“We tried to do some laps only for me to get used to the observe and to know slightly bit extra concerning the tyres.
“The asphalt appears slightly bit completely different in comparison with final 12 months, so we needed to evaluation slightly little bit of the info we had from the tyres. Usually a contented Friday however nonetheless extra to return tomorrow.”
Simply zero.361 separated Sainz in fourth place and the AlphaTauri of Pierre Gasly in 11th, with nearly each driver in between telling a narrative of a wind-affected lap or tyre temperature points.
Trying to the lengthy runs for a extra dependable kind information, it seems as if Ferrari and McLaren are intently matched on the entrance of the midfield with Alpine simply behind.
However, that might nonetheless characterize progress for Alpine, which appeared just like the fifth-fastest workforce, slotting in forward of AlphaTauri, Aston Martin, Williams, Alfa Romeo and a distant Haas workforce.