Day four’s afternoon session at the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya has come to an end, and George Russell and Mercedes raise the bar higher once again.
Mercedes start Thursday impressively
Barcelona is playing host to the first week of winter testing for the 2026 season, with ten teams travelling to Spain to get some vital miles under their belt. Williams announced they would be the only team to miss the entire week.
On day four of testing, Lewis Hamilton, Oscar Piastri, Kimi Antonelli, Liam Lawson, and Sergio Perez took to the track for the morning session, and like it was day three, Mercedes were reportedly the team to beat.
Antonelli unofficially clocked a 1.17.081 to go 1.4 seconds clear of the rest of the grid. Piastri’s McLaren was second ahead of the Ferrari of Hamilton, while Lawson and Perez rounded out the top five.
Kimi Antonelli in action during winter testing – Photo: Mercedes AMG F1 Team
Russell continues Mercedes impressive week
In the afternoon session of day four, with Russell replacing Antonelli for Mercedes, the pace continues to be strong for the German team.
The Brit became the first driver to break the one-minute-17-second barrier at the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya, with an unofficial 1.16.928, catapulting him to the top of the timesheets as the pair of Mercedes drivers completed 78 laps and 90 laps respectively.
Charles Leclerc was the first car out on track this afternoon, and he could only go third fastest, setting 83 laps of his own, slotting ahead of Piastri, with an issue for McLaren keeping the Australian away from the track.
Arvid Lindblad’s afternoon session saw him find more pace than Hamilton and take P5 ahead of the Brit in P6, while Lawson and Perez stayed seventh and eighth. Lance Stroll rounded out the standings for Aston Martin, who took to the track for the first time in 2026.
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