After an impressive opening day of Pre season testing, Red Bull and Isack Hadjar lost crucial track time due to a hydraulic leak.
The team to beat?
Max Verstappen was in the car for the full day on Wednesday. First out on the track, the Dutchman’s pace immediately caught the eye of the other teams.
The four-time world champion was on top of the leaderboard for most of the day. Yet it was the reigning World Champion, Lando Norris, who had the fastest time of the day.
Nevertheless the team started the test off strong. A series of long runs meant the team ended the session with a mighty 136 laps to their name. Only Esteban Ocon claimed 100 plus laps individually.
Hydraulics leak delays Red Bull Day 2
Reliability didnt seem to be an issue for the Red Bull team on the opening day. Renowned for their dependable cars, Isack Hadjar was scheduled for the second day of testing.
A crash in the shakedown in Barcelona will have knocked the 21 year-old’s confidence with team principle Laurent Mekies describing the crash as “unfortunate”.
Subsequently, running for the Frenchman would be vital for him to adjust to his new team.
But as the green light blinked on at the end of the pitlane the 21 year-old was nowhere to be seen.
The delay was due to the hydraulic leak, which was discovered during the car build process overnight.
The team managed to quickly fix the issue, and Hadjar managed to run the RB22 for 1 lap towards the end of the morning session.
Will missing the morning session harm Red Bull?
As we know, mileage and data are critical throughout the testing, especially when getting to grips with the new regulations.
For Isack Hadjar track time is crucial. The youngster was promoted to the senior team following a mighty rookie year with sister team Racing Bulls.
Alongside Max Verstappen, a seat which is notoriously difficult to perform in, all eyes will be on the youngster.
After his incident in Barcelona, track time will be crucial as he is not only adjusting to the new regulations, but he is also adjusting to the new team.
However, for the team, with Max’s incredible run during Day1 the impact of missing the sessions hopefully isn’t too critical.
Feature image courtesy of Formula 1
Further reporting conducted by Annika Rosler