Mercedes ended Friday at the Spanish GP with the best race pace among the Formula 1 teams. George Russell was the fastest in full tank simulations, with Max Verstappen just 0.13 seconds per lap behind after adjustments for tires and stint duration.
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Kimi Antonelli appeared in third, but already 0.55 seconds per lap slower than Russell. Ferrari and McLaren had more concerning performances: the two Italian cars were about 0.9 seconds per lap behind Mercedes, while Oscar Piastri lost 1.51 seconds. Lando Norris was unable to complete a long simulation due to technical problems.
Mercedes’ main advantage seems to be in the final sector. Data indicates the team uses less battery energy in the first sector, without losing much time, and reaches the final stretch with higher speed. Ferrari stood out more in the first sector, while Verstappen and Red Bull were strong in the second. McLaren, on the other hand, appeared consistently slow across all three sectors.
In the midfield pack, Haas surprised. Esteban Ocon was only 0.92 seconds per lap behind Russell, practically at the same level as Ferrari. Alpine appeared 1.60 seconds behind, Audi 2.20, Williams 2.58, Cadillac 4.00, and Aston Martin 4.33. Racing Bulls failed to complete a representative simulation after Arvid Lindblad’s crash.
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Another point of attention was tire degradation. Toto Wolff stated that Mercedes measured “eight tenths of degradation per lap” in FP1. “We have never seen that before. Our strategy chief talked about six stops, but I think in the end it will be one,” he said.
In FP2, however, degradation was closer to 0.3 seconds per lap, a scenario that currently points more towards two stops. Pirelli, on the other hand, sees a different trend. “The asphalt grip is really good, so most likely we will have less degradation than expected,” said Dario Marrafuschi.
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