Gasly quickest again as GP2 testing ends

This afternoon’s session marks the end of the 2016 GP2 pre-season test, the first opportunity the drivers have had to shake off the winter cobwebs until the end of the month, where the second test will commence at Jerez. Newcomers PREMA Powerteam have proved that speed and results are not restricted to just their FIA F3 campaign, with their French ace Pierre Gasly topping the timesheets on 2 of the 3 days.

The day dawned bright but cold, with Status GP’s van Buuren the first to take to the track. Nicholas Latifi was the first driver under the 1:30 barrier for DAMS early on in the session, the Canadian having switched from the now defunct World Series by Renault 3.5 for the 2016 season. His more experienced GP2 teammate Lynn was the first to break under 1:28 with a time of 1:27:841 (ultimately his fastest time of the day), the benchmark for the top few drivers over the last couple of days.

A brief red flag period was summoned by Sirotkin venturing into the gravel bed halfway through the morning session, but on the restart the times really began to tumble. Gasly went under his personal best from yesterday with a 1:27.386 on the soft Pirelli tyres. Also improving on their times were Nato – who completed his maiden season in the series last year – and 2015 F3 runner-up Antonio Giovinazzi, who finished the morning session and overall standings 2nd and 3rd respectively before the PREMA driver came to a stop at turn 4.

The afternoon pace was lacking compared to the morning. A red flag an hour in caused by contact between Marciello and Binder was the first of two small interruptions, allowing the drivers and teams to successfully complete their long runs, interspersed with pit stop practices. Early pacesetter Pic was denied topping the timesheets by Artem Markelov initially, before his Rapax teammate Malja put the hammer down to clock a 1:28.719 – the fastest time of the afternoon.

The cars will take to the track once more on March 29th at Jerez for the second of the pre-season tests. Will Gasly and PREMA still be a dominant force, or will a new challenger rise to the top?

Morning results

Afternoon results