2015 GP2 Pre-Season Test (Yas Marina) Day 3

Stanaway sets fastest time of the Test

Photo: Jed Leicester/GP2 Series Media Service

Morning got underway in windy conditions with a red flag almost immediately as Markelov stopped at turn 7. However; unlike yesterday, many drivers were setting competitive laps early on with Vandoorne and Evans setting the early pace. However; Evans would soon find himself stopped at turn 9. After a short red flag, Marciello then Evans then Stanaway all went quickest on the super soft tyre. Few times were improved in the second half of the morning and Stanaway was on top at the end of the morning.

Many drivers decided to test pit stops and setting on their cars in the afternoon with few attempting to beat record times. Lynn set the early pace as Rossi and Zoel Amburg would later stop on track in separate incidents. Some drivers did try to set some quick laps towards the end with Sirotkin going fastest, however this was interrupted with Markelov becoming the 4th driver that day to stop on track. No improvements were made and the 3rd day of testing ended quietly.

Day 3 Results:
 

Pos.	Driver	Nat.	Team	Morning	Afternoon
1	Sergey Sirotkin	RUS	Rapax	1:49.023	1:49.158
2	Arthur Pic	FRA	Campos Racing	1:49.115	1:49.260
3	Alex Lynn	GBR	Dams	1:48.937	1:49.277
4	Nathanael Berthon	FRA	Lazarus	1:49.426	1:49.379
5	Norman Nato	FRA	Arden International	1:50.551	1:49.391
6	Rio Haryanto	IDN	Campos Racing	1:49.001	1:49.431
7	Pierre Gasly	FRA	Dams	1:48.605 [2]	1:49.532
8	Daniel De Jong	NED	MP Motorsport	1:50.885	1:49.859
9	Mitch Evans	NZL	Russian Time	1:48.717 [3]	1:50.097
10	Zoel Amburg	SUI	Lazarus	1:51.292	1:50.197
11	Sergio Canamasas	ESP	Hilmer Motorsport	1:51.134	1:50.227
12	Andre Negrao	BRA	Arden International	1:49.142	1:50.741
13	Vittorio Ghirelli	ITA	MP Motorsport	1:50.058	1:50.842
14	Robert Visoiu	ROM	Rapax	1:51.076	1:51.024
15	Rene Binder	AUT	Trident	1:49.767	1:51.084
16	Artem Markelov	RUS	Russian Time	1:49.693	1:52.058
17	Stoffel Vandoorne	BEL	ART Grand Prix	1:48.921	1:52.501
18	Marco Sorensen	DEN	Carlin	1:49.271	1:52.709
19	Raffaele Marciello	ITA	Trident	1:48.850 [4]	1:53.118
20	Jordan King	GBR	Racing Engineering	1:49.194	1:53.290
21	Nobuharu Matsushita	JAP	ART Grand Prix	1:49.679	1:53.296
22	Julian Leal	COL	Carlin	1:49.322	1:53.611
23	Malon Stockinger	PHI	Status Grand Prix	1:50.109	1:53.952
24	Alexander Rossi	USA	Racing Engineering	1:48.857 [5]	1:53.991
25	Richie Stanaway	NZL	Status Grand Prix	1:48.441 [1]	1:54.005
26	Axcil Jefferies	ZIM	Hilmer Motorsport	--	--
The Positions are the results of the Afternoon Session [1] – Position in Morning Session (only top 5 shown)

Who was the quickest?

In terms of one off lap time; Stanaway's 1:48.441 on the final day. However; Galsy and Vandoorne has been consistently near the front of the grid, as have Marciello and Evans. So, in terms of championship favourites, the front runners are no surprise.

Who was the surprisingly quick driver?

Despite finishing no higher than a midfield position for most of his GP3 career, Visoiu managed to get promoted. However; instead of running at the back he's put in some impressive times. It will be telling how he and teammate Sirotkin can do during the season. While fellow GP3 graduate Stanaway has raised some eyebrows with his one of quick time. Perhaps a future qualifying specialist.

Who has not met expectations?

Having not completed a lap, its hard to judge Jefferies, especially considering his back of the grid performance last year. Having had questions asked of him in FR3.5 last year, Stockinger would have hoped for a strong start, but one has not come. He'll have to hope results improve as the season progresses. While the Carlin team and drivers have been surprisingly slow compared to their experience.

Which non-contracted driver has earned himself a race seat?

Stanaway without a doubt has proved he is quick, but will need to prove his overtaking and consistently. While Amburg has impressed, even if he struggled to keep up with teammate Berthon, as has Ghirelli with MP Motorsport.

What do we expect to see in Bahrain?

I feel we're yet to see Rossi's true pace, even if we've seen occasional bursts. While we will keep an eye on Carlin to see if they really are struggling for pace or if it was a one session blip. With Gasly proving his speed, we might be up for a closer race for 1st than we thought. Vandoorne will have to watch his mirrors with Evans and Marciello showing they've taken a step forward.

Next test in Bahrain - 1/2/3 April

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