Scuderia Ferrari completed 306 laps in the first day of post-season testing in Abu Dhabi at the yas Marina circuit, which is the equivalent to almost six times the distance of last Sunday’s Formula 1 race. The main goal of Tuesday’s test was to evaluate the 18 inch tyres which will be used from the 2022 Formula 1 championship.
The Maranello team actually worked on two programmes today, taking into consideration that apart from a mule car running the 2022 18 inch tyres, there was also an SF21 car in action at the Yas Marina circuit. Doing most of the driving was the Italian side’s expert simulator driver Antonio Fuoco. He began the day in the 2021 car and then took to the wheel of the mule during the afternoon. The Italian, who also drove in this test last year with the SF1000, completed 146 laps, which is about 800 kilometres.
It was also the last drive of the year for Charles Leclerc. In the morning, the Moneagsque driver was the first to drive the car on 18 inch wheels, covering 87 laps, his last of this long 2021 Formula 1 championship: “It’s useful to continue to get an understanding of the new size of tyre, which is bigger than those we used to the end of this season. The wheels are very big and the feeling through the wheel is quite different. The team has acquired plenty of data, which will be useful in preparing the 2022 car. Personally, today helped me learn more about these tyres, even though I doubt the feeling from this car will be the same as those from next year’s one, given that it will be conceptually very different.” – Charles explained.
In the afternoon, Robert Shwartzman drove. After finishing second in the Formula 2 championship at the weekend, the Ferrari Driver Academy member replaced Antonio Fuoco in the SF21 car and completed 73 laps. It was the Russian’s third drive this year in a Ferrari Formula 1 car, but it was the first time he had driven the current car.
On wednesday, the final day of Formula 1 track action of the year, Carlos Sainz will be the only Scuderia Ferrari driver on track at Yas Marina, spending the whole day at the wheel of the car with 18 inch wheels. Robert Shwartzman will also be back in action, moving to the Haas VF-21, which his fellow academy student Mick Schumacher has been racing this year.
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