P1 programme 26 laps 1m17.578s (3rd)
A straightforward day for Lewis, who began the day by running three stints on primes in P1: six laps/1m17.578s best; five laps/1m18.238s and seven laps/1m17.863s. The session was split between track familiarisation, evaluating new components and tweaking set-up.
Lewis said: “Driving around Monaco is a spectacular sensation – you can’t compare it to any other circuit. You get such a huge buzz here; I love this place – it reminds me how much I love this sport, why I love racing and why I love Formula 1.”
P2 programme 35 laps 1m15.445s (2nd)
Into P2, the team evaluated the prime and option tyre, completing longer runs and further tweaking the set-up for the circuit. As the track rubbered in, the times got progressively faster, resulting in runs of: four laps/1m18.124s and eight laps/1m16.523s, during which he was delayed behind Buemi and chose to miss the apex of Turn 16. His next run of six laps/1m16.204s was also hampered by a flat-spotted tyre, caused after locking up at the entrance to the harbour chicane. He finished the session with an option-tyre run of five laps, setting his 1m15.445s best.
“From today’s performance, I think Q3 is definitely possible on Saturday,” Lewis added. “I’m optimistic about shooting for the top five – I hope we can get there.”
MARTIN WHITMARSH
Team principal, Vodafone McLaren Mercedes
“The whole team loves the thrill and tension of the Monaco weekend and today’s performance has left us feeling encouraged that we will have another successful weekend in the principality. Both Lewis and Heikki have really dived into the challenge, both producing some excellent times and, most importantly, helping to refine our technical package ahead of Saturday’s crucial qualifying session and the race itself. We go into Saturday feeling extremely positive about getting a strong result from both drivers.”
NORBERT HAUG
Vice-president, Mercedes-Benz Motorsport
“A good first day on this challenging track which saw Vodafone McLaren Mercedes winning on the last two occasions. It is too early to know where we will be in qualifying compared to our competitors, but Lewis and Heikki should hopefully be in better shape than at previous races. The car so far just looks better on this track and our mechanical and aerodynamic improvements seem to help here around as well as our KERS hybrid. Having said that, I do not see us in the role of the favourites like in previous years when we won six grands prix out of 11 since McLaren-Mercedes’ maiden win in 1998.”
