Lewis Hamilton was left delighted after testing for Ferrari despite crashing his car on the second day of running.
He gained some valuable track time at the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya earlier this week, aiding Ferrari preparations for the new season with three days of testing.
Hamilton shared the driving duties with his new team-mate Charles Leclerc and Ferrari development driver Antonio Giovinazzi. It was not all plain sailing for the Brit, though, with a mishap on the second day putting a stain on things.
He crashed into a barrier in the final sector and was unharmed, but the car was reportedly left in a sorry state. There was said to have been damage to the suspension and aerodynamic elements, with mechanics carrying out repair work in the garage.
In spite of the crash, Hamilton was encouraged by the performance of the car and reported ‘very positive impressions’ to his Ferrari engineers, according to Gazzetta dello Sport.
The report states that Hamilton thought the car suited his aggressive style of driving with his late braking and the fact it carries plenty of speed into corners.
The 39-year-old has quickly adapted to Ferrari’s braking system, which is said to be different to that of Mercedes. He is also understood to have ‘become familiar’ with the start procedure and releasing the clutch in another positive sign.
After the end of testing in Barcelona, Hamilton indicated that he was settling in well at Ferrari with a short but sweet Instagram post. He shared a picture of himself leaning on the pit wall alongside the caption: “First race can’t come soon enough.”
His crash did not seem to put too much of a damper on things, with Juan Pablo Montoya among those convinced that it will not turn out to be a bad omen.
“It is a regular test and the truth is that it does not bother me that he crashed,” the former Williams driver told AS.
“[It] is a curve that, if you don’t trust the car, it can surprise you.
“It is a fast turn that you can enter very fast and there are a lot of potholes in the middle of the curve, then you can get out of control of the car very easily. Normally it doesn’t happen, but when there’s not much space [it can happen].
“The reason the accident was a big deal is that when you don’t think about F1, how fast they are going, when you make the mistake and you’re already off the track, the chances of not hitting anything is very low.”