Abu Dhabi young driver test day 2 round-up

However, as the other teams used mule cars to test the 18" Pirelli tyres that will debut in 2022, the Russian driver was using the 2021 Haas car to set his time of 1:25.348s.

Shwartzman was almost half a second faster than Lando Norris, who was driving a McLaren modified to test Pirelli's new 18" tyres, with the Briton posting a time of 1:25.809s, after completing 103 laps around Yas Marina Circuit.

Norris' time was the fastest among the teams of were using the new 18" Pirelli tyres.

Second fastest of the 18" brigade was the festive Sebastian Vettel in the Aston Martin, the German's best time being 1:26.379s, but completing 134 laps.

The German had a technical issue midday, that brought our the Red flags but didn't take long to get back running.

George Russell who tested on Tuesday, was on duty for his new team for the second day of testing as well completing 82 laps on his way to a best time of 1:26.404s 0.025s off Vettel's time.

Pierre Gasly completed 149 laps on the final day of testing, his best time being the fourth fastest among the 18"-tyre testers with a time of 1:26.451s.

Carlos Sainz, who finished the 2021 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix third for Ferrari, was fifth fastest among the teams that had the 18" tyres bolted to their machines, after completing the biggest number of laps, 150, with his best time being 1:26.706s.

Then came Alpine's Fernando Alonso with a time of 1:26.940s, and completing 148 laps on the 18" Pirelli's.

2022 rookie Guanyu Zhou was seventh fastest on the new Pirelli tyres, the Chinese completing 150 laps, the second most of the runners, with his best time of 1:27.850s.

Red Bull had Sergio Perez in their car to test the 2022 tyres, the Mexican having a best time of 1:27.991s and completing 118.

Haas reserve driver Pietro Fittipaldi was the slowest on the 18" tyres completing 123 laps.

Here are some quotes of what some teams had to say after the day 2 of the Young Driver Test was concluded.

Sergio Perez who on Sunday delivered a great team drive, supporting his title winning teammate Max Verstappen was in the car and commented on his day.

Sergio Perez: "It has been a really interesting day, the new tyres feel quite different from the current ones, in terms of how they behave and I have been nicely surprised by them.

"I know it is early days but generating temperature in them has been one of the things we have been working on and they seem to be more robust in terms of surface overheating.

"It has been enjoyable being out there today and at the moment I have a good feeling about these tyres. It was nice to be back in the RB15 today because it reminded me of my first ever day with Red Bull Racing Honda and to think that was just at the beginning of the year, it feels like that happened three years ago!

"It’s been such a long but enjoyable year and I am looking forward to spending some time back home in Mexico before we come back strong in 2022."

Guillaume Rocquelin, Head of Race Engineering: "Today we ran a similar programme to Max yesterday, with Checo going through the various compounds, over mostly long runs.

"We had a minor issue in the second half of the afternoon with a small fluid leak, but it was just a niggle and we were quickly up and running again.

"Overall, we’re happy with the progress made over these two days. We got a lot of scans with the new tyres, we feel well prepared and it was time well spent. The tyres seem good to go, so in all a very positive couple of days."

Carlos Sainz: "I’m happy with the number of laps we managed to do. I’m more tired mentally than physically, because by the end of the season, you’re super fit, but in your head, you have concentrate right to the end, because you are still driving a Formula 1 car.

"Being able to test these 18 inch tyres a lot was very interesting. There are obvious differences but I’d say that, overall, they are going in the right direction.

"From what I could feel today, I think it will call for a change to certain aspects of one’s driving style, but after all, we already knew we would have to do this with the cars we will get to drive next year being completely different to the ones we used up until last Sunday."

Lando Norris: "Today was another productive day of testing. It was really good to get a feel for the new tyres and understand more about how they work.

"We've collected a lot of useful information over the last two days and this data will help us to work on things over the winter break and hopefully answer a few questions we had.

"There's a lot of work to do ahead of next season, but I'm already excited. For now though, it's important that everyone gets a well-deserved break after this long season.

"I want to say a big thanks to the whole team here and back home for all their hard work, and wish everyone a great holiday to rest and recharge with their family and friends before we go again early next year. Happy holidays!"

Andrea Stella, Executive Director, Racing: "Today concludes our post-season test, and with it our on-track running for the 2021 season.

"We've gathered a lot of data on the new 18-inch 2022 tyres over the last two days, which provides us with a strong baseline as we continue to develop the MCL36 in the simulator over the coming months.

"I'd like to thank Lando, Daniel and Pato for their hard work over the last two days, as well as the engineers, mechanics and the team back at the factory for enabling us to have a smooth and efficient test.

"We now head back to the factory to recharge, rest and reset before coming back to track in February ahead of the 2022 season."

Robert Shwartzman: "It's been very nice. I'm very happy and I learned a lot which is very positive – I was always improving and progressing which is a very important thing.

"It's been a big pleasure to drive for Haas today, it's a different team and new environment but it went quickly. The team and people around were very nice and they were happy with what we've done today, we've done some different testing which was all good.

"It was just a very positive test and I'm happy. It's always the cherry on the cake when you leave the track and you're the quickest. "

Ayao Komatsu, Director of Engineering: "We had our mule car with the 18-inch tires for two days – first day with Mick and then again today with Pietro and the car ran without any major issues.

"We collected lots of data and we understand quite a lot about the 18-inch tires, how they will work and what the limitations may look like. That's a good step forward ahead of winter testing next year.

"Today, we also ran Robert as part of the young driver test so he ran this year's car. Again, he did a really professional job, and his feedback was really good.

"We ran him at the end on the soft tire and sometimes young drivers cannot get everything out of it, but he did. A very good two days at the end of a very tough season."

Alfa Romeo Racing ORLEN brought the last bit of track action of 2021 to an end as it completed a successful two-day post-season test in Abu Dhabi. The session, hosted on the Yas Marina Circuit, allowed the team to put the new 18’’ Pirelli tyres to the test, gathering important data on one of the most crucial elements of the 2022 regulation revolution.

Next year’s driver line-up of Valtteri Bottas, taking part courtesy of Mercedes ahead of his arrival to the team in January, and Guanyu Zhou drove a total of 277 laps in a modified 2019 C38, with Zhou also completing 119 laps in the C41 on Tuesday as part of the Young Drivers’ Test.

With the 2021 season now fully in the archives, it’s time to head back home and enjoy a short break for the holidays before the adrenalinic rush to the first pre-season test. 2022 is going to be here quick.