Mattia Binotto claims Audi's reliability problems were not dramatic

Audi just managed 27 laps on Day 1, and at the start of the final day, had only 95 laps on the board, which is not a decent count compared to the 500+ laps Mercedes managed.

Audi are producing their own power unit, something they haven't done before, so they are expected to face problems, but Red Bull Racing, who also introduced their first-ever F1 power unit, have impressed with their reliability.

But Binotto is adamant it is not all doom and gloom for Audi and said: “The more we run, the more we learn, and I think we are really in that stage.

“We know for us there is a lot to build, a lot to grow. These three days of running have been very important. We are doing well for where we are in our journey.

“The reliability is always very critical. We had several problems—small ones, not dramatic—but there are a lot of positives, and we are looking forward," he maintained.

Audi driver Gabriel Bortoleto took over the R26 at the start of the final day of running and managed 50 laps, an encouraging sign for Audi somehow validating Binotto's statement.

“It was positive," the Brazilian driver said over the lunch break on Friday. “We lost a few hours at the beginning of the day with a few issues we had.

"Then as soon as we fixed it, we had an amount of good laps. We put 50 laps on [the] board.

“Obviously not as much as I would like, but already a start for me because in the first day I didn’t run anything.

"Very positive to get to understand our car a little bit better and put some mileage on our car and power unit," Bortoleto concluded.

Nico Hulkenberg will concluded the test for Audi. (Source: F1 TV)