McLaren rookie Kevin Magnussen topped the timing screens at the end of the second day of Formula 1 testing, setting a sensational lap in the MP4-29, while a Renault renaissance of sorts appears to be underway.
Magnussen’s best lap time of 1.34.910 came during a flurry of fast laps in the afternoon, with a set of Pirelli supersoft tyres bolted on to the McLaren. The time compares to the 1:33.702 set by Jenson Button during qualifying for last year’s Bahrain Grand Prix.
A remarkable achievement for brand new engines with a mere six days of real world running. Predictions that the new turbo era will be slow are now proving to be way off the mark.
Time spent in the pits during the course of the day, limited the Magnussen’s running to 46 laps, but his best time was a huge 1.5 seconds up on Nico Hulkenberg who amassed 59 laps in the Force India, making it one-two for Mercedes power at the end of the day.