Vettl was relieved after successful training

Sebastian Vettel said he was relieved after the first two free practice sessions after the Red Bull team showed better form.

The team owned by the Austrian energy drink manufacturer encountered many problems with the Renault engine and overheating of components during the winter tests. But Vettel and his teammate Daniel Ricciardo drove a total of 115 laps in Friday's two training sessions. The reigning champion finished the day as the fourth fastest, 0.756 seconds behind the fastest Lewis Hamilton, and Ricciardo was sixth.

“Good start. Which put me off. We put a lot of effort into that, ”said Vettel. "None of us had any problems today. The race cars worked and it got a good feeling. Friday times aren’t worth much, but it’s better to be closer to the top than somewhere behind. As for speed, we know we can show more, but so far I have a good feeling. ”

Ricciardo was also full of optimism: “We expected to be even further behind. I hope the backlog doesn’t increase until Sunday. If the relationship stays the way it is, within a second, it’s better than we expected before we got here.

I won’t be too thrilled, but we did well today. We learned a lot about our race car. I know the guys tried their best after the tests, but we didn’t expect to drive that many laps. We are really very, very pleased.

This will further motivate the team and also show others that we are able to overcome all the obstacles that still await us. ”

Photos: Red Bull