Team Estrella Galicia 0,0 Marc VDS drivers Jack Miller and Tito Rabat had to use their balancing skills today on the circuit of Sepang during the first day of testing for the Malaysian Grand Prix, affected once again by rain.
This is the fifth race in a row where Michelin rain tires are used. This time it was a torrential downpour that fell at lunchtime which drowned the 5,5 km of the Sepang circuit just before FP2.
Already this morning, the weather had affected the first free session, persistent traces of humidity having limited to a few laps for Miller et Rabat the possibility of attacking on slicks.
Miller can consider himself unlucky not to have managed to secure a place in the all-important top ten this morning, a narrowly recovered high-side having prevented him from obtaining the top six which seemed promised to him.
With a lap in 2'01.803 yet obtained in conditions which were far from ideal, Miller was only one second off the track record which dates back to 2015. Now all that remains for the Australian is to pray that the track is dry tomorrow morning so that he can improve his time to go straight to the Q2.
Rain always poses problems for Rabat since the start of the season, but there were encouraging signs today which suggest that the work done recently is starting to pay off.
Despite a persistent lack of confidence in the front preventing it from letting go 100% in the wet, Rabat concluded the day with the 20th time.
Jack Miller: 14th – 2'01.803
« I'm disappointed to have missed the top ten this morning due to a big high-side on my best lap. I was sure I could get into the top six by finishing that lap, but even though I had my best time at that point, it didn't do it. Still, I'm happy with how the bike performs in the wet. I did the whole of FP2 with the same set of tires, and even though they were well worn towards the end, my pace was still very fast. Despite everything, I hope that the track will be dry tomorrow morning to allow me to improve my time to try to go directly to Q2. I think I have the pace to get into the top ten but the weather is not in my hands. I hope Mother Nature does me a favor! »
Tito Rabat: 20th – 2'03.531
« This morning, it was very difficult to understand the condition of the track. I tried to attack but I lacked feeling in these conditions you have to be careful because you can fall easily if you make a mistake. This afternoon, in the wet, I also had difficulty finding the right feeling. I'm trying everything I can to be more competitive but I'm still too far from the front runners. We'll have to find answers by tomorrow if the rain continues. I'm trying to make two hundred percent progress, and maybe I should give better information to my team because I'm having a hard time understanding why I'm this far behind in these conditions.. »
Diego Gubellini: Chief Engineer Tito Rabat
« The conditions complicated our start for the weekend. This morning we didn't use a soft tire when they were pretty good because we needed a reference with the medium. We know that we have room for improvement and so we are not too concerned about the time. This afternoon we focused on improving our base settings. Even in the rain the track remains warm here and so we changed the base we used in Japan where it was much colder. We have made progress with the rear grip but we need to improve the front feeling to gain speed in the corners. »
