Marcus Ericsson was left excited by the potential of the C37 after the Swede completed sixty-three laps of the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya on Monday, although the afternoon session was concluded early due to the weather conditions.
The Alfa Romeo Sauber F1 Ream racer ended up eleventh fastest on the day, 4.718 seconds off the pace of Daniel Ricciardo, but with times meaning very little, the twenty-seven-year-old was left wanting more, with his next track running coming on Wednesday.
Ericsson feels there is a lot of potential to unlock out of the C37, which is a big step forward over its predecessor, and also contains the latest specification of Ferrari engine, which should stop them being the back-marker outfit this season.
“It was very exciting to be back on track and drive the C37,” said Ericsson. “Over the course of the day, we gathered some interesting data.
“The C37 is based on a new concept, both mechanically and aerodynamically. It has been interesting to see how these changes translate to the car’s behaviour on track. We completed a few good runs, however, had to cut the afternoon session short due to the tricky weather conditions at the Circuit de Catalunya.
“We dealt with low temperatures of both the air and the asphalt, which made it difficult to get the tyres to work properly.
“Although this was the first day of winter testing it has been a positive and productive day. There is potential in our new car and we have to continue working hard to understand how to unlock it. I look forward to building on this on Wednesday.”
Ericsson will hand the driving duties over to debutant Charles Leclerc on Tuesday.
