Canadian Lance Stroll had a tough opening day as he collided with the barriers during tricky Free Practice 1 and 2 at the Bahrain International Circuit.
The first session took place during the day and within the first half hour of the session, Racing Point F1 Team driver Stroll spun in to the barriers coming out of Turn 4, breaking the front wing of his car.
Luckily damage was minor meaning he quickly recovered in the garage and ended the morning session with a time of 1:33:518 in eighteenth place.
Things weren’t much better in Free Practice 2 as he finished seventeenth, but the session offered a more realistic view of the race conditions which takes place in the evening.
Stroll admitted the first session was difficult as he got used to the new aero parts on the RP19.
“The first session was very busy with big changes to the car – running different aero parts – and trying to understand the best direction for the rest of the weekend.”
After a disappointing result, Stroll says there’s a long night ahead for the team as they look to improve their performance for qualifying and the race.
“It wasn’t easy today. We need to review the data and work hard to understand where we can find some more performance.” added Stroll.
“We know it’s very competitive in the midfield so we have to find some speed tonight if we are to be in the top ten tomorrow.”
