The first official track run took place as the Formula 3 championship drivers took to the track for in season testing across the span of two days. Unfortunately, the track saw 19 red flag stoppages during this time.
There have been some worries from fans as they believed the track would not be ready in time for its debut in September. Photos and video had been coming out about the state of the track and many thought seemed underprepared for these cars to go racing there. The good news from this test is the track is definitely ready to be driven on.
However, the concerning aspect is the number of red flags displayed. There were 9 red flags on day 1 and 10 on day 2. Red flags had been put out for all sorts of reasons, including: stoppages, crashes, spins and debris.
Here is a breakdown of the causes of the flags:
| Day | Driver | Cause | Corner |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Christian Ho | Barrier contact | |
| 1 | Fernando Barrichello | Barrier contact | 17 |
| 1 | Jin Nakamura | Barrier contact | 17 |
| 1 | Maciej Gladysz | Barrier contact | 5 & 6 |
| 1 | Freddie Slater | Wall contact | 10 |
| 1 | Unnamed | Spin | |
| 1 | Bruno Del Pino | Stopped on track | 12 |
| 1 | Unnamed | Not Disclosed | |
| 1 | Unnamed | Not Disclosed | |
| 2 | Michael Shin | Wall contact | 5 |
| 2 | Hiyu Yamakoshi | Barrier Contact | 11 |
| 2 | Nicola Lacorte | Wall contact | 14 |
| 2 | Kanato Le | Barrier contact | 7 |
| 2 | Fernando Barrichello | Barrier contact | 7 |
| 2 | Fernando Barrichello | Spin | 8 |
| 2 | Mattia Colnaghi | Spin | 7 |
| 2 | Unnamed | Spin | |
| 2 | Fionn McLaughlin | Stopped on track | |
| 2 | Matteo De Palo | Stopped on track |
If the corner is left empty, it's because I do not know which corner the incident took place at.
According to a Spanish reporter the F3 drivers reported finding the track fast and demanding but overall felt good vibes from the circuit.
As per how fast they were going, Freddie Slater set the benchmark on day one, a time of 1:50.343 for Trident. On day two it was beaten by Campos driver Ugo Ugochukwu with a lap time of 1:49.034.
Although the feedback from the drivers are quite positive, viewers can not help but be concerned about the amount of red flags this track has already seen. Although it is a new track that drivers need to learn before they can drive it perfectly, 19 red flags is abnormally high. The walls of the track are right on the edge of the circuit so any mistake could potentially cause a major accident. Ultimately we will just have to see how it pans out and how the drivers adapt in a few weeks time when we go racing there for the full verdict on how safe the track is, but if we see a repeat of too many red flags there is going to be a cause for concern among fans of motorsport and the teams involved.
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