Lance Stroll and Nico Hülkenberg both made encouraging progress in the AMR22 as Aston Martin Aramco Cognizant Formula One™ Team began the new season in Bahrain.
The second practice session was essential for all teams and drivers, offering the more representative running ahead of Sunday's Bahrain Grand Prix.
Lance
While the first practice session doesn't correlate to the weekend's race, it provided the opportunity to gain more insight into the AMR22 for the further Grands Prix to come.
Lance began the session on a set of Hard tyres as he sought to establish a baseline in the AMR22.
However, his first stint came to an end after just five laps when Esteban Ocon's Alpine lost its sidepod and caused debris on the main straight.
After a lengthy delay, Lance set his benchmark time of 1.37.402 on the compound before a late run on the Soft tyre led to a significant improvement.
Bahrain Grand Prix
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A 1.34.814 lap in with just over 10 minutes remaining in FP1 ensured sixth and capped a productive morning.
Nightfall encouraged more ideal conditions for Lance and the team to make progress on a race-relevant set-up and the Canadian was happy with the progress made.
Running on the Medium tyre to create an initial balance, Lance progressively refined the car before another switch to Soft tyres.
A lock-up at Turn 11 on his fastest attempt meant Lance’s best time was 1.33.958, demonstrating there's still pace to extract in the car.
"I think there is some real excitement in the paddock this weekend because it is the first race with these new regulations," he said.
"It is very tough to tell where everyone stands and we will not truly find out until qualifying tomorrow. For us, today was about continuing to learn about the car.
"We had some solid days in pre-season testing, but there is always more to learn so every lap is valuable.
"I do not think our times today were representative: I ran wide at Turn 11 on my Soft tyre run, but I am happy with our overall progress. I am looking forward to fighting for the best possible grid position tomorrow.
"I also want to say that Nico did a good job today after a late call-up, it is not easy to jump back in after time away."
Nico
After landing in Bahrain around midnight last night, Nico's day was about getting comfortable in the AMR22.
Once his race number had been applied and he was seated in the AMR22, Nico wasted no time in adding laps to the board.
But his early progress was interrupted when Ocon's bodywork came loose right in front of his AMR22.
When the session resumed, Nico was able to clock up a total of 23 laps and a best lap time of 1.35.815.
The FP2 session allowed the German more crucial seat time and he encouragingly lapped closer to Lance's benchmark.
Completing a total of 28 laps across the session on the Soft and Medium tyres, with a personal best time of 1.34.061, Nico has given himself a good platform to build on ahead of qualifying.
"I think today was promising for me: it was all about getting up to speed with the car," said Nico.
"I spoke to Sebastian yesterday and he gave me his feedback and insight, so it is always good to have that preparation before jumping into the car.
"However, I was surprised by how different it was, the feel of the tyre, in particular, and the braking process.
"I am happy with my feeling in the car, though, and how I was able to build on every run to feel more and more comfortable.
"There is always room for more and we will keep working to make progress. This weekend will be a good challenge and I will enjoy every lap in the car."
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