LONDON (THE GUARDIAN) - Lando Norris, who took to the track for the first time as a Formula One driver in testing on Tuesday (Feb 19), capped a strong performance by setting the second-fastest time in Spain.
The 19-year-old McLaren driver will be the youngest British driver to take part in F1 when he makes his debut at the Australian Grand Prix in March and has made a controlled and confident start to his new career.
He has already shown promise and he was able to exploit McLaren making a far stronger start in testing than they have in the previous four years.
His time, set in the last hour of a day during which he completed an impressive 104 laps, was just over three-tenths down on Charles Leclerc in the Ferrari, who led the timesheets throughout at the Circuit de Catalunya.
"It's good I managed to do some longer runs, good to know we can get through a whole day with no big problems," Norris said.
"But it is only day two. We want to get through this test and identify any problems there might be and make sure we figure them out before Australia. It's good confidence for myself and for the team."
He believes the team and car have made a step forward since their difficult 2018 season. "The motivation, how everyone works, seems to be going in the right direction," he said.
"Some of the niggles we have had to overcome have been ironed out. Everyone is working together in the correct way and everyone is very motivated."
Williams, meanwhile are hopeful they will be able to run their car for the first time in testing on Wednesday (Feb 20).
The team missed the first two days because their car was still being worked on at the factory. It arrived from the UK in the early hours of Wednesday morning and they are aiming to make it ready for the afternoon session.
Ferrari were once again on top with Leclerc, in his first time behind the wheel for the team, putting in an impressive performance and racking up 157 laps.
Five-time world champion Lewis Hamilton took the Mercedes out in the morning, completing 74 laps of consistent running in 10th place.
Daniel Ricciardo set some good times for Renault until part of his rear wing came off in the morning run, ending his session.
Red Bull, too, looked competitive and reliable until Pierre Gasly went off having completed 92 laps.
