• Second Barcelona Test, Day Two

Grosjean quickest on drier second day

Romain Grosjean was quickest in an afternoon session which was mainly dry © Getty Images

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• Drivers:
• Romain Grosjean

• Teams:
• Lotus F1

Romain Grosjean finished the second day of testing on the top of the timesheets, setting the fastest time in the afternoon before rain started to fall again in the final 30 minutes.

Overnight rain meant the teams were faced with a wet track to start with, and although it dried an hour or so before lunch, the cold temperatures meant conditions were never ideal. Nevertheless, Grosjean managed a 1:22.716 in the afternoon on soft tyres to finish the day 0.465s ahead of Jenson Button, who also improved on his best time in the afternoon. Although he didn't get the kind of running he had hoped for, the fastest time may act as some conciliation for Grosjean, who will now have to wait until the Australian Grand Prix before getting back behind the wheel of the E21.

Pastor Maldonado was third fastest as he managed a 1:23.628 just before the rain hit in the final half hour. He completed a series of short runs in the afternoon as the team worked through a series of set-up changes.

Sebastian Vettel set the fourth fastest time as Red Bull spent part of the afternoon trialling a new passive drag reduction device (DRD). The car left the pits several times with the rear end doused in aero-paint but his best lap - a 1:23.743 - was set on a seven-lap run on medium tyres without the device in place.

Nico Hulkenberg was fifth fastest and just 0.001s off Vettel's time as he resumed testing in the Sauber. In sixth, Adrian Sutil returned to the cockpit of the Force India safe in the knowledge that he will be racing the car in two week's time in Australia. His best effort was 1.499s off the best of the day and he completed 62 laps in total.

Daniel Ricciardo was seventh fastest in the Toro Rosso, just a tenth faster than Max Chilton's Marussia. Chilton was in the car again despite being scheduled to split it with Luiz Razia, who is still trying to secure the funding for his drive. In the final hour of the test Razia tweeted: "Hello everybody, it may seem clichéd, but I'm doing absolutely everything possible to resolve the situation." It remains to be seen whether he will be successful ahead of the final two days of testing this week.

Giedo van der Garde was ninth fastest despite causing a late red flag. It was the third of the day after Ricciardo stopped early in the morning and Grosjean came to a halt just before lunch, while a late stoppage from Maldonado ensured the session finished under red flags.

Nico Rosberg and Fernando Alonso were slowest of the runners as they both completed race simulations during the afternoon when the track conditions were at their best.

Final times
1 Romain Grosjean, Lotus, 1:22.716, 88 laps
2 Jenson Button, McLaren, 1:23.181, 72 laps
3 Pastor Maldonado, Williams, 1:23.628, 74 laps
4 Sebastian Vettel, Red Bull, 1:23.743, 65 laps
5 Nico Hulkenberg, Sauber, 1:23.744, 79 laps
6 Adrian Sutil, Force India, 1:24.215, 62 laps
7 Daniel Ricciardo, Toro Rosso, 1:25.483, 61 laps
8 Max Chilton, Marussia, 1:25.598, 75 laps
9 Giedo van der Garde, Caterham, 1:26.316, 48 laps
10 Nico Rosberg, Mercedes, 1:26.655, 120 laps
11 Fernando Alonso, Ferrari, 1:27.878, 102 laps

Laurence Edmondson is deputy editor of ESPNF1

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