Motor racing-Reduction in Formula One testing not enough for some

By Alan Baldwin

BARCELONA (Reuters) - Formula One has reduced pre-season testing to six days this year but some teams are asking already whether less might have been better.

Wednesday's opening day was uninterrupted by red flags with all 10 teams managing at least 100 laps of the Circuit de Catalunya.

Red Bull's Max Verstappen did 168 laps alone on day one, more than three times the Spanish Grand Prix distance at the track.

"I would have done four (days), to be honest," Racing Point technical director Andy Green told reporters on Thursday.

"I'm always happy to reduce the testing time. I think it goes with what F1 wants, as far as trying to mix things up. Does everyone want ultra-reliable cars when they first hit the first race?

"A week for me is fine... two days on, day off, two days. Go do it. See what happens."

Formula One wants to level the playing field, making racing more competitive and exciting, but extensive testing allows teams to iron out teething problems before the cars hit the track in anger.

Red Bull's team principal Christian Horner said Verstappen's lap tally was the most the team had ever done in Barcelona on day one of testing.

"We nearly wore the driver out," he said, laughing when asked whether six days was too much.

"Three days for a driver is nothing really when you think about it, going into a championship campaign of 21 or 22 races," he added.

"It felt like a long day yesterday, maybe the session doesn't need to go until six o'clock. Maybe five o'clock would have been enough. But I think it demonstrates how reliable these cars are.

"Of course, the less testing you have the more unpredictable the early races will become so there's an argument to say: 'Yes, maybe we could even reduce further."

Horner pointed out, however, that just one three-day test would be "pretty challenging" for the drivers and would favour the more experienced on the grid.

Formula One is running the test in Barcelona this year, which fans can attend while those at home can follow through increased coverage by broadcasters including F1 television.

There are no major rules changes from 2019, with the sport preparing for major upheaval next year, which also translates into greater reliability with teams also using the same specification tyres.

A second three-day test is scheduled for Barcelona next week with the season starting in Australia on March 15.

(Reporting by Alan Baldwin; editing by Ken Ferris)