A dry day in Jerez saw team drivers Giancarlo Fisichella and Franck Montagny conducting tyre development for Michelin.

The Mild Seven Renault F1 Team today began the first day of its final pre-Christmas test, at Jerez de la Frontera in southern Spain. Having lost a significant amount of running time in last week's wet conditions, the team initially spent the morning on set-up work, particularly as this marked Giancarlo Fisichella's first dry laps at this circuit in the R24. Subsequently, both drivers conducted tyre tests, running through performance programmes evaluating both compounds and constructions. These programmes will be continued with longer runs tomorrow.

Chief Test Engineer Christian Silk commented: "We were pleased to finally get a full day of dry running here in Jerez. although things were delayed somewhat this morning with fog so thick that we could not see the end of the pit-lane!

"However, once conditions had cleared up, the day proved extremely productive. Running with development parts on the car, our initial task was to find a good balance, and subsequently to make progress on our tyre development with Michelin. Overall, it was a positive beginning to the test, and we hope to continue in the same vein tomorrow."

Times