11/12/2004
NEWS STORY
The BMW WilliamsF1 Team completed a three day test at the Jerez de la Frontera circuit in southern Spain today, marking the last test of the year. The team was represented by Mark Webber, Antonio Pizzonia and Nick Heidfeld over the three days, all of whom carried out development work on the interim FW26s. Nick Heidfeld will remain in Jerez in order to complete a wet test for Michelin tomorrow.
Webber, Pizzonia and Heidfeld completed a total of 567 laps of the Jerez circuit, a distance of 2,510 kilometres over the three day period. The test also provided invaluable information to assist with the process of driver selection, but no decision has been taken as yet.
Sam Michael (Technical Director, WilliamsF1): We finished our dry weather testing today with Mark, Antonio and Nick all working for us this week. Nick has done a good job for us so far and will drive again tomorrow in a controlled wet test for Michelin. We have again covered a lot of mileage on the new gearbox and associated systems, as well as working on tyre testing and traction control. The team has had a busy year and, thanks to their hard work, we have completed the target mileage we wanted to on the gearbox in preparation for next year.
Mario Theissen (BMW Motorsport Director): From BMW's perspective, Jerez has been a very good test as we were able to cover a significant number of laps. On Thursday, in particular, Nick recorded an impressive number of laps, but today Antonio covered the most. We managed to collect a good deal of information in terms of engine mileage, but also in terms of traction control. Apart from this work, BMW supported WilliamsF1’s schedule. All three drivers’ contributed greatly to the test's achievements. For Nick, it was the first opportunity to drive our car in dry conditions and, again, he did a good job.