29/07/2005
NEWS STORY
Panasonic Toyota Racing began its preparations for Sunday's Hungarian Grand Prix with a fine day of practice around the Hungaroring. In soaring temperatures under the blazing sun, third driver Ricardo Zonta recorded the fastest time of the day despite a hydraulics problem just before the lunch break. Race drivers Jarno Trulli and Ralf Schumacher both made it into the top five too, finishing the second session with the 4th and 5th fastest times respectively. The Toyotas all featured a new aerodynamic package in a bid to maximise downforce around this twisty circuit.
Jarno Trulli is hoping to return to the points on Sunday after today's practice sessions around the Hungaroring. He put in a total of 34 laps of the track and recorded a time of 1m 21.410s, the 4th fastest of the second session.
Jarno Trulli: "We had a decent day of practice and made it through our programme of set-up work and tyre evaluation without any problems. I had a brief spin in the second session, but that is quite normal here because it is very dusty off the racing line and you quickly lose grip. Hopefully we can maintain strong pace throughout the weekend."
Ralf Schumacher enjoyed another trouble-free day of Friday groundwork in preparation for the Hungarian Grand Prix, finishing the second session in 5th place.
Ralf Schumacher: "Everyone always tries to get as much downforce as possible at the Hungaroring, so like other teams we have a special aero package here. It should stay nice and hot throughout the weekend, and that usually seems to suit us. So we will be targeting another decent points position – somewhere between 4th and 6th."
Toyota's third driver Ricardo Zonta finished on top of the pile after another busy Friday. The Brazilian suffered a hydraulics problem late in the first session but he went on to record the fastest time of the day.
Ricardo Zonta: "It's always nice to see your name at the top of the timesheets, and that was a good day. The track was very slippery early on and we had some problems with the balance but we worked hard to improve it. I missed a few laps with a hydraulic problem at the end of the first session and with an overheating issue in the afternoon. But despite that we were still able to complete our long runs and put in a performance run."
Because the Hungaroring is one of the highest downforce circuits of the year Toyota has brought a new aero package that includes a triple wing mounted near the roll hoop.
Dieter Gass – Chief Race Engineer: "This was a very good starting point for the rest of the weekend. We showed good pace and we ran through our programme. Ricardo had a hydraulics problem in the first session which cut his last run short. Then in the second session he picked up some paper in a cooling duct so our electronic temperatures went high and we had to change his voltage regulator. Other than that, the drivers were happy. We did the tyre evaluation and collected the data we need."