08/02/2006
NEWS STORY
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Fernando Alonso and Renault continue to prove the outstanding pace of the R26, as they topped the timesheets at Jerez.
The Spaniard, who was joined by test driver, Heikki Kovalainen, posted the quickest time set by a V8 powered car this year, just 0.447s off the time posted by Pedro de la Rosa in the V10 McLaren in mid-January.
Fernando concentrated primarily on tyre development and set-up work in order to learn more about the R26's handling characteristics.
Meanwhile, Kovalainen successfully completed a race distance this morning, but was then forced to stop running following a problem with the rear wing. The team chose not to take any risks in the interests of driver safety, and the part in question was sent back to Enstone immediately for analysis and to enable modifications to be made as quickly as possible. The team is working hard to get modified components to Jerez for the end of the week, but quality remains paramount; should they not be available in time, they will be used next week in Valencia.
While waiting for new components to arrive, the team will run with a single chassis tomorrow, with Giancarlo Fisichella and Heikki Kovalainen sharing seat-time in the R26.
"We had an interesting day of testing," said Alonso. "We concentrated on the tyres again, which are going to be a very important factor this year, and worked on chassis set-up. The gains we made were good in terms of improving the grip and balance of the car. Now, we need to carry on working and see how things go – it is hard to say more than that at this stage, but the main thing is that we concentrate on our programme."
"I managed to do another race distance today, which was good," added Kovalainen. "The car handled well and I felt comfortable at the wheel again. We then had the problem with the wing that meant I had to stop running, but the main thing is that we will still be able to carry on running tomorrow."
"We managed to get through a large part of our testing programme today," said Christian Silk, the French outfit's chief test engineer. "Heikki completed another race distance, while Fernando worked on software this morning as he waited for track conditions to improve. He then focused on tyre development and chassis set-up, and we found some interesting ideas to explore further. Overall, it was a positive day in spite of the problem with the rear wing this afternoon."
Honda continues to give the French team a run for its money, with Jenson Button and Rubens Barrichello finishing second and fifth quickest. The Englishman ran through a tyre evaluation programme, completing 17 laps in the morning session and a further 41 laps in the afternoon.
The Brazilian lost much of the morning as a result of a technical problem, however, later he was able to resume and worked through a chassis set-up programme, completing a total of 60 laps over the course of the day.
McLaren will be delighted with the performance of the 'new' Mercedes powerplant, which made its debut today. The job of running the new engine was entrusted to Juan Pablo Montoya, who didn't take to the track until 13:30. By the end of the session the Colombian, whose programme focused on set-up work and various component evaluations, had finished 53 laps, posting the third fastest time of the day.
Following its first run, a McLaren source told Pitpass that the new engine was; "better, faster and more reliable" than its predecessor.
Also on duty for the Woking team was Pedro de la Rosa, who completed 109 laps in the V10 powered MP4-20.
Nick Heidfeld and Jacques Villeneuve were both on duty for BMW, as the German team continues to make good progress.
The German worked on the set-up of the car, in addition to carrying out a series of long and short runs in order to evaluate Michelin tyres for the Malaysian Grand Prix. Meanwhile, the Canadian Jacques, at the wheel of a new F1.06, spent the morning working on set-ups, before he focussed on tyres for Bahrain.
WilliamsF1 had both its 2006 race drivers on duty, with Mark Webber and Nico Rosberg both at the wheel of FW28s.
"Mark spent the morning working on a tyre construction test for Bridgestone," revealed Sam Michael, "which confirmed our direction for short term development. He then switched to pitstop practices with the race team in the afternoon.
"Nico did the opposite," he continued, "working on pit-stops in the morning and long runs on tyre compounds for Bridgestone later in the day."
Although the Australian had a trouble-free day, his German teammate completed just 29 laps, having been sidelined by a technical problem in the afternoon.
Toyota resumed its three-day programme with Ralf Schumacher and Jarno Trulli. The main focus was on continuing the Bridgestone tyre test programme, with both drivers conducting meaningful work, having put in quite a few numbers of laps.
"The main target of the test was to put mileage on the engines and to continue with our tyre programme," said test team manager, Gerd Pfeiffer. "With Ralf, we were attempting to see how the tyres work and to try different set-ups. With Jarno, we did some endurance running to see the mechanical reliability of our cars as well as some set-up testing.
"Everything we are working on is a learning process," he admitted, "learning to adjust to the tyres, but we are looking forward to seeing how the aerodynamic package will make an impact next week on our progress."
"We had a positive day and did more than a hundred laps," said Trulli. "There was a lot to get through even though we still have some important new parts to come for the car before we go to Bahrain. We made some encouraging progress with the tyres, but allowed us to do some good longer runs and the reliability of the whole car was also impressive. "
"Today was pretty reasonable and we got through the tyre programme," added Schumacher. "The day therefore, was quite successful. We are spending a lot of time on the tyres looking for the right set-up for the first race. The driveability of the car has gotten a bit easier especially now that I am getting used to it and the Bridgestones are fitting my driving style. There is still work to do and we will have to wait and see how the season will unfold."
Tiago Monteiro was Midland's sole representative today, the Portuguese driver continuing with the (Jordan) EJ15B. The day was dedicated to testing the control systems and working on other developments in this area.
"Just a short run today, trying some electronic set-ups," said Monteiro. "It was very interesting to make the car perform at extremes and we learnt some really positive information. I'm really excited about getting in the M16 tomorrow afternoon, I can't wait."
Toro Rosso joins in the fun tomorrow, when the team will debut its 2006 contender, the STR01, with Tonio Liuzzi at the wheel.
Weather
Air temperature: 11-21 C
Track temperature: 10-28 C.
Sunny
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