06/04/2006
NEWS STORY
Honda's Anthony Davidson wrapped up Honda's three-day test at Vallelunga by posting the fastest time of the day.
The Englishman once again focused on tyre work with an evaluation of the options for the European Grand Prix, along with further development on tyre warm-up. Meanwhile, Jenson Button continued his chassis set-up development, alongside a tyre programme looking at the best options from Wednesday's running.
Ferrari had Michael Schumacher and Luca Badoer on duty, the German continuing with the 248 F1 and the Italian with the (restricted) V10 powered F2004.
Badoer worked on Bridgestone tyre development, while the German continued to concentrate on developing new components for the forthcoming races.
Propping up the timesheets, almost 1.8s off the pace was Alexander Wurz, who lost track-time following a crash earlier in the day.
"This morning was overcast and grey with low track temperatures and Alex suffered a low speed accident," said test team manager, Mike Condliffe. "Fortunately, he was fine but the car required some repairs which reduced our running time. In the afternoon session, with improved track conditions, we continued testing tyre compounds in preparation for Imola while we also carried out brake cooling modifications."
"We continued to test some new specification parts at the Vallelunga test aimed at improving reliability," added Cosworth's Sean O'Mahony. "We pushed engine mileages beyond those that we need at races to see what margins we have and generally we are pleased with the results of these tests. We also tried some new engine calibrations aimed at reducing fuel consumption and improving traction control - the test results were positive and we will continue to fine tune these new strategies at Barcelona next week."