15/06/2006
NEWS STORY
Jenson Button topped the timesheets on the final day of testing at Monza, giving his Honda team a much needed confidence boost ahead of the North American double-header.
The Englishman worked through some aerodynamic developments in preparation for the North American races. His time, which was 0.401s quicker than any of his rivals, together with the fact that he completed 136 trouble-free laps, gives Honda a lift ahead of the long haul trip to Montreal and Indianapolis.
On the other side of the garage however, Rubens Barrichello lost an hour of this morning's running due to a small driveline problem which stopped him out on the circuit. He eventually went on to complete 89 laps of general set-up work during the day.
Overall, this has been a very successful test, with the team completing a total of 707 laps (4094 kms) over the three days.
"This week's test has gone well and I was able to complete over 250 laps in two days," said Button, "which is obviously very good. The Montreal aero package work seemed to be positive and the results of our tyre programme were quite clear. We also worked through a number of other development items with some good results, so it was just a shame we had the engine failure yesterday. All in all a good test for us though."
"We have had a very productive test over the course of the three days," added chief engineer Mark Ellis. "We have covered a lot of laps with good reliability and have made solid progress with the aerodynamics and car set-up, working on solutions for the demands of the medium downforce circuits in Montreal and Indianapolis. We have also completed a comprehensive tyre test programme with Michelin and are happy with the proposed solutions for the US GP in two weeks' time."
Second and third quickest, and continuing the good pace shown throughout this test and at Silverstone, was BMW, which had Jacques Villeneuve and Robert Kubica on duty.
For the Pole the car was in typical Monza set-up, while Jacques had a car set up for Montreal, so it was not so well suited to the low downforce Italian track.
In the morning the Canadian concentrated on an aero programme with new parts for the Montreal race. The team then completed a scheduled engine change over the lunch break. In the afternoon he started with tyre work on the casing side in preparation for the race in Indianapolis. He then finished the day with both aero and set up work.
Robert was doing analytical work in preparation for the Italian Grand Prix at Monza in September. The Monza track, unlike the others on the Grand Prix calendar, needs very low downforce so Robert was testing parts specifically for here. This was the first time he had driven a Formula 1 car with such low downforce, so he was getting used to this new configuration. In the morning he worked on aero parts, including the rear wing and underbody. After he also had a scheduled engine during the lunch break, he went out at about 3pm to complete his programme. The two cars covered a total of 3,727 kilometres over the three day test.
Fourth quickest was Giancarlo Fisichella, who was today confirmed as one of Renault's drivers in 2007. The Italian was partnered by Heikki Kovalainen.
Both drivers enjoyed a slightly 'lighter' programme today after two intensive days of testing which saw them complete a substantial part of their programme.
In the morning, Fisichella continued working on low-downforce car set-up for the race in Montreal. He also confirmed tyre choices for the race, based on this week's work.
Meanwhile, Heikki completed numerous long runs to continue assessing tyre degradation levels with Michelin. The Finn ended the day with the seventh-fastest time, of 1:23.940.
"We had a good final day working on set-ups and an intensive tyre testing programme for the next races," said Christian Silk. "Heikki worked on the tyres as Giancarlo also evaluated new brake developments for Canada, which a particularly demanding race in this area."
WilliamsF1 had its two race drivers on duty, with Webber out-pacing Rosberg by 0.253s.
"Mark continued the testing of some new gearbox parts and also tried some alternative brake materials," confirmed test team manager, Mike Condliffe. "To conclude his day, Mark completed a tyre compound evaluation for the Canadian GP. Nico had a varied test today doing some set-up work, engine development and some construction and compound testing for Bridgestone."
"Monza is one of the toughest circuits for Formula One engines and this week Cosworth ran two Series 4 'race spec' engines significantly beyond our current two race weekend life limit," revealed Cosworth's Simon Corbyn. "We also track tested a new Series 5 'development spec' engine for the first time. Results from Monza now need to be analysed to finalise the engine plan for the next two races."
Toyota had its two race drivers on duty, with Jarno Trulli continuing development of the TF106B. Teammate Ralf Schumacher lost track-time due to an electrics problem.
"We lost a bit of time with an engine electronic problem and had a lot to get through," said the German. "As well as the tyre and suspension programme, I was also planning to try some different rear wing arrangements before we head across the Atlantic, but we will have to leave that for a later test. The bulk of the set-up work was successful and we hope to have strong races in North America."
"It was really a typical Canada test where you concentrate on running with less downforce than you are used to and make sure you have as much aero stability as you can achieve under heavy braking," added Trulli. "And, as usual, there was a big tyre programme to get through. I am confident that we are in a good position now to make a solid tyre choice."
Having recovered from his stomach bug, Robert Doornbos joined David Coulthard, as Red Bull evaluated low drag configuration front and rear wings and various other aerodynamic tweaks, which had produced encouraging data in the wind tunnel.
"Although it is hard to quantify the results of aerodynamic changes, the results seemed good," said Chief Test Engineer, Ian Morgan. "Although we lost time with one car on the first day, when Robert was unwell, this was a useful test. We also worked on tyre choice for Indianapolis and looked at weight distribution as well as trying other chassis modifications."
Splitting the two Red Bulls was Tonio Liuzzi in the Toro Rosso. The Italian completed 98 laps.
"Both the Canadian and US races require similar low levels of downforce and it was the first time this year that we have run our car in its latest low drag configuration," said Chief Engineer, Laurent Mekies. "These have been a useful two days, as the temperatures have been high, which is what we can expect at the next two races.
"Apart from the aero work, we also evaluated tyres for the next two Grands Prix, particularly Indianapolis and the fact that Monza is quite tough on brakes has also been useful, given that Montreal is the hardest track of the year from this perspective."