04/07/2006
NEWS STORY
After Sunday's disaster, when both cars were eliminated at the first corner, Pedro de la Rosa gave McLaren a little consolation today by posting the fastest time at Jerez, the first day of testing this week at the Spanish track.
The Spaniard was joined by Gary Paffett as the Woking team began its preparations for the French Grand Prix.
The programme consisted of tyre work for Magny Cours, alongside general set-up work and development programmes.
Renault is one of several teams promising a major upgrade for the French race, consequently Heikki Kovalainen was kept busy as he ran the latest-spec engine together with various new components. The Finn, who completed the most laps today, was joined by Argentinean Jose Maria Lopez.
Anthony Davidson and James Rossiter were on duty for Honda and spent the day focusing on tyre programmes for Magny-Cours, alongside aerodynamic evaluations. The Japanese manufacturer is aiming to make a major step forward in France, however a couple of technical failures today indicate that there is still much to be done.
WilliamsF1 had Alexander Wurz on duty, the Austrian completing 59 laps and finishing 1.8s off the pace, 0.028s ahead of Rossiter.