29/08/2006
NEWS STORY
Less than 48 hours after taking his maiden Grand Prix victory, Felipe Massa was setting the pace at Monza, as a three day test got underway.
In total there were 15 drivers on duty, though Sakon Yamamoto only completed 3 installation laps in the Super Aguri, and therefore failed to post a time.
Massa was joined by Luca Badoer as Ferrari prepares for its home Grand Prix next week. The Maranello outfit focussed on set-ups and tyre evaluation, as well as initiating engine endurance testing on both cars, which were fitted with an aerodynamic package specifically suited to the demands of the Monza track.
Michael Schumacher joins Felipe on Wednesday.
Third quickest was Mark Webber, demonstrating that the WoilliamsFW28 is not lacking in straight-line speed. The Australian was joined by Alex Wurz.
"We returned to Monza today after a month's break from testing and ahead of the race here in 12 days' time," said test team manager, Mike Condliffe. "While not all the teams went out today, it was still busy on track.
"Our main objective this week is to test a new aero package specifically designed for this track and to select our tyres for the race. We started the three day test with some initial set-up work on the new aero package and then moved on to tyre testing with both Mark and Alex. Tomorrow, Nico joins Mark on track."
Giancarlo Fisichella's two-day programme began with set-up work to adapt the car to the circuit, he then started work on a tyre programme. A mechanical problem curtailed the Roman's running after 91 laps, but, according to the French outfit, this morning's running already demonstrated an encouraging level of performance. The problem will be fixed overnight, and Fisichella will continue his testing tomorrow.
Across the garage, test driver Heikki Kovalainen concentrated on tyre testing with Michelin. He is working on the tyre choice for next week's race, and the two French manufacturers are working hard to find the best solution in terms of one-lap performance and endurance. By the end of the day, the young Finn had completed his programme after a total of 100 laps, which left him in sixth position with a time of 1'23.242. Heikki Kovalainen will continue his test programme on Thursday.
"This first day has been really encouraging," said Christian Silk, "although we had small problems that have been fixed for our second day of testing. The track was really green today but the drivers were immediately satisfied with the balance of the car and we already made good progress on both cars. It will probably be a tough race here next week but our first day of testing has been encouraging and we know that the track will develop a lot before next week end, therefore it's a good basis for the rest of our programme. "
Fernando Alonso will join Fisichella on Wednesday.
Anthony Davidson and James Rossiter began Honda's programme today. Davidson worked through an aerodynamic evaluation in the morning session followed by an evaluation of the tyre options for the Italian Grand Prix and a further short aero programme. Rossiter spent the day focusing on tyre work.
Tomorrow (Wednesday), the Japanese team is expected to debut the engine which will be homologated for use in 2007, Rubens Barrichello having been entrusted with giving the new powerplant its maiden track run.
Toyota had Jarno Trulli and Olivier Panis on duty, the Frenchman losing track-time following a technical problem.
"Today the car was working quite well," said Panis. "We have a new aero package for Monza, which felt really good. We had planned to do a lot of long runs to test some tyres for the coming races, but due to a small mechanical problem we only managed to test one set of soft tyres at the end of the day. It was a shame because I truly believe that we have a car to go fast here and you notice that the team has worked hard for this. Overall, I think the team has found a good package for the race here and we will have to see next week how things go."
"I liked the balance of the Monza aero package," added Trulli. "We worked on tyre testing and braking stability for the race here next week. I was really surprised that the resurfacing of the track felt very well and that grip increased throughout the day, as I though it would be quite slippery. In general, this is definitely a low downforce track and you can feel a difference in the V8 speed in comparison to the V10. There are about 30kmh less in the top speeds coming down the straight. I am still positive about the car and tomorrow we will continue to prepare our set-up."
"Because Monza is a full-throttle track, engine power and good aerodynamics will play an important role in performance," said test team manager, Gerd Pfeiffer. "Thus we are testing different aerodynamic and balance set-ups to see how both cars behave.
"Generally today has been successful," he continued, "but we did lose a bit of time on Olivier's car when his car had a small mechanical issue to be looked into. Upon doing this, he went out for some installation laps before starting on his tyre programme. Jarno's car underwent some routine gearbox changes, otherwise his car ran fine."
Istanbul's Friday sensation, Sebastian Vettel joined Nick Heidfeld for BMW, as the German team attempts to rediscover its form after a disappointing trip to Turkey.
Vettel did some long runs in order to get used to driving in low downforce configuration. After that he started with set-up work and a small tyre programme in the afternoon. Heidfeld started with set-up work in the morning followed by some aerodynamic evaluations. In addition, the team worked on engine development. Nick then completed a tyre test for Michelin. The two drivers ran different programmes in the afternoon.
Tomorrow, Robert Kubica will take over from Sebastian, while Nick will continue to drive. The focus will be on further improving the set-up and on tyre testing.
Midland had Giorgio Mondini on duty, while Neel Jani 'did the business' for Toro Rosso.