06/12/2006
NEWS STORY
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The Ferrari duo of Felipe Massa and Luca Badoer set the pace at Jerez today, the first day of the penultimate test of 2006.
In the morning, the track was still wet following heavy overnight rain. However, the track had dried out by 11 am, with conditions subsequently improving throughout the day.
The Maranello drivers began an intensive technical programme, based on engine endurance testing, experimentation with new components and working on finding the best set- up on the 248 F1.
The Brazilian was the faster of the two, with the Italian posting a best time just 0.249s slower.
Third quickest was Lewis Hamilton, who was partnered by Pedro de la Rosa. The Englishman focused on the continued Bridgestone Potenza tyre programme, initially using wet weather tyres. He also worked on the rear suspension programme, while de la Rosa continued with the front and rear wing work started in Barcelona last week.
Christian Klien and James Rossiter were on duty for Honda as the Japanese team focuses on further evaluation of the Bridgestone tyres.
Klien continued his acclimatisation to the car as he spent the afternoon session working to find a consistent balance, completing 90 laps, while Rossiter also focused on car set-up. Rubens Barrichello will join the test tomorrow taking over from the English driver.
Toyota began with a new combination of drivers as 2007 third driver Franck Montagny was joined by Toyota Young Driver Programme rising star Kohei Hirate.
Montagny will join Toyota full-time in January but took the opportunity to become more familiar with the team, bringing his wealth of experience to a test which focused on increasing the team's understanding of the 2007 Bridgestone tyres.
In contrast, Hirate was taking part in his first full Formula 1 test and spent the morning learning about the car. The 20-year-old made his debut soon after the track opened. During the course of the morning he worked on getting used to a Formula 1 car, with minor adjustments to make him comfortable in the cockpit, before getting the chance to spend longer on the track. Hirate's first timed laps put him alongside more experienced drivers on the timing sheets and he improved steadily throughout the afternoon, helping the team gather data in the process.
"It was not a bad day," said Montagny. "I was in this car last at Silverstone in September so it has been a long time. This morning it was wet and therefore a little bit difficult to run through our programme but we did find some interesting things. We worked on the set-up of the car and in the afternoon we were the first ones to put on the dry, grooved tyres. It was quite a good experience to test these new tyres and get a feeling for them, even though on this circuit it was a little challenging because of the track conditions this morning. We followed our programme and we did a good job - the car was quite quick today."
"Once the circuit had dried out, which actually took quite a long time today, we were able to work on the 2007 tyres," said test team manager, Dieter Gass. "We had quite a productive day with no major issues on either car. The team got a lot of things done and we were quite satisfied with the day's work. Kohei had a very good first day I would say, he made no mistakes and he set quite a good lap time which we are quite pleased with. Frank was back in the car for the first time since September and as expected he did a solid job and set a competitive lap time in the afternoon."
Super Aguri continues to impress, maintaining the form it demonstrated in the Brazilian Grand Prix and last week's test at Barcelona. The Japanese team, like its rivals, continued to work on its understanding of the 2007 Bridgestone tyres. After a slow start, due to the damp weather conditions, the team progressed well in the afternoon as it ran through its planned programme of set-up changes. Anthony Davidson is on duty for all three days of this week's test, as the Englishman continues to integrate with the team and provide valuable feedback.
For Renault, the first three days of testing in Spain will build on last week's work in Catalonia, collecting additional data on the performance of the new Bridgestone tyres while completing maximum mileage to build reliability with the new 2007-specification gearbox.
The team's drivers this week will be the 2007 race line-up: Giancarlo Fisichella, in his first run since the Brazilian Grand Prix, and Heikki Kovalainen.
Fisichella's first day was all about finding his way with the Bridgestone tyres and beginning the learning process with the new rubber. Across the garage, Kovalainen's week of running in Barcelona meant he was able to work on a chassis set-up programme. The focus of the programme was to understand the tyre's characteristics compared to those noted last week, and to learn about their performance on this circuit, which is particularly demanding for the rear tyres.
"This was a good day back at work for me," said the Italian. "I didn't run much this morning, and I was just concentrating on learning about the new tyres. I learned some useful things today, and will continue in the same direction tomorrow."
"We lost a lot of running time this morning because it took a long time for the track to dry out properly," added Kovalainen, "and we didn't see any point in running when the track wasn't ready. In spite of that, we did some important tests that help us better understand our conclusions from Barcelona, and that is a good step. We were not looking to set quick times, but instead focusing on the programme, and our progress meant it was a positive day for the team."
"We found some interesting directions for the rest of the week on Heikki's car," revealed Christian Silk, "while Giancarlo basically found his feet with the new tyres. The morning session was not very productive owing to the conditions, but I think we managed to do some good work in the circumstances, and given ourselves a good platform for the rest of the week."
As has become the norm, WilliamsF1 had just one driver on duty, today it was Nico Rosberg's turn as the British team continues to get used to the new rubber and the Toyota powerplant.
"Today was Nico's first outing in the interim FW28B with the Toyota engine, next year's gearbox and the 2007-spec Bridgestone tyres," said test team manager, Mike Condliffe, "so he spent some time adjusting to the balance of the car. Once he had acclimatised, he tested various brake balance positions and some traction control options."
Mark Webber was joined by Michael Ammermuller as Red Bull continued with the Cosworth engine, while 'sister team', Toro Rosso, was represented by Tonio Liuzzi.
BMW was another team focussing on the new rubber. In the morning the team used the poor track conditions to run the new wet-weather tyres for the first time, while from noon onwards both cars ran on drys.
To start with the team concentrated on confirming the results from the first Bridgestone test, which took place in Barcelona last week. Then they introduced changes to set-up parameters in order to learn more about the new tyres. Robert was using the new SSG gearbox while Sebastian had the standard transmission in his car.
It was a productive and almost trouble-free day. The only incident took place in the morning when Robert went off the track into the gravel after oil leaked onto his tyres.
Tomorrow, Nick Heidfeld will take over test duties from Vettel with the 04 chassis. The German's programme will consist of set-up work and testing new dampers. Kubica will continue to test the SSG gearbox and also carry out other mechanical system checks. The team is hoping to record some good mileage tomorrow as rain is forecast for Friday, the third and final day of testing.
The Pole was one of several drivers to bring out the red flag, with Badoer also having an off-track moment, and Davidson and Fisichella both stopping out on track during the course of the day.
To check out our Jerez picture gallery, click here