21/02/2007
NEWS STORY
The 2007 GP2 series season kicks off today with the first day of testing at Circuit Paul Ricard.
It will be the first time for the class of 2007 to try out the new-look car, and for new driver and team pairings to begin the work that will lay the foundations for the season ahead. It will also be the first time to witness the shiny new team liveries and sponsor logos which adorn them as the impact of new deals and new drivers make their mark.
The two day test will see the drivers and teams use two very different tracks. The first day of testing will see track solution '3D' in use. This 3.853km solution is well known to the teams and to the drivers who have tested here in the past and should give a firm foundation to the initial data gathering exercises with the new car.
On Thursday however the GP2 series will enter the unknown as for the first time the teams will test on the short and the ultra fast '2A' track solution. This 2km track will see almost all of the back straight in use along with the flat-out Signes corner. However the drivers will then have to brake earlier than ever before to negotiate a tight right hander which cuts out the usual spoon curve, which usually leads the drivers into the flowing final sector of the circuit. It is this tight right corner which makes the track solution so different, as it has never before been used in GP2 series testing. The use of the long back straight will also allow the teams valuable time to conduct aero-mapping exercises with the new aero-kits.
With all but two of the driver line-ups confirmed for the year, every minute on track will be crucial as new relationships are formed and the learning process for 2007 begins.
Only Durango and Racing Engineering have vacant seats, with Karun Chandhok and Franck Perera aiming to impress their potential suitors.