20/06/2007
NEWS STORY
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For the second successive day, Toyota tops the timesheets at Silverstone, as Jarno Trulli posts a best time 0.128s faster than his nearest rival, Kimi Raikkonen, who, according to speculation could be partnering the Italian next season.
The Italian spent the morning continuing set-up work for next month's British Grand Prix, while also doing some work on the engine and other systems. The team changed the suspension settings in the afternoon so Trulli missed some track time. Then, just as he was returning to action the British weather intervened. The track had remained dry for most of the day until a heavy shower midway through the afternoon. After a further delay the Italian was able to return to the track for half an hour of further running and ended with the day's fastest lap.
"In general it was a positive day," said Trulli, "even though it's difficult to judge comparative performance because it's always very windy here. The morning went pretty well for us testing set-up and tyres and I felt pretty comfortable with the car. Then we changed the suspension settings so we lost some time around the lunch break.
"After the rain in the afternoon we only had about a half an hour more of meaningful work. But this was just typical of the problems that we can face during testing. Overall the running I have been able to complete has been good so I would say that we are in reasonable shape here."
"That was a day of various interruptions and the running was limited as a result," admitted Gerd Pfeiffer. "We had a similar programme to yesterday, concentrating primarily on set-up work for next month's Grand Prix. Jarno took over from Ralf and had another positive morning, despite a number of red flags. Early in the afternoon there was a delay as we changed the suspension settings. Then the rain arrived just as we were hoping to go out again. The problem was made worse by the fact that it would be raining at some parts of the circuit and not at others. At least we did not have any issues with reliability on the track. Jarno will return to the cockpit tomorrow as we look to finish the test with a positive day."
Second quickest was Raikkonen in the Ferrari, as both the team and driver ignore media speculation as to the Finn's future role with the team.
The Melbourne winner worked mainly on developing new aerodynamic and mechanical solutions and on finding the best set-up on the car for the Silverstone circuit. He completed 62 laps on his way to posting a best time of 1.21.548.
Third quickest was Alexander Wurz in the Williams, though there is confusion over how many laps the Austrian completed. While most sources claim Alex completed 45 laps, the Grove outfit's timesheets say it was just 45.
Wurz lost track-time in the afternoon following a suspected hydraulics problem, one of several drivers to bring out the red flags today.
"We're currently trying out a new aero package and have been working through revised set-ups to compliment it," sad test team manager Dickie Stanford. "We'll now spend the evening preparing the car for Nico who will run tomorrow on our last day."
Fourth up was Pedro de la Rosa, who also encountered a technical problem, losing time following an oil leak as the Woking team continued with its development programme for the MP4-22.
The Spaniard built on his work from day one, assessing aerodynamics, race set-up and working on the Bridgestone Potenza tyre evaluation for the British Grand Prix. Fernando Alonso takes over tomorrow, the third and final day of testing here.
Following a first day spent getting a baseline set-up on the R27, in relatively low-grip conditions, Renault's Heikki Kovalainen today continued working on the planned technical programme, concentrating primarily on evaluating new aerodynamic components. However, his programme was delayed by an engine change this morning after the team noticed some abnormal behaviour, and by rain during the afternoon.
That meant track conditions were rarely at their best, but the Finn was nonetheless able to collect a large amount of useful data, steadily improving the behaviour and handling of the car throughout the day.
According to the French team the day finished on a positive note. The engine problem was quickly identified and is not a cause for concern, while the Finn found some interesting improvements that will be confirmed tomorrow on the team's final day of testing. Nelson Piquet Jr. is scheduled to drive.
"We have enjoyed two important days of testing," said Kovalainen. "We didn't do as many laps as we would have liked, but there were some very good tests even so. The car is more consistent to drive, and moving forward bit by bit. I think it's an encouraging sign for the next few races."
"Our problem this morning interrupted the programme, as did rain this afternoon," admitted Christian silk, "but we were still able to collect some interesting data. There are still things to be improved on the car, but we are clearly moving in the right direction, and that's very positive. Tomorrow will be another busy day, and we hope that the conditions will be better than the forecasts are suggesting at the moment!"
Having been unable to complete a full day of testing on Tuesday, courtesy of his problems getting back from Indianapolis. Tonio Liuzzi faced further frustration today, thanks to the typical British weather and numerous red flags.
Despite this, Toro Rosso had a productive day, with the new quick-shift gearbox system again running trouble free. Other items on the agenda were brake materials and aero package optimisation aimed mainly at the British Grand Prix, but also with a view to next Sunday's French Grand Prix. Scott Speed takes over at the wheel for the final day of testing tomorrow.
Having finished third quickest yesterday, and scoring his first points of the season last Sunday, it was back to earth with a bump for Mark Webber today. The Australian suffered problems meaning that he was only able to complete 33 laps.
The Austrian team intended continuing its evaluation of a new aerodynamic package. Initial impressions are that the new developments work well, with the car seeming well balanced. However, the day’s full programme was not completed due to the rain and the engine-related problems on the first run of the day and another later in the afternoon. Their causes are currently under investigation.
Timo Glock was on duty for BMW, the German - according to paddock talk - still smarting that it was Sebastian Vettel who was called in to replace Robert Kubica at Indianapolis at the weekend.
In the morning, The German was able to complete the team's tyre testing programme, missing the rain showers that dogged the afternoon. Other work on the programme included suspension development and aero work.
The showers meant the team was not able to complete all the work it had planned, but despite this the results were positive and the team remains "happy".
The German team is hoping that Glock will be able to finish the race preparation for the British Grand Prix tomorrow, but this will depend on the weather and the current forecast is not good.
Adrian Sutil took over at Spyker, the German completing 72 laps as his programme carried on from yesterday. Concentrating on brake system development, set-up for the British Grand Prix and tyre evaluation, the team made some good progress without any major mechanical problems.
"It was a good day without any real issues," said the German. "The car was consistent without any mechanical problems, and we mainly worked on set-up for the British Grand Prix. The car was already pretty well set-up and we just worked on some small items with the tyres and the brake system. I am quite happy with the day, the balance seemed to be OK but for the Grand Prix obviously we still need to find a bit of time."
"A productive day for Adrian who worked on set-up in preparation for the race here in two weeks time," added Dominic Harlow. "Various parameters including wing level, weight distribution and suspension settings were tried and we used the opportunity to look at the Hard and Medium Bridgestone Potenzas that will be available at the weekend. The team worked well executing the changes, and Adrian's feedback was as usual calm and concise."
Giedo van der Garde and Christijan Albers will share the wheel tomorrow, the third and final day of the test.