14/02/2008
NEWS STORY
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McLaren's Heikki Kovalainen was the pace-setter on the final day at Jerez, ending the day 0.5s ahead of David Coulthard, and posting the best time of the year at the Spanish track.
Following the gusty winds that played havoc with teams' programmes on Tuesday and Wednesday, conditions were much better today.
The Finn was partnered by Lewis Hamilton as the Woking team continued its aerodynamic programme. In addition, Kovalainen spent some time in the morning conducting simulated qualifying runs, to further understand the handling of the MP4-23 in all race weekend situations. The Woking team was the centre of attention when it unveiled some radical new wheel rim covers.
"The primary focus of the test this week has been pushing forward with the aerodynamic programme," said Martin Whitmarsh. "There was some disruption to this on Wednesday due to the windy conditions. However the test team have been able to complete the proving process on a range of aerodynamic components.
"The team has seven track days remaining before the cars depart for Melbourne on 6th March," he continued, "incorporating full test sessions and some straight-line work. Naturally there will be a focus externally on the multi-team test at Barcelona in the final week of February. It will be the first time in a few weeks that all the leading teams will be on the same track. Whilst this will give us the possibility of a more comprehensive comparison, we will nevertheless focus on our own test programme rather than chase times. The real litmus test of performance will take place in Australia."
With Mark Webber topping the timesheets on Wednesday, today David Coulthard was second-fastest overall, separated from the top of the time sheet by 0.5s. He and Webber both completed high mileage on a day when track conditions, at least in the morning, improved thanks to the lull in the strong winds that had plagued the previous two days.
"Overall, this has been a very good test for us, as we got through all our programme and completed more laps than planned," said Chief Test Engineer, Ian Morgan. "Over the three days, we did a lot of aero and mechanical work with no major problems and we can look forward to the remaining pre-season tests in Barcelona with confidence."
Williams and, in particular, Kazuki Nakajima continues to show real progress, with the Japanese driver finishing third quickest, almost 2s ahead of the Grove outfit's test driver, Nico Hulkenberg.
"We spent most of today on set-up work and it was Nico's first proper run in the FW30," said Sam Michael. "Overall we have had a productive test and look forward to the next step in Barcelona next week."
Robert Kubica and Nick Heidfeld continued for BMW as the German team completed numerous long runs in an effort to evaluate different aerodynamical set-ups. As part of the programme both drivers also carried out a number of practice starts and pit stops.
According to Toro Rosso, today was not the Faenza-based outfit's best ever day of testing. The morning got off to a good start, with both drivers happy with the performance of STR2B. But then, Bourdais was sidelined with a water leak which took a while to fix in the garage and Vettel had a clutch problem.
Once his car was fixed, Bourdais managed to fit in some long runs, while also working on the aero package and by the end of the day, he still managed to complete 101 laps. However, his German teammate was less fortunate as he had a further problem, this time an electrical one, which cost him even more track time. He ended the day sixth fastest with just 53 laps completed.
Nelson Piquet remained at the wheel of one R28 for a third consecutive day, while fellow Brazilian Lucas Di Grassi returned to the cockpit of the other, replacing Fernando Alonso for the final day. The young Brazilian first sampled the R28 on Tuesday and was happy to be back in the cockpit as he continues to familiarise himself with the new car.
The almost ideal conditions allowed the team to continue with its programme as planned. The team also took the opportunity to carry out some further pit stop practice. Both drivers worked on improving the balance of the car and Piquet concentrated on long runs in the afternoon, covering a total 134 laps, adding to the two race distances he completed earlier in the week. Lucas had some minor problems in the morning but enjoyed a positive afternoon when he carried out some brake testing. The team head to Barcelona next week to continue the intensive development programme.
"It was another good day," said Piquet, "and again we covered a lot of miles, which I'm happy about. Obviously we are working hard to improve the car as much as we can and we're definitely seeing the results of the hard work from everyone back at the factory on the track. We have collected more valuable data today, which the team will be able to analyse before the test next week in Barcelona. So, overall a good three days for me and I definitely feel I am getting more used to the physical demands of F1."
"Today we spent the day testing a lot of different parts," added di Grassi, "so it was not about ultimate performance but understanding how these parts worked on the car. We found some good things and made some progress, so I'm happy with how the day went. Overall my two days here in Jerez with the team have been a very good experience and I was impressed with the R28. I feel I'm improving each time I drive the car and with the feedback I give the team, and I look forward to the next time I can work with the team."
"We kept to the programme as planned today," said Christian Silk, "with Nelson doing some set-up work in the morning, and then a race distance in the afternoon with no major problems on the car. With Lucas we did set-up work in the morning, but we had a few problems which slowed us down a bit. But the afternoon went well and we did some brake testing and Lucas gave good feedback and we have some valuable data."
Giancarlo Fisichella brought Force India's penultimate 2008 winter test to a close, the Italian finishing the day 11th quickest, ahead of the Hondas, a Renault, a Super Aguri and a Williams.
Fisichella completed 86 laps as he worked through a programme of gearbox and electronic development and set-up in preparation for Melbourne. The day ran smoothly and the team was able to complete just under 400km, bringing the overall test mileage to over 1,200km.
The team's next test will be in Barcelona from 25 - 27 February, where the VJM01 that will race in Melbourne will take to the track for the first time.
"Today was a good day," said the Italian. "We were able to put in a lot of laps without any major problems and I felt more comfortable in the car. We worked through a programme of set-up and some development items and even with a reasonable fuel load we were still able to put in some competitive times. I'm looking forward to the next test when we will have some more new items on the VJM01 and we'll have a more representative indication of where we are."
"A good day to complete the test here in Jerez," added Dominic Harlow, the Silverstone-based outfit's Chief Race and Test Engineer. "Again very nice conditions this morning allowed some progress on set-up to be made. On top of this a range of other test items were covered and the team will return to Silverstone having completed the major objectives for this test to begin preparation for the final 'Race Team' test prior to the first Grand-Prix of 2008 in 30 days time."
At Honda, Alex Wurz joined Jenson Button, as both drivers completed full race distance simulations with live pit stops in the morning session, before continuing set-up work in the afternoon. Between them, the Brackley duo completed over 220 laps, but remain well off the pace.
"After this week's test in Jerez, we now have a full understanding of the issues which have been affecting the handling of the car," said Steve Clark, Head of Race & Test Engineering. The new components to address these issues will be ready in time for our next test in Barcelona. With this in mind, the focus this week was to sign off the race distance reliability of the car with Jenson and Alex completing full race distances today. We also made steady progress with improving the engine driveability and chassis controls which will give us a good starting point for the next test when we will be in a position to implement the new updates."
Anthony Davidson took over at Super Aguri, the Englishman's first time back in the car since December. Nonetheless, he quickly acclimatised himself to the circuit and new 2008 electronics systems. He worked through a structured programme of chassis and aero tests, combined with control system performance evaluations; including race starts. The SAF1 Team now move on to Barcelona for the test next week, where wet weather conditions are forecast.
"It was good to be back in the car after a long winter break," said Davidson. "It was a dry day, however the wind picked up in the afternoon making it difficult out on track to find good balance. We got a lot of positive runs in and completed 103 laps with everything running reliably. We continued learning about the MES system from team and driver perspectives and I think that we made good progress overall today."
"This weeks running has seen SAF1 Team accrue a huge amount of mileage coupled with a greater understanding of the new for 2008 MES electronic system," added Gerry Hughes, Chief Race Engineer. "The team quickly picked up its rhythm working with Taku and Anthony ensuring the positional changes made during the winter are effective as SAF1 works towards the first race in Melbourne. The whole team has worked tirelessly over the three days and I would like to thank them, along with Honda and Bridgestone Potenza, for their efforts. SAF1 Team now looks forward to its private test in Barcelona next week."
To check out our Jerez test gallery, containing over 180 pictures, click here