05/12/2007
NEWS STORY
2007 World Championship runner-up, Lewis Hamilton, was the pace-setter on the second day of testing at Jerez, where, once again, a number of drivers tried slick tyres in anticipation of their (possible) re-introduction in 2009.
Work for the Englishman, who was partnered by Pedro de la Rosa, was principally focused on aerodynamic testing, as he took to the track for the first time with no driver aids.
de la Rosa spent the morning continuing Tuesday's chassis programme before switching to running with slick tyres during the afternoon.
"It was pretty cool to be back behind the wheel of my car again today," said Hamilton, "it has felt like a very long time since the Brazilian Grand Prix. I have missed my car! I have really kick started my preparations for the 2008 season today and there are only 101 days to go until Australia. I know the time is going to go really quickly, but I am feeling pretty impatient already!
"It was the first time I have driven the car without driver aids and it was good fun," he added. "It does feel quite different and of course there is some adapting to do in driving style, but in GP2 we didn't have driver aids, so I have some recent experience of it. We also did some work on aero and chassis developments for next year's car, it was a productive day and we will continue in the same way tomorrow."
Second quickest was David Coulthard, one of the drivers to run on slicks. According to the Red Bull press release the Scot commented that it reminded him of the final time a Grand Prix was staged here, in 1997 - the race where he was politely asked to hand the European GP win to team-mate Mika Hakkinen.
The day went smoothly for the Scot as he completed an aero test and continued with chassis set-up work. It was a less satisfying day for Mark Webber, who was at the wheel of the car fitted with 2008 electronics. A couple of problems cost him quite a lot of track time.
Both drivers continue testing tomorrow, when they will swap cars.
Kimi Raikkonen and Felipe Massa were on duty for Ferrari, the Brazilian having hardly shaken the confetti from his hair following his wedding last week. The Maranello duo continued with the work of developing new components for the forthcoming season, with particular emphasis on electronics. Tomorrow, Massa is joined by Michael Schumacher.
The primary target for Renault, which had Nelson Piquet on duty again, was to test the slicks, of which three sets were available for each car. The team's work focused on data acquisition concerning the tyres' behaviour and the car's handling in this configuration, as well as conducting some comparative tests between 2007 and 2009 configurations in order to collect as much information as possible.
Piquet ultimately ran a slightly shortened programme following a morning spin and subsequent delays, but according to the French outfit he collected interesting data during the course of the session. After covering a total of 71 laps, he finished the day sixth on the timesheets.
"It was frustrating to lose track time this morning," admitted the Brazilian, "but the team did a great job to get the car ready again, and we got back on track before lunch and began the programme. I think we did a good job today, and the team managed to collect some important data."
"From an engineering point of view, working with new tyres always presents an interesting challenge," added Christian Silk. "They demand different set-ups and also require different styles from the drivers, and that is always a productive experience. It could have been a better day for the team, after our delays this morning, but we are still satisfied with what we learned today."
Christian Klien did his job prospects no harm by out-pacing Giancarlo Fisichella, as Force India continued to evaluate potential pilots for 2008. In a "highly productive day of testing", the Milton Keynes based outfit was able to complete its programme, with the Austrian setting the 7th fastest time of the 20 drivers on track.
The duo completed 188 laps in total as they worked on general set-up, chassis development and evaluation of the slick Bridgestone Potenza tyres. As per yesterday's test, both drivers performed solidly over the day and were very evenly matched as they pushed on with their programmes. Klien was the quicker on slick tyres, while Giancarlo was marginally faster on grooved.
Ralf Schumacher and Vitantonio Liuzzi will take over testing duties for the team tomorrow, while Roldan Rodriguez and Giedo van der Garde will finish the test for the team on Friday.
"A very productive second day of testing," said Mike Gascoyne. "We had no real mechanical issues on the car and ran reliably all day, so despite several red flags, we were able to complete our planned programme. Giancarlo looked at general set-up work in the morning, followed by some chassis and 2009 tyre evaluation work in the afternoon. Christian joined us and similarly conducted general set-up work in the morning and looked at some damper set-ups and, again, the 2009 tyres. Once again we got excellent feedback from both drivers and it was a very useful and enjoyable day."
"It was a better day," added Fisichella. "We made some good progress and went through the programme and had a step forward on the balance of the car. I felt more comfortable today and was quite happy with the grooved tyres, but when I went to the slicks there was a lot of understeer. Unfortunately on my best lap there was traffic, but overall a good day."
'It was a bit more difficult than in Barcelona," admitted Klien, "as it was harder to set up the car. We made some big set up changes that took a bit of time, but I still managed to do 86 laps and had some good experience on the slick tyres. We did a couple of laps on those, which went quite well, and overall I think the whole day was quite productive. We did quite a few changes and I just got more used to it and to the team and, all in all, I am very happy and think it was a positive test."
Once again, Toro Rosso's Sebastian Vettel started the day at the wheel of a car fitted with the 2008 electronics, while Sebastien Bourdais was in a 2007 car with the electronic aids switched off. Late in the day, the two men swapped cars to better evaluate some modified car systems and progress with the development of the '08 electronics. Testing new brake material was also on the agenda.
For BMW, Nick Heidfeld was in the car for the second day running, while for Robert Kubica it was the first day of his three day test. The German was again doing work with the 2009 specification slick tyres. The team also worked on the mechanical and aerodynamic set-ups for the car, as well as the development of the 2008 electronics. For the second day running the team was delighted with the amount of trouble free running - other than a stoppage on track for Heidfeld mid-morning - and the positive results achieved. Both drivers continue tomorrow.
Toyota continued its preparations for 2008 with Timo Glock and Kamui Kobayashi again clocking up the kilometres. Another sunny day gave the team plenty of opportunity to try out 2008 development parts and both drivers were quickly in the groove after making their TF107 testing debuts on Tuesday.
Once again, Kobayashi was charged with completing as many laps as possible in his car, which features a revised rear end and the 2008 standard ECU. Glock had a more standard TF107 at his disposal, with electronic driver aids disabled, and he focused on understanding mechanical and aerodynamic set-up with the 2008 traction control ban in mind.
Both drivers enjoyed a largely trouble-free day. Glock made solid progress but his programme ended around 90 minutes before the chequered flag as the team is closing in on the 30,000-kilometre annual testing limit. Kobayashi continued to test out 2008 development parts to the chequered flag and once again he was among the busiest drivers of the day, completing 118 laps. The German will continue in the car for day three, when he will be joined by Jarno Trulli.
"We can be pleased with our progress today," said Pascal Vasselon, "because we have completed all the work we expected to and the results look promising. Timo has continued to impress us with his feedback and pace. He has made some very valuable observations which will help us in 2008 and he has already contributed to an immediate improvement. He has put a tremendous amount of effort into understanding the characteristics of the car and suggesting how we can make improvements. We will continue to work on set-up with him tomorrow and begin investigating the 2009 tyre specification. Kamui has also worked hard and for such a young driver to complete so many laps without mistakes, and without any fitness problems, is very impressive indeed. He can be very happy with his contribution and we thank him for his efforts. I am sure he will do a good job as our third driver next year."
Once again, Williams had the two Nicos on duty - Rosberg and Hulkenberg. We've had a productive session," said Test Team Manager, Dickie Stanford, "which saw the pair steadily work through the programme with no major problems. Hulkenberg has done a good job over the past two days and given us some useful feedback. Kazuki will return to the cockpit tomorrow to join Nico Rosberg for the remaining two days of testing."
Following on from James Rossiter's first outing of the 2009 slicks on Tuesday, Anthony Davidson concentrated on evaluating and understanding the engine management settings with the new 2008 MES control system for Super Aguri. In the afternoon the Englishman completed a programme of gearbox control settings with additional tuning of the engine management - all looking forward to 2008. He finished the day 17th on the time sheet with a best time of 1.21.076. Takuma Sato will take over from tomorrow.
For Honda, Rubens Barrichello was on duty, along with Andi Zuber. The Brazilian continued the development work with the new 2008 electronics controls system which Jenson Button began on Tuesday, covering 103 laps.
In the Young Drivers car, a Super Aguri, Zuber spent the morning acclimatising to the car and working with the engineers on the set-up. He continued the programme in the afternoon with a number of long runs to focus on the set-up of the car and get a feel for the different changes made.
Barrichello will continue his running for a second day tomorrow with Luca Filippi taking over in the Super Aguri.