Teams ' testing round-up
The following is a round-up of comments by the teams at the end of testing at Silverstone on Thursday. Toyota headed the timesheets on the first two days but Felipe Massa (Ferrari) set the best time for the week on Thursday (See separate...
The following is a round-up of comments by the teams at the end of testing at Silverstone on Thursday. Toyota headed the timesheets on the first two days but Felipe Massa (Ferrari) set the best time for the week on Thursday (See separate story).
MCLAREN McLaren said Fernando Alonso, who took over testing duties on Thursday, continued to focus on aerodynamic developments, Bridgestone Potenza tyre evaluation and general set-up work for the forthcoming races. Running was interrupted in the morning when an oil system problem was discovered on his car. In addition light rain showers over lunchtime limited the running in the early afternoon. Martin Whitmarsh, team CEO said: “This week has seen us intensively testing the MP4-22 package, with work concentrating on aerodynamic improvements and brake material testing. Despite some inconvenient interruptions over the course of the three days – mainly due to weather, we feel confident that we have achieved a good understanding of where we are in our preparations for the next set of back-to-back races in France and Britain, and despite being unable to complete the entire programme, the work we have done has been very effective at this crucial stage of the championship.”
FERRARI Scuderia Ferrari Marlboro said Felipe Massa brought to a close the planned programme for this test session, experimenting with new aerodynamic and mechanics solutions and working on finding the best set-up for the F2007. The Brazilian driver covered a total of 87 laps, the quickest in a time of 1.20.805. The Scuderia will be back on track on Wednesday 27 June at Fiorano, where Luca Badoer will carry out the shakedown of the cars that will be used in the French Grand Prix, which takes place on 1st July at the Magny-Cours circuit.
BMW The BMW Sauber F1 Team said it was a nice surprise on the final day of the three day test that the weather was better than expected so the full scheduled programme was completed. The work for the day included the testing of tyres, different suspension parts and the aerodynamics. “The test has been very positive and so the team is happy with the work done for the British Grand Prix. The drivers, Nick Heidfeld, who drove on day one, and Timo Glock, who drove on days two and three, covered a total of 1,048 kilometres.”
RENAULT Renault said that after two days of work from Heikki Kovalainen, the team continued its programme with test driver Nelson Piquet Jr. at the wheel today. The young Brazilian firstly worked on set-up to find a comfortable balance, before beginning the development programme. He conducted a series of tyre tests to assess their performance and general consistency.
Nelson had a busy day, completing more than 100 laps, and the level of performance of the R27 was encouraging. At the end of the day, he finished fourth-fastest with a best lap of 1:21.357, having completed 548 km on his return to the cockpit.
Nelson Piquet Jr said: “I was really pleased to be driving today, because I really enjoy this circuit and I have always felt good here. I hadn’t driven since the last test in Paul Ricard, and was excited about this week, and the car was handling well – better than I expected to be honest. We made good progress with our programme, and collected interesting data which confirms Heikki’s work earlier in the week. That’s a positive sign.”
Christian Silk, Chief Test Engine, added: “We rounded the week off with a very good day’s work. Nelson settled in quickly, and felt comfortable straight away, which helped us make good progress. We had no problems with the car, which is always satisfying, and continued working with the data Heikki had collected on the previous days. In overall terms, this has been a productive and useful test. We can see that we are making progress step by step, but the other teams are doing the same, and we know that this isn’t the time to take our foot off the pedal!”
WILLIAMS Over at Williams Nico Rosberg was on driving duties and successfully completed the team's comprehensive schedule. In preparation for the forthcoming back-to-back races in France and the UK, the team spent the week bedding in a new aero package and updated mechanical components. Nico completed 98 laps today - just over 500kms - on the way to recording the second quickest time of the session with a 1:21.274, just four tenths of a second shy of first placed driver, Felipe Massa in the Ferrari.
Test Team Manager, Dickie Stanford, commented: "Nico took over testing duties today and continued where Alex left off yesterday, putting the aero upgrades through their paces in time for Magny-Cours and Silverstone. We've had a very positive three days here, working through a busy test schedule with no major problems. The test team have done a really good job. We are now off to Goodwood to run Kazuki over the weekend and we then travel to Iceland for a running car event with Nico for Hamleys."
RED BULL Red Bull had David Coulthatd in the cockpit on Thursday in what was described as being an intensive programme, making up for time lost through the great British weather, red flags and some technical problems over the past two days. On the agenda was assessing the new aero package and some suspension geometry changes, working on British Grand Prix tyre choice and set-up work to suit the Silverstone track. "It was a busy day, but we got through the majority of our programme," commented Chief Test Engineer Ian Morgan. "We have found solutions for most of the problems we encountered and we have been able to sign-off aero and suspension parts for the next two grands prix."
TORO ROSSO Toro Rosso said today, it was Scott Speed's turn to take the wheel of what could generally be summed up as a productive three days of testing at the Silverstone circuit. “The only fly in the ointment was a failure in the power train - currently under investigation- which shortened this afternoon's programme.”
TOYOTA Toyota were knocked off the top of the timesheet on Thursday but Jarno Trulli said the week had been pretty good for the team "This week has gone pretty well for us. We've concentrated mainly on preparation for next month's British Grand Prix here but we've also done work in preparation for the coming race at Magny-Cours next weekend. Today I did some tyre comparisons and put some mileage on some other systems on the car. We've been reasonably quick here over the last three days but all that matters is what you can achieve at the race. So far the season hasn't gone as well as we'd hoped but we will continue to push to get the best out of the package in the next few weeks. I'm looking forward to coming to race at Silverstone because I believe that we should perform well here. But we still have three weeks to go and anything can change before then, including the weather."
Gerd Pfeiffer, Test Team Manager said Jarno spent the morning doing tyre comparisons, working on different set-ups and looking at the suspension and other systems. In the afternoon the continued dry weather meant that we were able to do some work on aerodynamics and different weight distributions. The only interruptions today were caused by the frequent red flags. “Overall it has been a successful week and we look forward to using what we have learned here in the coming races."
SPYKER Spyker said Christijan Albers completed the lion's share of the driving as work continued on brake system development, set-up for the British Grand Prix and tyre evaluation. An electrical problem towards the end of the morning halted Christijan's running until the early afternoon, but he nevertheless completed 35 laps with a best time of 1min 23.374. Giedo van der Garde took over the car in the afternoon, however on his first run, spun into the gravel trap and damaged the front suspension. Technicians repaired the car to get Christijan out again towards the end of the afternoon, but light rain stopped any improvement in time.
MCLAREN McLaren said Fernando Alonso, who took over testing duties on Thursday, continued to focus on aerodynamic developments, Bridgestone Potenza tyre evaluation and general set-up work for the forthcoming races. Running was interrupted in the morning when an oil system problem was discovered on his car. In addition light rain showers over lunchtime limited the running in the early afternoon. Martin Whitmarsh, team CEO said: “This week has seen us intensively testing the MP4-22 package, with work concentrating on aerodynamic improvements and brake material testing. Despite some inconvenient interruptions over the course of the three days – mainly due to weather, we feel confident that we have achieved a good understanding of where we are in our preparations for the next set of back-to-back races in France and Britain, and despite being unable to complete the entire programme, the work we have done has been very effective at this crucial stage of the championship.”
FERRARI Scuderia Ferrari Marlboro said Felipe Massa brought to a close the planned programme for this test session, experimenting with new aerodynamic and mechanics solutions and working on finding the best set-up for the F2007. The Brazilian driver covered a total of 87 laps, the quickest in a time of 1.20.805. The Scuderia will be back on track on Wednesday 27 June at Fiorano, where Luca Badoer will carry out the shakedown of the cars that will be used in the French Grand Prix, which takes place on 1st July at the Magny-Cours circuit.
BMW The BMW Sauber F1 Team said it was a nice surprise on the final day of the three day test that the weather was better than expected so the full scheduled programme was completed. The work for the day included the testing of tyres, different suspension parts and the aerodynamics. “The test has been very positive and so the team is happy with the work done for the British Grand Prix. The drivers, Nick Heidfeld, who drove on day one, and Timo Glock, who drove on days two and three, covered a total of 1,048 kilometres.”
RENAULT Renault said that after two days of work from Heikki Kovalainen, the team continued its programme with test driver Nelson Piquet Jr. at the wheel today. The young Brazilian firstly worked on set-up to find a comfortable balance, before beginning the development programme. He conducted a series of tyre tests to assess their performance and general consistency.
Nelson had a busy day, completing more than 100 laps, and the level of performance of the R27 was encouraging. At the end of the day, he finished fourth-fastest with a best lap of 1:21.357, having completed 548 km on his return to the cockpit.
Nelson Piquet Jr said: “I was really pleased to be driving today, because I really enjoy this circuit and I have always felt good here. I hadn’t driven since the last test in Paul Ricard, and was excited about this week, and the car was handling well – better than I expected to be honest. We made good progress with our programme, and collected interesting data which confirms Heikki’s work earlier in the week. That’s a positive sign.”
Christian Silk, Chief Test Engine, added: “We rounded the week off with a very good day’s work. Nelson settled in quickly, and felt comfortable straight away, which helped us make good progress. We had no problems with the car, which is always satisfying, and continued working with the data Heikki had collected on the previous days. In overall terms, this has been a productive and useful test. We can see that we are making progress step by step, but the other teams are doing the same, and we know that this isn’t the time to take our foot off the pedal!”
WILLIAMS Over at Williams Nico Rosberg was on driving duties and successfully completed the team's comprehensive schedule. In preparation for the forthcoming back-to-back races in France and the UK, the team spent the week bedding in a new aero package and updated mechanical components. Nico completed 98 laps today - just over 500kms - on the way to recording the second quickest time of the session with a 1:21.274, just four tenths of a second shy of first placed driver, Felipe Massa in the Ferrari.
Test Team Manager, Dickie Stanford, commented: "Nico took over testing duties today and continued where Alex left off yesterday, putting the aero upgrades through their paces in time for Magny-Cours and Silverstone. We've had a very positive three days here, working through a busy test schedule with no major problems. The test team have done a really good job. We are now off to Goodwood to run Kazuki over the weekend and we then travel to Iceland for a running car event with Nico for Hamleys."
RED BULL Red Bull had David Coulthatd in the cockpit on Thursday in what was described as being an intensive programme, making up for time lost through the great British weather, red flags and some technical problems over the past two days. On the agenda was assessing the new aero package and some suspension geometry changes, working on British Grand Prix tyre choice and set-up work to suit the Silverstone track. "It was a busy day, but we got through the majority of our programme," commented Chief Test Engineer Ian Morgan. "We have found solutions for most of the problems we encountered and we have been able to sign-off aero and suspension parts for the next two grands prix."
TORO ROSSO Toro Rosso said today, it was Scott Speed's turn to take the wheel of what could generally be summed up as a productive three days of testing at the Silverstone circuit. “The only fly in the ointment was a failure in the power train - currently under investigation- which shortened this afternoon's programme.”
TOYOTA Toyota were knocked off the top of the timesheet on Thursday but Jarno Trulli said the week had been pretty good for the team "This week has gone pretty well for us. We've concentrated mainly on preparation for next month's British Grand Prix here but we've also done work in preparation for the coming race at Magny-Cours next weekend. Today I did some tyre comparisons and put some mileage on some other systems on the car. We've been reasonably quick here over the last three days but all that matters is what you can achieve at the race. So far the season hasn't gone as well as we'd hoped but we will continue to push to get the best out of the package in the next few weeks. I'm looking forward to coming to race at Silverstone because I believe that we should perform well here. But we still have three weeks to go and anything can change before then, including the weather."
Gerd Pfeiffer, Test Team Manager said Jarno spent the morning doing tyre comparisons, working on different set-ups and looking at the suspension and other systems. In the afternoon the continued dry weather meant that we were able to do some work on aerodynamics and different weight distributions. The only interruptions today were caused by the frequent red flags. “Overall it has been a successful week and we look forward to using what we have learned here in the coming races."
SPYKER Spyker said Christijan Albers completed the lion's share of the driving as work continued on brake system development, set-up for the British Grand Prix and tyre evaluation. An electrical problem towards the end of the morning halted Christijan's running until the early afternoon, but he nevertheless completed 35 laps with a best time of 1min 23.374. Giedo van der Garde took over the car in the afternoon, however on his first run, spun into the gravel trap and damaged the front suspension. Technicians repaired the car to get Christijan out again towards the end of the afternoon, but light rain stopped any improvement in time.