Jerez Testing, Day 1
The Renault F1 Team continues its winter testing programme
at Jerez.
After three days of testing in Barcelona last week, the Renault
F1 Team has set up shop in Jerez, near Seville, for six days
of testing over the coming fortnight.
The first three days of testing in Andalucia will build on
last week's work in Catalonia, collecting additional data
on the performance of the new Bridgestone tyres while completing
maximum mileage to build reliability with the new 2007-specification
gearbox. The team's drivers this week will be the 2007 race
line-up: Giancarlo Fisichella, in his first run since the
Brazilian Grand Prix, and Heikki Kovalainen.
Giancarlo Fisichella's first day was all about finding his
way with the Bridgestone tyres and beginning the learning
process with the new rubber. Across the garage, Heikki Kovalainen's
week of running in Barcelona meant he was able to work on
a chassis set-up programme. The focus of the programme was
to understand the tyre's characteristics compared to those
noted last week, and to learn about their performance on this
circuit, which is particularly demanding for the rear tyres.
A wet track this morning meant the team delayed its programme
in order to run in optimum conditions. However, the drivers
still managed a total of 116 laps, and made good progress
with their week's work. Giancarlo Fisichella finished his
first day back at the wheel in 14th position, while Heikki
Kovalainen was 9th fastest in 1:20.784.
Giancarlo Fisichella
"This was a good day back at work for me. I didn't run
much this morning, and I was just concentrating on learning
about the new tyres. I learned some useful things today, and
will continue in the same direction tomorrow."
Heikki Kovalainen
"We lost a lot of running time this morning because it
took a long time for the track to dry out properly, and we
didn't see any point in running when the track wasn't ready.
In spite of that, we did some important tests that help us
better understand our conclusions from Barcelona, and that
is a good step. We were not looking to set quick times, but
instead focusing on the programme, and our progress meant
it was a positive day for the team."
Christian Silk, Chief Test Engineer
"We found some interesting directions for the rest of
the week on Heikki's car, while Giancarlo basically found
his feet with the new tyres. The morning session was not very
productive owing to the conditions, but I think we managed
to do some good work in the circumstances, and given ourselves
a good platform for the rest of the week."
DRIVER TEAM BEST LAPS
1 MASSA Ferrari 1 :19.462 54
2 BADOER Ferrari 1 :19.708 77
3 HAMILTON McLaren 1 :20.245 79
4 KLIEN Honda 1 :20.394 89
5 MONTAGNY Toyota 1 :20.398 96
6 DAVIDSON Super Aguri 1 :20.437 52
7 DE LA ROSA McLaren 1:20.442 65
8 ROSSITER Honda 1:20.725 103
9 KOVALAINEN Renault 1:20.784 67
10 ROSBERG Williams 1:20.961 81
11 WEBBER Red Bull 1:21.053 72
12 KUBICA BMW 1:21.079 74
13 AMMERMULLER Red Bull 1:21.143 75
14 FISICHELLA Renault 1:21.282 49
15 HIRATE Toyota 1:21.424 75
16 LIUZZI Toro Rosso 1:21.472 96
17 VETTEL BMW 1:22.067 77
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