Jerez Testing, Day 1, 08/02/06
The Renault F1 Team began running today in Jerez, continuing
the winter test programme with the R26.
The Renault F1 Team took the track for the first of three
days of testing, with Fernando Alonso and Heikki Kovalainen
at the wheel.
Fernando ran strongly, concentrating primarily on tyre development
and set-up work with the R26 in order to learn more about
its handling characteristics.
Heikki Kovalainen successfully completed a 77 lap race distance
this morning, but was then forced to stop running following
a problem with the rear wing. The team chose not to take any
risks in the interests of driver safety, and the part in question
was sent back to Enstone immediately for analysis and to enable
modifications to be made as quickly as possible. The team
is working hard to get modified components to Jerez for the
end of the week, but quality remains paramount; should they
not be available in time, they will be used next week in Valencia.
While waiting for new components to arrive, the team will
run with a single chassis tomorrow, with Giancarlo Fisichella
and Heikki Kovalainen sharing seat-time in the R26.
Fernando Alonso: "We had an interesting
day of testing. We concentrated on the tyres again, which
are going to be a very important factor this year, and worked
on chassis set-up. The gains we made were good in terms of
improving the grip and balance of the car. Now, we need to
carry on working and see how things go – it is hard
to say more than that at this stage, but the main thing is
that we concentrate on our programme."
Heikki Kovalainen: "I managed to do
another race distance today, which was good. The car handled
well and I felt comfortable at the wheel again. We then had
the problem with the wing that meant I had to stop running,
but the main thing is that we will still be able to carry
on running tomorrow."
Christian Silk, Chief Test Engineer: "We
managed to get through a large part of our testing programme
today. Heikki completed another race distance, while Fernando
worked on software this morning as he waited for track conditions
to improve. He then focused on tyre development and chassis
set-up, and we found some interesting ideas to explore further.
Overall, it was a positive day in spite of the problem with
the rear wing this afternoon."
DRIVER - TEAM - BEST LAPS
1 ALONSO Renault 1:16.960 91
2 BUTTON Honda 1:17.121 56
3 MONTOYA McLaren 1:17.274 53
4 DE LA ROSA McLaren 1:17.425 112
5 BARRICHELLO Honda 1:17.517 56
6 HEIDFELD BMW 1:17.584 117
7 VILLENEUVE BMW 1:18.075 90
8 WEBBER Williams 1:18.269 90
9 KOVALAINEN Renault 1:18.922 77
10 TRULLI Toyota 1:19.426 101
11 R.SCHUMACHER Toyota 1:19.673 85
12 ROSBERG Williams 1:19.973 30
13 MONTEIRO Midland 1:21.899 30
|
