ETIHAD ALDAR SPYKER FORMULA ONE TEAM TEST REPORT: BARCELONA
T18 - DAY ONE OF THREE
The Etihad Aldar Spyker Formula One Team has concluded the
first day of its three day test programme at the Circuit de
Catalunya on the outskirts of Barcelona, Spain. Giedo van
der Garde covered 37 laps in the morning, recording a best
complete lap time of 1:24.99secs as he focussed on evaluating
hydraulic systems and the hard and medium Bridgestone Potenza
tyres in advance of next week's Spanish Grand Prix, to be
held at the same circuit from 11 to 13 May.
Spaniard Adrian Valles took over from Giedo in the slightly
cooler, overcast conditions after lunchtime, and put in a
series of longer stints to record a best of 1:23.72secs. His
day was however brought to a premature end on his final run
when he ran wide at turn three and crashed heavily into the
barriers. Although uninjured himself, Adrian's car however
sustained heavy damage in the impact and technicians will
work to repair the car for Adrian Sutil tomorrow, who is due
to take over driving duties.
Team quotes
Mike Gascoyne, chief technical officer
'Our two test drivers did a good job today, however the day
was unfortunately spoilt by the accident at the end of the
day when Adrian had an off in turn three. It looks as though
he had a problem with the car through turn one and then lost
control through three. Thankfully he is fine, but the car
is quite damaged. Hopefully we'll be able to get it going
again for tomorrow and continue the programme with Adrian
Sutil.'
Giedo van der Garde
'This morning we concentrated on testing tyres and hydraulics,
and got lots of useful data. We had some problems with the
hard tyres, which didn't give a lot of grip on the cooler
track, but with the medium tyres it was a lot better. From
the last time I was in the car back in Valencia in February
to now, you can definitely feel the improvement in the car
and I can tell I have improved too. The track was very slippery
after the rain yesterday, so it did take me a while to get
up to speed again with the car but I got a good rhythm towards
the end of the laps. It's great to be back in the car.'
Adrian Valles
'This afternoon we continued the work on hydraulics and tyres
and I think we made some progress. The lap times were good,
considering the tyres were old, and we could do some pretty
consistent times. Of course I am not happy about the accident
- I don't know what happened in turn one; the car moved and
then I thought I'd take it easy to get to the garage, but
then the car came away in turn three. Overall though I think
we can be reasonably positive; I was really comfortable until
the lap before the crash, and enjoyed it without making any
mistakes.'
Facts
* The team is using the same chassis, the F8-VII/02, for all
three-days
* This visit is the third time the team has tested at the
Circuit de Catalunya this year following its two pre-season
tests at the end of February
* Today was Giedo van der Garde's first time on the Circuit
de Catalunya Grand Prix circuit. The Dutchman has raced on
the shorter version of the circuit, however today's laps were
his first-ever of the 4.655km Grand Prix track
Testing data
Air temperature: High of 25ºC
Track temperature: High of 37ºC
Weather: Blue skies in the morning, overcast after lunch
Laps completed: 80 laps (van der Garde 37 laps, Valles 43
laps)
Drivers: Giedo van der Garde, Adrian Valles
Track: Circuit de Catalunya, Spain
Best lap time: 1min 24.99 (van der Garde)
1min 23.72 (Valles)
F8-VII testing data (since 1 January 2007)
Total km run (testing): 5,151 kilometres
Total days: 10
Christijan Albers: 2,022km in total
Adrian Sutil: 1,509km in total
Fairuz Fauzy: 712km in total
Giedo van der Garde: 534km in total
Adrian Valles: 373km in total
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