Monza Test: Day 1
Location: Autodromo Nazionale di Monza, Italy
Drivers: Jarno Trulli, Olivier Panis
Track Length: 5.793 kms
FOOTBALL IS COMING HOME
After a short summer break from testing, Panasonic Toyota
Racing began a three-day test today in Monza with race driver
Jarno Trulli and test driver Olivier Panis. Although testing
was banned since the last test in Jerez, the team back in
the factory was hard at work making continuous developments
on the car. The race this last weekend in Turkey proved to
be quite challenging for the team and this week's test will
be used to make all preparations for the coming race in Monza,
where hopes are high for taking home even more points.
Jarno Trulli is happy to be on home ground again and took
time out from his test schedule to entertain the local football
team, AC Monza Brianza. The football team enjoyed a tour through
the garage and heard firsthand from Jarno what a day's work
as a race driver entails.
Jarno Trulli – Chassis TF106/06B
Best Lap Time: 1m23.424s
Total laps: 80
Total distance: 463.44kms
"The car ran well today and I liked the balance of the
Monza aero package. We worked on tyre testing and braking
stability for the race here next week. I was really surprised
that the resurfacing of the track felt very well and that
grip increased throughout the day, as I though it would be
quite slippery. In general, this is definitely a low downforce
track and you can feel a difference in the V8 speed in comparison
to the V10. There are about 30kmh less in the top speeds coming
down the straight. I am still positive about the car and tomorrow
we will continue to prepare our set-up."
Olivier Panis – Chassis TF106/07B
Best Lap Time: 1m24.038s
Total laps: 70
Total distance: 741.504kms
"Today the car was working quite well. We have a new
aero package for Monza, which felt really good. We had planned
to do a lot of long runs to test some tyres for the coming
races, but due to a small mechanical problem we only managed
to test one set of soft tyres at the end of the day. It was
a shame because I truly believe that we have a car to go fast
here and you notice that the team has worked hard for this.
Overall, I think the team has found a good package for the
race here and we will have to see next week how things go."
Gerd Pfeiffer, Test Team Manager
"Because Monza is a full-throttle track, engine power
and good aerodynamics will play an important role in performance.
Thus we are testing different aerodynamic and balance set-ups
to see how both cars behave. Generally today has been successful
but we did lose a bit of time on Olivier's car when his car
had a small mechanical issue to be looked into. Upon doing
this, he went out for some installation laps before starting
on his tyre programme. Jarno's car underwent some routine
gearbox changes, otherwise his car ran fine."
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