Bahrain Grand Prix - Free Practice Round-Up
Today's Weather: Warm and sunny with gusting winds, air 25-30C,
track 34-42C Toyota's Best Bahrain GP qualifying: 3rd, Jarno
Trulli, 2005 Toyota's Best Bahrain GP race result: 2nd, Jarno
Trulli, 2005 Take Note: Panasonic Toyota Racing's three drivers
Jarno Trulli, Timo Glock and Kamui Kobayashi put in over 900
laps of the Bahrain track during six days of testing in February
Jarno Trulli (Car 11, Chassis TF108-02)
Summary: Trouble-free day's running, P14 in the afternoon
session P1 8th Best Lap Time: 1m 33.539s (+1.306s) Laps: 27
P2 14th Best Lap Time: 1m 33.822s (+2.402s) Laps: 38
"That was a reasonable day of practice for us. The track
surface was predictably dusty and slippery this morning. It
was also quite windy today, with gusts from different directions
in the two sessions. We were fighting with the wind and we
still need to improve the car a bit in general. We tested
here in February so things pretty much went as we expected
today. This is a nice challenging track and I have always
been pretty strong here so I am looking forward to this weekend.
Our results show the car is much more competitive so it is
important to keep developing it and to try to score as many
points as possible."
Timo Glock (Car 12, Chassis TF108-01)
Summary: Largely smooth day of practice, ending the day in
15th place P1 11th Best Lap Time: 1m 33.929s (+1.696s) Laps:
28 P2 15th Best Lap Time: 1m 33.856s (+2.436s) Laps: 30
"It was a productive day and the second practice went
much better than the first for me. In the morning we had some
problems with stability under braking but over the break the
track improved and we managed to develop the car and the set-up.
The guys did a good job, we went in the right direction and
the car felt better over a long run. The test here in February
was positive for us. The question mark for the weekend is
that it is likely to be windy. If the wind is very heavy it
could be a problem, but it is the same for everyone."
Dieter Gass, Chief Engineer Race and Test
"Overall we're happy with the day's work. We had only
one minor problem on Timo's car early in the afternoon session
which we were able to fix quickly. Apart from that we went
through our programme. Concerning tyres, we have a clear picture
on what we have to do even though we weren't supplied with
the option compound during our winter test here. The conditions
were also different today to what we saw in February. We expected
the wind to be an issue and it is looking stronger for tomorrow
and Sunday so that will have an effect. Nevertheless we will
push hard as always to come away with another strong result."
Panasonic Toyota Racing, featuring... Life without Traction
Control Supreme driving skill is a prerequisite for any F1
driver but the class of 2008 have a chance to show off their
talent even more than recent years thanks to the elimination
of traction control. Following the introduction of a standard
electronic control unit (ECU), the first two races have already
proved spectacular - with more drama sure to come this weekend.
The changes also affect the Panasonic Toyota Racing engineers
who have had to adapt the set-up of the TF108 to suit the
different requirements a driver has when he can no longer
rely on electronics to keep the rear wheels in check. Slightly
more downforce is required for optimum set-up this year, a
delicate balance that is even more crucial in the desert sands.
Toyota's Head of Aerodynamics Mark Gillan says: "We need
to be careful with the handling characteristic of the car
particularly here in Bahrain. Overnight the wind can blow
in sand, so the track starts off green. With the loss of traction
control the cars are more prone to wheelspin so we need to
be sure that we provide a more stable aerodynamic car."
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