Valencia Test Times

[Mark F1]

Pos Driver Car Tyres Time Laps

1. Nick Heidfeld Sauber Petronas* B 1:13.717s 99
2. Takuma Sato Jordan Honda B 1:13.830s 73
3. Felipe Massa Sauber Petronas* B 1:13.933s 91
4. Juan Pablo Montoya Williams BMW* M 1:14.025s 55
5. Ralf Schumacher Williams BMW* M 1:14.037s 57
6. Marc Gene Williams BMW M 1:15.038s 66
7. Fernando Alonso Renault M 1:15.340s 49
8. Jenson Button Renault* M 1:15.771s 39
9. Giancarlo Fisichella Jordan Honda* B 1:15.968s 53
10. Mark Webber Minardi Asiatech* M 1:18.048s 14
11. Alex Yoong Minardi Asiatech* M 1:21.002s 21

M = Michelin
B = Bridgestone
* = 2002 Car


Once again Heidfeld shows his and Sauber's class, Sato outpacing Fisichella in LAST YEAR'S Jordan and Alex Yoong proping up the rear again !!!!! (I think they were actually just shaking down the new Minardi)

[Number Juan]

oh dear...montoya is a bit slow

[Speedworx]

Gerhard Berger has confirmed reports that various officials from BMW-Williams are disappointed with the initial showings by the Anglo-German squad’s new FW24 contender.

The new machine was launched and rolled out in late January and has been testing extensively in Spain, but its performance according to Berger, the director of BMW’s motorsport division, is concerning chiefs.

‘It is true that after the first tests the new car did not produce the lap times we were expecting,’ the Austrian told the road car weekly, Autocar. ‘I always regard the speed of a new car on its first outing as a very important sign.

‘And even taking into account the need to make chassis set-up changes, we are not satisfied.’

Reports in European publications circulated recently that driver Ralf Schumacher was ‘not overwhelmed’ with the car, while team-mate Montoya has been enthusiastic only about the new P82 BMW engine.

Yet Berger insisted that the performance of the overall package was the most critical factor.

‘We are talking about a whole package here,’ he added. ‘I don't like to separate the chassis from the power unit.’

The FW24 is an evolution of last year’s FW23, but significantly its chief designer Gavin Fisher said at the time of its launch that the 2001 car ‘was already in a high state of evolution’, suggesting that there is little to modify on the new car that could improve its performance significantly.

A redesign of the car is seen as a drastic move however.

source: www.dailyf1.com

[steve nielsen]

Minardi 4.3 seconds slower than Sauber on such a short circuit, that wonderfull Asiatech.........

[Speedworx]

4.3 off and doing so little laps compared to Sauber.

[Gt_R]

4.3 sec off, which isnt too bad when we see that this test is just for the Minardi team to get onto terms with the new car. Which means setup fine-tuning isn't exploited, and that they are not maxing out in order to keep the car intact. Its good they kept the car without any huge problems. They arn't gonna blitz the field, but its still a good sign!

As for Williams...i think its just sandbagging. They often don't do that well in testings and in practices, yet come quals and races...Presto, they are right up there! As bad as William's chassis can go, it would still be a pretty good piece of shyte. Add the power of the BMW, the WHOLE package would be right up with the best.

[Wrex]

I think your on it Gt_R, Williams are'nt amatures anymore than Ferrari or McLaren. The BMW motor does'nt even need to be more powerful than last year, just more reliable.

Melbourne, as always, will be the time we really find out.