NewsOnF1 - 29 April - 3 May News

3-May: On the fourth and final day of testing at Valencia, Jarno Trulli set the fastest time ahead of McLaren's test driver Alexander Wurz and Renault's test driver Fernando Alonso.
Under changing weather conditions varying between fully wet and drying conditions, teams took the opportunity to test wet weather tyres as well as traction and launch control systems.
4 teams were present with 7 drivers setting lap times. Juan Pablo Montoya covered the most number of laps with 62 laps followed by Alexander Wurz with 59 laps and Jarno Trulli with 41 laps. Eddie Irvine covered the least amount of laps with 8.
Despite the weather conditions, there was only a single incident when Montoya spun off into the gravel.

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At Mugello, Rubens Barrichello concluded the 2 day test at Mugello for Ferrari. He continued his development work on the F2002 covering 42 laps with a best time of 1:25.887.
The session was run under mainly wet conditions with a maximum temperature of 19 degrees.

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2-May: On the third day of testing at Valencia, David Coulthard set a new lap record improving on the time he set earlier this year. Juan Pablo Montoya set the second fastest time with Jarno Trulli third.
5 teams were present and 8 drivers set lap times. Nick Heidfeld covered the most number of laps with 96 followed by Montoya with 67 and Coulthard with 62. Pedro de la Rosa completed the least number of laps with 31.
There were no incidents during the session which started out dry but was very wet in the afternoon.
Sauber conclude testing today while the Michelin runners continue testing tomorrow.

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At Mugello, Rubens Barrichello commenced testing for Ferrari. He continued the development work started by Badoer in the F2002. He covered a total of 52 laps with a best time of 1:24.117
Weather conditions were cloudy then rainy.
Barrichello continues testing tomorrow.

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At Monza, Ferrari's test driver Luciano Burti concluded the three day test session. Burti concentrated on tyre development covering 86 laps. Burti was pleased with the test session and said "I am happy with the work we have done over the past three days of testing. We worked on various types of tyre for use at circuits similar to Monza. When it rained today, we were able to also carry out some rain tyre tests."

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And at Estoril, BAR and Toyota concluded their 3 day test session under mixed conditions on the track. Jacques Villeneuve and Anthony Davidson were present for BAR while Toyota's test driver Ryan Briscoe did the running for Toyota.
After being hampered by electrical problems, Jacques Villeneuve managed to complete 90 laps and setting the fastest time of the day with a 1:20.247.
Ryan Briscoe continued working on mechanical setup and traction control for Toyota. Briscoe covered a total of 71 laps with a best time of 1:21.700.
The session was run under mainly wet conditions.

Click here for the test times from Estoril

2-May: "What does Barrichello have to do ?" is the title of the 11th issue from the Diagnosis and Prognosis Series for the 2002 season. In this issue, the Heretic looks at the aftermath of the Spanish Grand Prix - Issue 11

1-May: On the second day of testing at Valencia, Alexander Wurz in the hybrid MP4-16 set the fastest time of the day ahead of Felipe Massa and Antonio Pizzonia.
5 teams were present with the Jaguar team joining in today and 8 drivers set laps times. Alexander Wurz covered the most number of laps with 90 followed by Felipe Massa with 77 laps and Pedro de la Rosa with 73. Antonio Pizzonia covered the least number of laps with 31.
A number of drivers had problems today with Pizzonia struggling with settings on the FW24 and Trulli suffering an engine failure.
Weather conditions were sunny with a maximum temperature of 24 degrees.
Testing continues tomorrow.

Click here for the test times from Valencia

At Monza, Ferrari's test driver Luciano Burti continued the tyre evaluation test for the team in an F2001. He covered a total of 85 laps on a modified track.
Weather conditions were mainly sunny with a maximum temperature of 23 degrees.
He continues testing tomorrow.

Click here for the test times from Monza

At Fiorano, Ferrari's test driver Luca Badoer continued the development program for the team in an F2002 as well as conducting a tyre evaluation test. He covered a total of 92 laps with a best time of 58.582.
Weather conditions were sunny with a maximum temperature of 25 degrees.
Rubens Barrichello starts testing at Mugello tomorrow.

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At Silverstone, Arrows' driver Enrique Bernoldi concluded a 2 day test for the tram while Jordan's Takuma Sato conducted a test.
Weather conditions were better than yesterday allowing for dry running. Sato set the fastest time with a 1:24.595 while covering 37 laps while Bernoldi set a time of 1:25.049 while covering 78 laps..

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At Estoril, Olivier Panis continued testing for BAR covering 54 laps and setting a best time of 1:17.090 which is the fastest time set on this track. Team-mate Jacques Villeneuve was also present but wasn't able to cover a lot of laps due to an electrical problem.
Toyota's test driver Ryan Briscoe continued testing for the team continuing the program he started yesterday. He covered a massive 112 laps with a best time of 1:19.59.

Click here for the test times from Estoril

30-Apr: Formula 1 teams returned to testing today at a number of venues. At Valencia, Williams, McLaren, Sauber and Renault were present on the first day of testing.
Williams test driver Antonio Pizzonia set the fastest time of the day ahead of McLaren's test driver Alexander Wurz and Sauber's Felipe Massa.
Alexander Wurz covered the most number of laps with 101 followed by Antonio with 95.
The teams concentrated on tyres testing as well as various development components.
There were no major incidents during the session.
Weather conditions were cloudy in the morning then sunny with a maximum temperature of 25 degrees.
Testing continues tomorrow with Jaguar expected to join.

Click here for the test times from Valencia

At Monza, Ferrari's test driver Luciano Burti started a tyre evaluation test for the team in an F2001. He covered a total of 59 laps with a best time of 1:25.003.
Burti suffered a spin in the morning. He continues testing tomorrow.

Click here for the test times from Monza

At Fiorano, Ferrari's test driver Luca Badoer started a development test for the team in an F2002. He covered a total of 72 laps with a best time of 59.185. He continues testing tomorrow.

Click here for the test times from Fiorano

At Silverstone, Arrows' driver Enrique Bernoldi started testing for the team. The session was run under mainly wet conditions. He completed 33 laps with a best time of 1:38.542. He continues testing tomorrow with Jordan expected to join in.

Click here for the test times from Silverstone

At Estoril, Toyota's test driver Ryan Briscoe commenced a 3 day test session for the team. He concentrated on mechanical setup as well as launch control testing. He completed a total of 91 laps with a best time of 1:19.41
Both Olivier Panis and Anthony Davidson were present for the BAR team. Panis covered 55 laps with a best time of 1:17.50 while Davidson covered 53 laps with a best time of 1:18.30

Click here for the test times from Estoril

30-Apr: Minardi's boss Paul Stoddart who made the decision to withdraw both his cars from the Spanish GP due to wing failures is confident that the team will fix the wing problems they encountered and be ready for the upcoming Austrian GP on the 12th of May. He said "We now know that the failure on Mark's car was a one-off problem with that component, but further strengthening will be incorporated in all of our rear wings purely as an added precaution. Wind tunnel testing has also verified that the modification will not result in any loss of vehicle performance. The work will be completed prior to the Austrian Grand Prix."

Jacques Villeneuve has clarified what he meant when he said 'enough is enough' and indicated that he was referring to when he decides to retire from Formula 1. Speaking to the BBC he said "I have no reason right now to leave the team. When I said 'enough is enough', I was talking about a time when I will have to make a decision about the end of my career. I was not talking about BAR. Everyone expects me to leave at the end of the year, but it makes me laugh. To leave here would be very complicated, and first I would have to see if there were any interesting offers elsewhere. If it is to go to a team and start again, I'm not interested. If I had to make a change, it would be to win races or that it was going very badly at BAR."
Villeneuve added that the changes expected on the car in time for the Canadian GP will be crucial and said "The progress the team will make starting at the Canadian Grand Prix will be important for me. After that, it will be easier to think about it, but for now I have no decision to make."

30-Apr: Vic retains the lead in the 6 'n' Pole Competition by a single point! ... Overall Results ... Spain Results ... Popular Picks ... Register

29-Apr: "Your thoughts on the Spanish Grand Prix" - Topic of the week - Have Your Say