24 November: Formula 1 Preseason testing got underway this week in preparation for the 2005 Formula 1 season. 8 of the Formula 1 teams are testing at Barcelona including the Red Bull Racing team that bought Jaguar Racing earlier this month. Minardi is testing at Misano while Jordan will commence their testing next week.

It was the first time for many drivers with their new teams. Juan Pablo Montoya tested the McLaren for the very first time today and topped the timesheets. Mark Webber gave the Williams a serious run after a few shakedown laps yesterday. Giancarlo Fisichella returned to Renault after a three year absence. Ralf Schumacher drove the Toyota for the first time while Jacques Villeneuve gets a taste of the Sauber on Friday.

Juan Pablo Montoya commented on his first drive for McLaren and said "Its been an exciting day today and the first time I actually went out of the garage in a West McLaren Mercedes Formula One car was special. I know a lot of the guys in the team already and am really looking forward to working with everybody. At the moment I'm still struggling with remembering everybody's names but that is only natural. There is a lot of work to do for all of us before Christmas and I can't wait."

Not only are the teams preparing for the upcoming season, several teams have yet to announce their full driver line-up. Williams were hoping to assess Anthony Davidson for a possible drive next season but BAR (whom Davidson is contracted to) blocked the move after failing to agree on the terms of the transfer. Williams are still planning to test Nick Heidfeld in addition to their regular test driver Antonio Pizzonia who appears to be the favourite.
Red Bull Racing are also testing a number of drivers. Christian Klien who drove for Jaguar last season is expected to be confirmed as one of Red Bull Racing drivers while Vitantonio Liuzzi (Italy) and former Jaguar test driver Bjorn Wirdheim will be evaluated for the second seat. It doesn't appear that David Coulthard is on the short list of Red Bull.
Minardi F1 are giving several drivers the opportunity to test their Formula 1 car. Drivers Tiago Monteiro (Portugal), Patrick Friesacher (Austria), Chanock Nissany (Israel) , Will Power (Australia) and Will Davidson (Australia) all tested the Minardi at Misano.
Jordan Grand Prix announced that Christijan Albers will be one of the drivers to test for the team next week.

For more information on the Formula 1 preseason testing, check the News section for all the latest updates.

2005 Formula 1 Team and Driver Lineup