Formula 1 / Testing at the Monza circuit / First day, all teams report
Agosto 27, 2008 – 6:37 pm | por admin |Scuderia Ferrari Marlboro
Panasonic Toyota Racing
ING Renault F1 Team
BMW Sauber F1 Team
Scuderia Toro Rosso
Honda Racing F1 Team
Force India
Scuderia Ferrari Marlboro
Maranello, 27th August
Circuit: Autodromo di Monza - 5.793 km
Driver: Felipe Massa
Car: F2008
Weather: air temperature 23/30°C, track temperature 28/44 °C. Sunny.
Scuderia Ferrari Marlboro joined the other nine Formula 1 teams today for the first day of testing this week at the Monza circuit.
It fell to Felipe Massa to get underway with the job of developing the aerodynamic package that the Scuderia has prepared for this circuit. The Brazilian driver concentrated on defining the best set-up for the F2008 and, in the afternoon, he also carried out three long runs. Felipe completed a total of 101 laps, the quickest in a time of 1.23.428: the car ran without any technical problems arising.
The Scuderia continues testing at this circuit tomorrow, again with Felipe Massa on track.
Credit: Scuderia Ferrari Marlboro
Panasonic Toyota Racing
Location: Monza, Italy
Driver: Jarno Trulli
Track length: 5.793km
DRAG ARTISTS
Jarno Trulli began Panasonic Toyota Racing’s three-day test at Monza in preparation for the Italian Grand Prix, round 14 of the world championship, on 14 September. Morning conditions were hot and sunny but the test team got off to a tricky start due to a couple of mechanical issues which required further investigation. Jarno then concentrated on establishing a baseline set-up with the revised Monza-spec TF108, which features a low-downforce aerodynamic package unique to the Italian Grand Prix. Braking performance and stability is also key, with three chicanes breaking up a lap that features 70% full throttle running, so Jarno completed plenty of running to get as much information as possible about the TF108’s behaviour, particularly focusing on the brakes and suspension. Jarno continues in the car tomorrow.
Jarno Trulli - Chassis TF108-04
Best Lap Time: 1min 24.510s
Position: 9th
Total laps: 92
Total distance: 532.956km
“The car’s feel is very important at Monza because you are trying to run with as little drag as possible so you do not have as much downforce as at other circuits. We had a delay at the beginning of the day but then we concentrated on brake work as well as trying the car with different levels of downforce and evaluating the Bridgestone tyre compounds that we will use in the Italian Grand Prix. In the end I did more than 90 laps and we collected a lot of information to continue the test tomorrow.”
Gerd Pfeiffer, Test Team Manager
“It was not the ideal start this morning due to a short delay but when we started running everything went well. We had to make some mechanical alterations which we have to analyse back in Cologne. In the afternoon we caught up with our programme with the emphasis on suspension data collection and other test items. We were not aiming to set fast lap times but we are in a good position to make further progress with Jarno tomorrow before Timo takes over for the final day of the test on Friday.”
Credit: Panasonic Toyota Racing
ING Renault F1 Team
The ING Renault F1 Team kicks off its Monza test
Nelson Piquet, R28-04, 117 laps, 678 km, fastest lap 1:24.540
The ING Renault F1 Team kicked off its Monza test today as Nelson Piquet completed a busy day of work at the Italian circuit just north of Milan.
Conditions were ideal with a sunny sky and warm temperatures greeting the team as the first day of testing got underway. That allowed the team to make good progress with its programme, which included set-up work on the R28 in preparation for the race here next month.
The team was running a new aerodynamic package designed especially to cope with the unique high-speed challenge of Monza. Nelson evaluated the new package and set about improving the overall balance of the car. In the afternoon attention shifted to longer runs and tyre evaluation.
By the end of the day, Nelson had completed 117 laps to give the team a good baseline to work from for the rest of the week. Fernando Alonso takes over driving duties for tomorrow and Friday.
Nelson Piquet: “It was a good day’s work and nice to complete so many laps. It’s the fastest circuit of the year and so we were trying out our low downforce package, which went well, although it always feels strange to drive with such little downforce on the car. The track was also quite green, which didn’t help, but I was happy with the set-up work we completed, even though we still have a lot to learn.”
Christian Silk, Chief Test Engineer: “A solid day’s work with good reliability. We did plenty of laps to give Nelson as much running as possible with the car in low downforce trim. It’s always quite a challenge here to set the car up as it is such a unique circuit, but we’ve colleted lots of data from the first day’s running, which will give us a good base to work on from here.”
Credit: ING Renault F1 Team
BMW Sauber F1 Team
BMW Sauber F1 Team - Test in Monza - Day one
August 27th – 29th 2008
Day one – Wednesday
Weather conditions: Sunny all day.
Temperatures: Air: 23 – 30 °C, Track: 28 – 44 °C
Number of drivers participating: 10 of 10 teams
Fastest lap overall: Felipe Massa (Scuderia Ferrari) 1:23.428 min
Circuit length: 5,793 km
Nick Heidfeld
Chassis / engine: BMW Sauber F1.08-06 / BMW 86/9
Test kilometres today: 447 km (77 laps)
Fastest lap: 1:24.075 min
Programme:
In the morning Nick Heidfeld worked on the mechanical setup of the BMW Sauber F1.08 car. Preparing for the upcoming Belgian and Italian Grand Prix he worked on suspension setup, gearbox ratios and brake balance. In the afternoon the engineers switched their focus to aerodynamics. In perfect weather conditions the team made good progress trying various solutions for the highspeed and low downforce races ahead.
What comes next:
The BMW Sauber F1 Team will continue testing in Monza for two more days. Tomorrow Nick Heidfeld will be at the wheel of the BMW Sauber F1.08 again. On Friday Robert Kubica will take over.
Credit: BMW Sauber F1 Team
Scuderia Toro Rosso
MONZA TEST – DAY 1 27 August 2008
Circuit: Autodromo di Monza – 5.793 kms
Driver: Sebastian Vettel
Chassis: STR3-02
Best time: 1:23.691 99 laps Pos. 4th
Just three days after a strong points scoring, double top ten finish in Valencia, Scuderia Toro Rosso was back on track for the first of three days of testing at Monza, which hosts the Italian Grand Prix on 14 September.
The STR3 ran with the low aerodynamic downforce configuration required at this high speed track and Vettel also evaluated a new front suspension and some aero components not specifically aimed at Monza.
Running on just one type of Bridgestone tyre all day, the car ran trouble free, completing a higher mileage than planned, including a long run, equivalent to over half a race distance, with Seb’s quickest lap posted towards the end of this run.
Tomorrow, German Seb runs in the morning, with French Seb taking over at the wheel for the remaining day and a half of this test.
Credit: Scuderia Toro Rosso
Honda Racing F1 Team
The Honda Racing F1 Team today began a three-day test at the Autodromo Nazionale di Monza in Italy to prepare for the forthcoming Belgian and Italian Grands Prix. Race drivers Rubens Barrichello and Jenson Button will share the testing responsibilities this week with each driver spending one and a half days at the wheel of the RA108.
The Honda Racing F1 Team today began a three-day test at the Autodromo Nazionale di Monza in Italy to prepare for the forthcoming Belgian and Italian Grands Prix. Race drivers Rubens Barrichello and Jenson Button will share the testing responsibilities this week with each driver spending one and a half days at the wheel of the RA108.
Rubens began the programme today and focused on an evaluation of the downforce levels and set-up required for the races at Spa and Monza, alongside a tyre programme with the Bridgestone Potenza medium and hard compounds.
Rubens will continue his running tomorrow morning with Jenson taking over the car for the afternoon session.
Credit: Honda Racing F1 Team
Force India
27 August 2008 - Force India’s test and reserve driver Tonio Liuzzi today kick-started the team’s three-day test at the Autodromo Nazionale di Monza, Italy. The 5.793km high-speed, low downforce track is unlike any other circuit on the calendar and, as such, the team spent much of today conducting set-up and aero work that will be unique to this event and the forthcoming Italian Grand Prix.
Tonio completed 99 laps in total, with a best lap time of 1min 24.239, the 8th quickest time of the day. Adrian Sutil will take over for tomorrow’s running, with Giancarlo Fisichella bringing the test to a close on Friday.
Team quotes
Dominic Harlow, chief race and test engineer
‘With the aero configuration for Monza being dramatically different to any other track we visit on the calendar, today’s programme focussed on evaluating different set-ups and wing levels specifically for the Italian Grand Prix. We also conducted some work on engine mapping, brake testing and tyre evaluation. Grip levels are low at the moment, and the tyres we are using are very hard for the conditions, but everyone has the same issue so we will work over the next days to optimise the performance. Overall, we had a good day and are pretty happy with the information we gathered, it’s been a good start to the test.’
Tonio Liuzzi
‘Today we tried to get a good set-up for the rest of the test and the race in just a couple of weeks time, and I think we can be happy with how it went today. This morning the grip levels were very low and it was quite difficult with the tyres we had, and especially as I had not been in the car for some time for a real test. We did make some good progress though, almost 100 laps with no problems and we are not too far from the others in the times either.’
Testing data
Driver: Tonio Liuzzi
Track: Autodromo Nazionale di Monza, Italy
Best lap time: 1min 24.239
Laps completed: 99
Kilometres completed 574km
Air temperature: High of 30ºC
Track temperature: High of 44ºC
Weather: Sunny and warm
Credit: Force India
