Button fastest on Day One of pre-season test at Jerez

David Bodapati February 6, 2013

417 4 minutes read

Jerez, 5 Feb 2013: Jenson took the wheel for the first track run of the new MP4-28 and by the end of the first Day of Formula 1 pre-season testing he was the fastest followed by Red Bull’s Mark Webber and early pace-setter Romain Grosjean of Lotus.

Button’s morning’s running was compromised by a mechanical fuel-pump issue, which cost a couple of hours’ track-time, but the problem was quickly rectified and the team was able to run productively for the remainder of the afternoon.

Button spent the first part of the day’s programme running a lower-lip rake to complete some aero mapping work. The end of the day saw the team evaluate the effects of a series of mechanical set-up changes, using both the Supersoft and Hard Pirelli tyres.

Both the aero mapping and the balance changes fell in line with the team’s pre-test expectations. Button set his fastest time of the day on the Hard compound.

What’s next Sergio Perez gets his first opportunity to drive a Vodafone McLaren Mercedes car tomorrow (Wednesday). The knock-on effects of this morning’s fuel-pump issue mean that he will begin his day by continuing today’s initial aero and balance checks.

The aim for tomorrow afternoon is to conduct a series of longer runs – possibly incorporating live pitstops into the mix if the team is satisfied with the day’s initial progress.

Sahara Force India

Sahara Force India was back in action as Paul Di Resta completed a busy first day of testing in the VJM06 in Jerez, Spain. Paul completed 89 laps with a best time of 1:20.343 to finish fourth on the timesheets.

Day One Statistics:

Chassis: VJM06-02

Laps: 89 laps

Mileage: 394 km

Fastest lap: 1:20.343

Classification: P4 of 11

Paul Di Resta: “A positive first day and we managed to cover lots of laps – so that’s the most important thing. I felt very comfortable all day and we managed to get through the programme as we focussed on collecting aero data and understanding how well the car correlates with our simulation tools at the factory. We also started trying to learn as much about the tyres as possible so that we can carry that into tomorrow and optimise the set-up. The new compounds are quite different with the new construction and I’ve already felt a difference with the balance of the car in the low and high speed parts of the lap.”

Jakob Andreasen, Chief Race Engineer

“As first days go, we are pretty satisfied with how things went today. From the install lap onwards we managed to keep to the programme, even with the disruptions for the red flags. In the morning we focused on aero data collection before moving to baseline set-up work just before lunch. For the afternoon Paul completed some longer runs as we started to get an understanding for the 2013 tyres, especially the medium compound, and how they perform. All the while we made good progress with our system checks and we are in good shape ahead of tomorrow.”

Lotus Renault:

Lotus F1 Team’s 2013 car, the E21, took to the track for the first time with race driver Romain Grosjean at the wheel under bright blue skies in Jerez, Spain.

Romain was the fastest man on track for much of the day, ending the afternoon with the third quickest time. 54 laps were completed as the team went through its first day programme of shakedown and assessment.

Fast Facts:

Track: Jerez, Spain, 4.4km
Chassis: E21-01
Weather: Sunny, ambient 7-26°C, track 6-21°C
Programme: Systems checks, temperature monitoring, data correlation, evaluation of the performance of the car with its initial aerodynamic package.
Laps Completed: 54
Classification: P3, 1:19.796
Interruptions: Ballast redeployment and KERS battery change in afternoon.

What’s Next?

Romain will complete his E21 running at Jerez tomorrow, before handing the car over to team-mate Kimi Räikkönen for the Thursday and Friday sessions.

Romain Grosjean:
“The feeling is good from the E21; it feels very similar to the E20 from behind the wheel, even if it does look different from the outside. Once again Enstone has produced a car that is quick from the very first lap. We spent a little bit more time than ideal in the garage today, but that’s normal in testing. I’m happy we completed 54 laps, and even happier that all of them were quick. We now have a good idea of the new tyres and we’ll have some challenges from them; the grip level is there but performance does fall away with graining. That said, Jerez is a very specific track in this regard. The speed came easy today and we didn’t respond to the other cars going faster in the afternoon. We should go even better tomorrow.”

James Allison, Technical Director:
“It’s great to see the fruits of our labours take to the track for the first time here in Jerez. Everything has looked positive so far. The feedback from Romain has been encouraging and on the engineering side there have been no particular dramas of note. Overall it was a promising first day for this car and we hope to continue in this vein for the next days of testing.”

Mercedes – Nico Roseberg

Nico Rosberg began the first pre-season test for MERCEDES AMG PETRONAS today, following the launch of the team’s new car and a filming day in Jerez yesterday.

Nico completed three runs this morning before an electrical problem caused the car to stop on track
Unburnt fuel in the exhausts subsequently ignited but did not cause any serious damage
Further investigation identified that the fault originated in a wiring loom
The necessary modifications are now taking place ready for tomorrow

Lewis Hamilton is due to drive on Wednesday for his first day of track testing with the team.

Nico Rosberg:
At the start of winter testing, you often encounter small issues because the car you’re running is a brand new design. We had an electrical problem this morning and, once we had found the root cause, chose to modify the parts to make sure it didn’t happen again. Of course, at this time of year all you want to do is spend time in the car and get a feeling for how it’s working, but these hiccups are just part of the game. During the laps I completed this morning, I had a good feeling with the car and it felt solid.