Young driver test: team reaction after Day 2

Abu Dhabi, 16th November 2011 – Esteban Gutiérrez, the team’s official test and reserve driver, was at the wheel of the Sauber C30-Ferrari on day two of the three Young Driver Days at Abu Dhabi’s Yas Marina Circuit. For the 20-year-old Mexican, who has his first GP2 season under his belt, it was the fourth time he has climbed into a Sauber Formula One car. The Young Driver Days at the end of the 2009 and 2010 season and a straight line test in 2011 were the previous occasions for Esteban, who will continue driving tomorrow. Today he was mainly busy with tyre comparisons and evaluations.

Giampaolo Dall’Ara, Head of Track Engineering: “Today the focus was on tyre testing. Esteban compared and evaluated the 2011 version of Pirelli’s soft compound tyre with a new soft tyre which has been made for 2012. It is also different in design. We have covered a very good mileage today, despite the fact we had to stop for 20 minutes early in the afternoon due to a loss of hydraulic pressure. Although Esteban is very young and drove the C30 for the first time on a proper race track and also had to deal with the DRS and KERS, he gave us very mature and useful feedback. We have done everything that was on today’s programme, and are looking forward to another productive day with Esteban tomorrow.”

Esteban Gutiérrez: “It was a great day for me to learn about the different tyres. It is quite challenging to adapt from one to another, and you have to be sensible enough not to push too hard when you have less grip. It was a very good experience for me and I’m looking forward to tomorrow. I’m happy with how the team is welcoming me back in the car. It is good to drive again to continue developing myself to get prepared for the future.”

Jan Charouz was in the car for HRT F1 Team today in the second day of
the Young Driver Test at the Yas Marina Circuit in Abu Dhabi. The
programme scheduled for the Czech driver, who’s already driven an F1 car
in the past, was orientated towards optimizing his adaptation to the car
and tyres. Charouz completed four medium distance stints with soft tyres
and one with supersoft tyres in the morning. After the midday interval
he carried out another test with supersofts before completing a long run
of 14 laps with medium tyres before finishing off with another run on
supersofts.

The main target of the day was for Charouz to grow in confidence
behind the wheel and for him to experiment the different tyre compounds.
The programme was slightly delayed because a change of engine was
required at midday as a precautionary measure. Although the change was
made in a record time, afternoon testing started a little bit later than
scheduled. The 24 year old Czech driver covered a total of 56 laps,
summing up a total of 311 kilometres, finishing in 11th position with a
time of 1’46.644. Once Jan Charouz finished his session, the team
proceeded to changing drivers in order to fit Nathanael Berthon’s seat
to have it ready for the French driver’s test which will take place
tomorrow on the third and final day of the Young Driver Test in Abu
Dhabi.

Jan Charouz: "It was really nice driving for HRT today. It was great
that we had a lot of tyres to test, which is something that I need a lot
because my biggest problem is getting the time out on new tyres. I liked
working with the team as they were very professional; we had an engine
problem in the afternoon and I’ve never seen anybody change an engine so
quickly! I encountered some traffic on my last run on supersofts and I
was only able to do one lap. It was a great experience and it would be
great to drive again. I was feeling more comfortable lap by lap as I was
getting to know the car better and how different controls worked. It was
also my first chance to use DRS which was really nice to experience,
there are so many things you have to do at the same time and it was good
to start to get used to it".

Nathanael Berthon: "I wasn’t able to run for much but it was
incredible to get out on the track with an F1 car. It’s important to do
laps to adapt to the driving posture so that I can start tomorrow’s test
comfortably and get the most out of it".

Arnau Niubo, race engineer: "Today we had planned to test two drivers
and that meant that more preparation work was needed as well as a more
complex work plan. Both the team and the driver did a good job. We
started with Charouz in the morning and the target was for him to adapt
to the car and tyres. He progressed as the day went on and set some good
times. It was a shame that he wasn’t able to improve even more towards
the end as he encountered some traffic on his last lap on supersoft
tyres. We had to change the engine at midday as a precautionary measure.
Although this delayed us a bit, I think that we can be satisfied with
Jan’s performance as well as being content for having changed the engine
so quickly and getting Nathanael in the car so that he could do some
laps and get to know the car ahead of tomorrow’s test".

Red Bull Junior driver Jean-Eric Vergne was back at the wheel of an RB7 again today for the second day of the Young Driver Test at the Yas Marina Circuit.
As he continued to get used to the RB7, Jean-Eric once again set the fastest time. However, the day was less productive for the team than yesterday due to sensor issues affecting running in the morning and a KERS issue in the afternoon.

Ian Morgan, Head of Race Engineering: “We had quite a disjointed morning due to some sensor issues which interrupted our run programme and this afternoon we lost more track time with a KERS issue. The issues are resolved now and at least we were able to complete some laps which provided useful data, hopefully tomorrow will be more productive.”

Jean-Eric will drive again tomorrow for the final day of the test.

Second day of testing for Scuderia Ferrari and the other Formula 1 teams at the Yas Marina circuit, located near the Abu Dhabi theme park, dedicated to the Maranello marque.

Once again today, Jules Bianchi took to the track for Ferrari. The Frenchman worked on two main areas: new components linked to engine management and an evaluation of the experimental tyres brought here by Pirelli.

By the end of the day, Bianchi completed a total of 91 laps, the quickest in a time of 1.40.279.

Jules Bianchi: “It was another good day of testing. I was able to do a lot of kilometres and so we were able to complete all the planned programme, while I was also able to improve on my lap time from yesterday. It’s valuable work for the team, because we have accumulated a lot of data which will be important for the development of the 2012 car.”

Testing at this circuit ends tomorrow, again with the French driver on track for the Scuderia.

Marussia Virgin Racing were back on track in Abu Dhabi today for the
Young Driver Test at Yas Marina Circuit. After getting his debut run in
a Formula One car yesterday afternoon with the team, rookie driver
Charles Pic was at the wheel again for day two.

The team combined its continued appraisal of the 21 year old
Frenchman’s potential with an evaluation programme of 2012 components,
as well as introducing Pirelli P-Zero development work into the mix this
afternoon.

The team worked through a list of brake cooling and 2012 tyre options,
as well as performing evaluations of the existing aero options available
to the team for Brazil. The team did not make as much progress as
planned due to a number of issues which confined the car to the garage
for long periods this morning and at the start of the afternoon session.

As a consequence, the team have decided to put Charles back in the car
for a further half day tomorrow morning. Robert Wickens, who had the
benefit of his debut FP1 outing in last weekend’s Abu Dhabi Grand Prix,
will take over the reins in the afternoon.

Charles Pic: "This morning I was still getting used to the car and working to
optimise my driving. We made two longer brake evaluation runs and this
afternoon we did a test of new Pirelli tyres, but this time only for a
few laps. We used four different specifications of tyre and it was very
interesting to see the difference and get this information. By this
afternoon I was happy with the car and all the new things like using DRS
through the lap I just kept getting better and better at. I am very
happy with my second day in the car and once again I have learned a lot.
Thanks to the team again for making everything comfortable for me."

John Booth, Team Principal: "We were slightly delayed leaving the garage this morning, having
waited for new front suspension and brake components to arrive overnight
from the factory. All in all, the team did a good job to minimise the
amount of time Charles lost on the track this morning as a result. The
morning progressed reasonably well, with Charles working through 2012
brake cooling options, but just before lunchtime we found an issue with
the engine which had to be changed for this afternoon’s running. Later
on we worked through the first part of the 2012 Pirelli tyre programme
and due to the fact that we were unable to complete this, we will
continue the long run work in the morning with Charles before giving the
afternoon to Robert. Unlike those around us we elected to only run the
Soft tyre compound today, so we will get our chance with the Supersoft
tomorrow. With the work that Charles was able to complete, he has done a
good job and worked well with the team."

Day 2 of this three day test ran with a similar programme to
yesterday, but with a change of driver, as it was Kevin Ceccon’s turn
to get the Formula 1 experience. For the second day running, Scuderia
Toro Rosso completed the most laps of all twelve teams present at the
Yas Marina Circuit.

Laurent Mekies, Chief Engineer: In the morning, we resumed our
evaluation of various aero components and in the afternoon the work
centred on tyre testing. However, while yesterday, Coletti’s programme
was based on a series of short runs, today, Ceccon was able to get a
taste of what driving a Grand Prix might be like, as he did a race
simulation in what was the hottest part of the day! Even though we asked
a lot of him with a complex programme, he delivered a faultless
performance. From a team point of view, it was another positive day, as
we ran trouble free throughout and our programme is therefore going to
plan. Tomorrow, we hope to bring it to a successful conclusion, running
Coletti in the morning and Ceccon in the afternoon.”

Kevin Ceccon: “This was an incredible experience for me, driving a
Formula 1 car and working with this team and first, I must say thank you
to Scuderia Toro Rosso for giving me this fantastic opportunity. We got
through a lot of work today, testing parts for the car as well as next
season’s Pirelli tyres, running them in comparison to this year’s. I
drove two long runs, from which I was able to understand a lot. In fact,
I felt that in one day of testing with an F1 car, I learned more than in
several days in other categories of car! Therefore today was very good
as a learning experience for me and I am looking forward to making more
progress tomorrow from a personal point of view and also in terms of
helping the team for next season.”

On the second day of the Young Driver Test in Abu Dhabi today, Sam Bird continued his work at the wheel of the MGP W02 car.

— The team focused on 2012 Pirelli tyre evaluations throughout the day with short runs in the morning and longer runs this afternoon
— Consistent driving from Sam allowed the team to collect plenty of data, along with his feedback on the feel of the tyres
— Sam and the team will complete the test tomorrow on the third and final day.

Sam Bird: “We made some very good progress with the programme today and were able to achieve all of the goals that we intended. It was interesting to try out the new 2012 Pirelli tyres for the first time, and I enjoyed the experience. Overall it was a very good day for us and I’m looking forward to completing our programme of test items tomorrow.”

Jody Egginton, Chief Race Engineer: "As with all the drivers throughout the test, we spent most of the morning getting Luiz used to the car and up to speed with the Pirelli tyres. We also spent the morning running some damper work, looking at the correlation with our ride and handling models back at the factory, and also looking ahead to next year. The programme this morning was successful and we received some good feedback from that session.

"This afternoon we completed the second part of the Pirelli tyre test as part of the 2012 programme, running their three prototypes over short runs. Again, we received good feedback which we’ll take back to the factory and work on analysing with that data, looking ahead to next season.

"At end of day did we did a performance run on the supersoft tyres, but unfortunately a red flag meant we lost the quickest lap of that programme. We sent Luiz out again to give him a few more laps, however the tyres were past their peak so we could not extract the times we wanted. But all in all it has been a good day and Luiz has performed very well and given valuable feedback without putting a foot wrong. A good day all round."

Luiz Razia: "This morning we did a lot of damper work for the team looking ahead to the 2012 season, with many adjustments and evaluation of each run. We also did a performance run, which was very good as I was able to pick up speed quickly on the first flying lap.

"Most of the afternoon was dedicated to the 2012 Pirelli tyre programme, and we did some evaluation on that, looking at how the tyres behaved. We also did some performance runs this afternoon with a baseline setup, but unfortunately the red flag meant that I couldn’t complete the best lap possible. The car balance felt good and I improved on my times so I’m quite happy. What I wanted to achieve was to do as many laps as possible so I was happy with 89 laps in total.

"The last time I drove the T128 was in Barcelona; the car has improved a lot since then and I feel Pirelli have done a great job with the tyres. I feel that the car is easier to drive and I felt more confident to push and get the most out of it that I could.

"89 laps under the belt shows how much you can learn in just a day. Perhaps that’s why the rookies struggle a little in F1 initially. There was so much to learn today, and an awful lot to think about! It’s about trying to give good feedback and also think about what’s happening, and also get the best out the car, which of course you’re not used to. So it’s so important for us to have this test, and this opportunity doesn’t come along very often, so I’m extremely grateful and happy to get the time in the car."

Sahara Force India continued testing in Abu Dhabi today as Johnny Cecotto Jr got behind the wheel of the VJM04 for his first experience of a Formula One car.

The 22-year-old Venezuelan acquitted himself well as he familiarised himself with the car before carrying out a tyre programme in the afternoon. Johnny covered a total of 84 laps, setting a best time of 1:42.873, the fifth fastest of the day.

Max Chilton is back in the car for the final day of testing tomorrow.

Johnny Cecotto Jr: “Amazing is the only word to describe today. Everything was just incredible from the moment I left the pits to begin my first lap. These cars are so impressive: the power, the braking performance and the aerodynamic grip you get through the corners – it makes you say ‘wow’. And there are so many systems on the car, too, such as the KERS, which really impressed me. It was good to try out some of the 2012 tyres in the afternoon and the team seemed happy with the data and my feedback. Overall it was just an unbelievable experience to work at such a professional level, with a great crew, and I want to thank Sahara Force India for giving me such a wonderful opportunity.”

Oliver Knighton, Race Support and Strategy Engineer: “Today saw a continuation of the programme that we started yesterday with Max. We began with some familiarisation runs for Johnny to get him comfortable in the car and he quickly got a good grasp of the control systems on the car, and was switching modes without being prompted. The technical programme focussed on more data collection for the 2012 Pirelli tyres and we also did some aero sweeps in the afternoon. Overall it was a good day’s work: Johnny has settled in well with the team and gave excellent feedback.”

Gary Paffett: "We conducted today’s programme primarily focusing on
providing feedback, analysis and evaluation for Pirelli as they continue
to refine their 2012 tyre programme.

The day was spent running different casings and compounds - with some positive results.
The day’s background running also included putting mileage on several
development parts intended for next year’s MP4-27A chassis, as well as
gathering data for correlation purposes.

Despite an early stop in the day due to a fuel-pressure issues, this
was another positive day for me."

Oliver Turvey will return to the cockpit tomorrow to conclude the three
days’ running.

Tom McCullough, Race engineer: We had a busy tyre test programme for
Pirelli today. We started the performance tests and also completed some
longer runs. We had a small electrical issue in the middle of the day
which lost us a little track time unfortunately, but we have lots of
interesting data to go through which will help us with the development
of next year’s car. Working with the engineers trackside, Valtteri has
done a very professional job for us again, driving consistently all day.
He got the most out of the car we gave him and gave us some really
useful feedback on the Pirelli tyres. It’s been a solid job by him the
last two days.

Valtteri Bottas: It was really good to work with the team again today
and I feel we achieved what we wanted to. Physically is was as demanding
as the first day with the heat and different levels of G-forces; it was
hard work but in the end wasn’t a problem. It has been a great
opportunity for me here and I have really enjoyed every moment.

AT&T Williams will be back on track tomorrow, Thursday 17 November,
with Mirko Bortolotti driving the FW33 for the final day of the test.

Kevin Korjus took the helm of the R31 cockpit today during the second day of testing in Abu Dhabi. The opportunity gave him his first ever taste of an F1 car.

It was a day of firsts for Kevin: the day was based around getting Kevin comfortable in the car and giving him as much mileage as possible. He adapted to the car and the systems. Kevin did 70 laps which is not easy for someone making his debut in an F1 car, and he’s only 18 years old. We explored the set-up early on and changed a few things during the day – this included a little bit of the Pirelli tyre work and some aerodynamic testing.

Kevin’s feedback was good and he did a good job.

Kevin Korjus: “It was very much a learning day for me – my first chance to drive the R31. The main priority was to give me a little bit of assessment; I gradually built up my confidence, and then by lunchtime I was feeling pretty comfortable with things. I was looking forward to doing some hard laps, but I must say it was really hard especially for my neck, physically and to learn all the buttons, and to do everything at the correct time. It is very different from the World Series. Now I feel I need a bit of rest. Otherwise I really enjoyed the day because the car was just unbelievably good. It’s much quicker everywhere and I was particularly impressed by the brakes. I was definitely getting more and more comfortable because the brain starts to remember all the buttons. I learned there is still a lot to improve to be a really good driver in F1, and also I need to work a lot on my fitness but I’m very thankful for the opportunity Lotus Renault GP has given me today. “

Alan Permane: "Kevin took a sensible approach to the day, slowly building up his pace and giving good feedback to the team, and showing good speed on new tyres. The planned programme was similar to Robert Wicken’s yesterday – some set-up work, new tyre runs and long runs in the afternoon. We also continued with aero mapping, which has been one of the main priorities of the day, along with the tyre evaluation."