Sauber Valencia test 2001-07-17

Team RED BULL SAUBER PETRONAS commenced a three-day test at the Valencia circuit in Spain today, in preparation for the Hungarian Grand Prix in August. Fresh from fifth place in last weekend's British GP, Kimi Raikkonen handled the driving duties today, covering 58 laps. RED BULL SAUBER PETRONAS were the only team present today, and Kimi's fastest lap was 1m 15.69s before a minor mishap with 15 minutes of the day remaining curtailed his running.

Jacky Eeckelaert (Test engineer): "The purpose of this test is to prepare us for the Grand Prix at the Hungaroring next month. Valencia is very similar to the track in Budapest; it demands a high level of downforce, has similar cornering speeds and high ambient temperature, and the surface is the same. All of this makes it the ideal place to run.

"This morning we concentrated on mechanical set-up, while this afternoon Kimi Raikkonen did a lot of tyre evaluation. Overall it was a good day, and even though Kimi Raikkonen went off the track near the end and damaged the nose, it was no big problem."

Kimi Raikkonen: "The Hungaroring will be another new circuit for me, but thanks to our test work here in Valencia many of its characteristics are already familiar to me. I'm still feeling great after our race at the weekend, and it was good having a track all to myself today. Unfortunately I went off the track at the seventh corner with only 15 minutes left, when the rear wheels locked up under braking, but we didn't do much damage."

-Sauber