Spanish GP: BMW Sauber Friday practice notes

It was a trouble-free first practice day in Spain for all three BMW Sauber F1 Team drivers. As usual Robert Kubica had a heavy work load and completed 55 laps, while Nick Heidfeld and Jacques Villeneuve got used to the Barcelona track and its changing conditions, which saw rain in the morning and bright sunshine in the afternoon.

Nick Heidfeld:

"We had a trouble free day with everything running smoothly, and my work included the tyre comparisons.

Robert Kubica:

"In the morning the track was wet, so we had to wait for it to dry and there was no grip. We concentrated on tyre testing, and this went pretty well. We need to be sure of the right decisions for the race and we have come to some conclusions, so that is important."

"In the second free practice the track had a lot of rubber so I got a lot of understeer, but I had to complete my programme so could not adjust the car. Obvioulsy the more rubber that is laid down the better the track will get, and so tomorrow it should be pretty good.

Jacques Villeneuve:

"It is very windy so the track is very different to when we were here testing, and as well as that it is a lot hotter. I did a couple of runs. One was with high fuel for the race, as I am going to have to start from the back, so I have been concentrating on that. This is not a good overtaking track so it will be tough to move to the front."

Mario Theissen (BMW Motorsport Director):

"We completed our scheduled programme without any problems, and from the information have been able to base the decisions for our tyre choice and car set up. Today we witnessed Barcelona’s well known characteristic of conditions that change quite often and at short notice. This affects the temperatures, rubber on the track and the wind."

Willy Rampf (Technical Director Chassis):

"We are satisfied with our lap times and performance and had no mechanical problems. Our programme contained tyre comparison and race preparation work. It was quite a varied programme despite the fact all the teams test here quite a lot. We have to do this because the track changes frequently during the day. We now have a lot of data to check, but I think we are well prepared for the weekend."

Nick Heidfeld
Chassis: BMW Sauber F1.06-02
Engine: BMW P86
1st Practice: No time
2nd Practice: 12th, 1:17.622

Robert Kubica
Chassis: BMW Sauber F1.06-05
Engine: BMW P86
1st Practice: 4th, 1:16.628s
2nd Practice: 13th, 1:17.844

Jacques Villeneuve
Chassis: BMW Sauber F1.06-03
Engine: BMW P86
1st Practice: No time
2nd Practice: 16th, 1:18.007

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