Testing starts on two tracks

Testing started on two tracks on June 1st, with the Silverstone circuit in the UK and Monza in Italy being the locations of choice. Most teams were at Silverstone but poor weather conditions meant Renault, Toyota and BAR decided not to run at the British track on Tuesday to save test days under the agreement between nine teams.

Juan Pablo Montoya and Pedro de la Rosa.

Photo by DaimlerChrysler.

Five teams did venture out and McLaren was at the top of the time sheet with test driver Pedro de la Rosa quickest and Juan Pablo Montoya second. De la Rosa's best was 1:19.729, while Montoya was about eight tenths behind. Suspension, set up and tyres were the work of the pair, although they finished mid afternoon due to the rain.

Williams had Nick Heidfeld and tester Nico Rosberg third and seventh respectively of the seven drivers to set a time. Mark Webber will join Heidfeld tomorrow. "It stayed mostly dry this morning so we managed to make a start on some tyre work," said test team manager Tim Newton.

"We also did several different systems checks and some start development. Typical Silverstone weather this afternoon, however, prevented us from carrying out any really constructive work so we're looking forward to a better day tomorrow."

Red Bull's Christian Klien was fourth on the time sheet as he prepares for his return to the race seat in the upcoming Canadian and US Grands Prix. American Scott Speed, who has previously tested with the team, is being assessed in regard to taking the third driver role in North America, but did not set a time today. He is expected to get another chance on Friday.

Ferrari tester Luca Badoer was fifth overall, working on set up and tyres, but only managed 23 laps in the poor conditions. Rubens Barrichello will be present for the Scuderia on Thursday. Narain Karthikeyan was on track for Jordan and set the sixth time of the day.

BAR tester Anthony Davidson was quickest at Monza, where the weather was not a problem, and set a best time of 1:21.887. The team also had second test driver Enrique Bernoldi on duty, fourth of the five drivers at work. The pair worked on aerodynamics tyres. Where BAR will test tomorrow depends on the weather at Silverstone.

Badoer's fellow Ferrari test driver Marc Gen? set the second fastest time of the day at Monza, half a second down on Davidson, and worked on trye and aerodynamic developments. Gen? continues at the Italian circuit on Thursday.

Jarno Trulli was third quickest for Toyota and Sauber's Jacques Villeneuve rounded off the times in fifth. The Canadian evaluated front and rear wings for a new aerodynamic package and also worked on tyres. Teammate Felipe Massa will take over the driving duties tomorrow.