Trulli takes over at Imola

Renault continued strongly at Imola today with Jarno Trulli taking over from teammate Fernando Alonso at the top of the times. The Italian set a best of 1:21.241, while Alonso was fourth fastest. The pair worked on set up and tyres; Trulli completed the mileage the A spec engine for Melbourne but Alonso's race simulation was interrupted by red flags.

Sauber's Felipe Massa was second quickest, just five hundredths down on Trulli, and teammate Giancarlo Fisichella fifth. Massa initially concentrated on tyres and Fisichella evaluated aerodynamics. In the afternoon Massa set out for a race simulation but was hampered by hydraulic problems.

The sole Ferrari of team tester Luca Badoer was third quickest, focusing on tyres in the F2003-GA. Badoer ended his day with a big crash at Variante Alta but was unharmed. At Mugello, Michael Schumacher continued with development of the F2004 and set a best of 1:19.060 over 63 laps.

The pair of Jordans were sixth and seventh, Giorgio Pantano ahead of Nick Heidfeld. Work concentrated on building up mileage on the EJ14 although exhaust failures complicated matters. The drivers carried out tyre tests and pit stop practices.

Minardi took to the track for its final pre-season test with Gianmaria Bruni in the PS04B. The technical programme included aerodynamics, set up, tyres and engine development. Bruni ran a race simulation and practiced pit stops and teammate Zsolt Baumgartner takes over tomorrow.