Virgin young driver test report day 2

Day two of the Young Driver Test in Abu Dhabi saw current Virgin Racing Test Driver Luiz Razia at the wheel of the VR-01 for a full day of running at the Yas Marina Circuit. Luiz has driven the car before - during a promotional day at the start of the season - however he was not able to run with the benefit of competition tyres on that occasion and therefore today was the team's first real opportunity to evaluate his performance.

Luiz conducted 70 laps of the 5.554km Yas Marina Circuit, over 12 runs, evaluating gearbox and suspension developments, carrying out aerodynamic mapping runs and performing setup work.

Today was also the very last day of running for Bridgestone, who leave the sport after 14 years as tyre supplier.

There will be a one day break tomorrow before the teams return to the track on Friday and Saturday to conduct two days of tyre testing with new supplier Pirelli.

Luiz Razia

"I am really happy with what we have achieved today. I managed to make the best of the opportunity and the track conditions and we have done some good work on our final day of running on the Bridgestone tyres. It took me a few laps to get fully up to speed with all the buttons on the steering wheel but after a while I felt very comfortable. It has been a real pleasure to drive the car in representative conditions and to be able to work so closely with the team. Thanks to everyone who has supported me today. I would also like to thank my personal sponsors BVA and Coralis for their support at this test."

John Booth, Team Principal

"Another very good day today. We achieved our best ever daily mileage on a single car and successfully completed our test programme. Luiz quickly got up to speed and did everything that was asked of him. His feedback was excellent, he made no mistakes and he set some very competitive lap times. He was also a pleasure to work with, as always, and I would like to thank him for his valuable contribution to the team this year. Today was also our last day working with Bridgestone and we thank them for their support throughout our debut season."

-source: virgin