F1 Jerez tests – Day 1 round-up

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Tuesday, 07 February 2012 17:00

The first rule of winter testing is you don't read anything into the times. The second rule of winter testing is that there's only one rule.

So Kimi Raikkonen topped the timesheets in Jerez today. That doesn't mean you should rush out and put money on the Iceman winning the 2012 WDC. Of course, it doesn't mean you shouldn't if that's what you really want to do.

Because one thing we did learn today is that Raikkonen certainly hasn't lost it. Ignoring his laptimes and looking solely at performance, it was clear that the Finn is in good form. He was pushing hard around every corner, nailing every apex, and didn't seem to have any trouble getting used to things like the DRS or the Pirelli tyres.

Whether or not Raikkonen wins races this season is going to be something for the car (and the competition) to decide. In terms of pure racing ability, his has not been diluted.

But enough of the Kimi. The Iceman will prove himself at the Australian Grand Prix, and not a moment before.

There's really no point trying to read anything into the times below. Consider this: if you were looking at the times from the first day of winter testing in Jerez, you would conclude that the 2012 Red Bull is similar in pace to the 2011 Mercedes. And anyone who remembers last year's Mercedes knows how unlikely that is...

That being said, there are some things we can establish. First, we've not seen much in the way of reliability problems. Daniel Ricciardo brought out the first red flag of the day when he stopped on track at Turn 1 in the mid-afternoon. Toro Rosso's official explanation was a drop in oil pressure but given that Giorgio Ascanelli had said earlier in the day that the exhausts were cooking the suspension, it's more likely that the explanation doing the rounds of the press room was more accurate. That explanation? That the STR7 was "disintegrating".

Heikki Kovalainen saw a premature end to his first day in the Caterham when the starter shaft broke. There were no other problems with the car, but the team were unable to get the Finn back up and running and called it quits early.

Kamui Kobayashi brought out the second and final set of red flags when he stopped his Sauber on track. But given that the Japanese driver had completed more than 100 laps at that point, and went on to log a few more, it's almost certain that Sauber had instructed their man to keep running until he ran out of fuel, in a 'how low can you go?' test.

One thing we have learned today is that Kobayashi and Force India driver Paul di Resta are not human, Each driver logged over 100 laps, pushing for hours on end. Which doesn't mean they're not people, but it does mean that their winter training regimes were effective and then some – 100+ laps is a very heavy load.

Jenson Button logged 62 laps in the McLaren; the British driver spent the morning doing a range of hardcore installation and set-up runs to get to grips with the feel of the car. The afternoon was also concentrated on long runs, not single lap pace. Speaking to the media after practice drew to a close, Button declared himself to be very pleased with the MP4-27. "It's a good starting point, no niggly areas," he said. "I'm happy."

Mark Webber's day was affected by the early morning fog that surrounded Jerez; the Red Bull driver's rear wing assembly was diverted to Seville airport and driven to the circuit. As a result, it was well into the day's running before the Australian was able to get any track time under his belt. While Webber didn't top the timesheets today, he did slide comfortably into the 1m20s range as soon as he tried some faster laps later in the afternoon, implying that the RB8 is – at the very least – competitive.

Ferrari loaded their car with flo-viz paint almost as soon as the F2012 made its first appearance on track. The implication is that the Scuderia have some concerns about their car's aerodynamics, but there is no need for the tifosi to be concerned – flo-viz paint is a common sight in winter testing as the teams try to match up their projected wind tunnel data with the realities they see on track.

Day 1 times (unofficial)

1. Kimi Raikkonen (Lotus) 1.19.670s [75 laps]
2. Paul di Resta (Force India) 1.19.772s [101 laps]
3. Nico Rosberg (Mercedes) 1.20.219s [56 laps]
4. Mark Webber (Red Bull) 1.20.496s [54 laps]
5. Daniel Ricciardo (Toro Rosso) 1.20.694s [57 laps]
6. Michael Schumacher (Mercedes) 1.20.794s [42 laps]
7. Kamui Kobayashi (Sauber) 1.21.353s [106 laps]
8. Jenson Button (McLaren) 1.21.530s [62 laps]
9. Felipe Massa (Ferrari) 1.22.815s [69 laps]
10. Heikki Kovalainen (Caterham) 1.23.178s [28 laps]
11. Pastor Maldonado (Williams) 1.23.371s [25 laps]
12. Pedro de la Rosa (HRT) 1.23.676s [44 laps] Kate Walker