FORMULA 1 2011

[OZCUBAN]

Kubica conscious, moving fingers

Renault’s Robert Kubica was able to talk to relatives and move the fingers in his injured right hand on Monday morning, after being briefly awoken by doctors at Italy’s Santa Corona Hospital (Pietra Ligure).

Kubica was placed into an artificially-induced coma on Sunday after undergoing seven hours of surgery to reconstruct his right forearm, following a high-speed crash whilst competing in the Ronde di Andora Rally.

The Polish driver spent the night under constant observation and on Monday Professor Mario Igor Rossello, Director for the Regional Centre of Hand Surgery at San Paolo Hospital in Savona, encouragingly reported that there is no swelling or infection on the right forearm, though it will be several days before it is known if the operation has been 100 percent successful.

In order to avoid further physical stress, Kubica will be put under gentle medication in order to sleep for the next 24 hours at least. In the meantime doctors will decide how to treat his elbow and shoulder fractures. Kubica may have to undergo surgery once again for this, but not for a few days.

OZ This is a positive sign i guess but there there is still a long road ahead for Robert i would imagine[/color]

[MIKA27]

MIKA: Why would Renault hire Vitantonio Liuzzi to drive for them? IMO, he was an underperforming driver and I am pleased to see they replaced him at Force India. I hope they get someone talented to replace Kubica.

On the same note, I am really happy to see Petrov remain on the team. He deserves a second season.

Well said Mika ,there are plenty of other up and coming drivers out there ,give one of them a chance,maybe they can lure Kimi R away from rallying

One would hope KR would return but why would KR return for 6 months? (Should Kubica return). KR is a great driver, would love to see his return BUT I think KR thinks too much for money....

You never know what can happen in this sport mate?

[OZCUBAN]

You never know what can happen in this sport mate?

There is always this guy

[MIKA27]

Kubica conscious, moving fingers

OZ This is a positive sign i guess but there there is still a long road ahead for Robert i would imagine[/color]

It sure is however reading reports, it seems Kubica will require more operations in future.

[MIKA27]

Force India the last to reveal 2011 car

Force India have become the final team to launch their 2011 car. The outfit revealed the VJM04 online, although heavy traffic caused the site to crash within minutes.

The team have opted for a double air-intake on the engine cover, similar to that of the Lotus T128. It also features an intricate front-wing design.

A more striking livery adornes the car, although they have continued the orange and green colours associated with the Indian flag.

[MIKA27]

Hispania reveal F111 with unique livery

The Hispania team have revealed their 2011 car, which features a new unique livery designed by futuristic artist, Daniel Simon.

The F111 has been developed the outfits own group of engineers and designers under the technical leadership of Geoff Willis and Chief Designer Paul White.

The car contains several spots with messages reading: 'This could be you', 'Cool spot here' and 'Your logo here' suggesting the team is short on sponsors for the season.

"We feel really proud of the car our drivers will run this forthcoming season. Despite a challenging first year, we managed to finish on the eleventh position in the World Constructors Championship," said Jose Ramon Carabante, Hispania Racing President.

"Now, we are very pleased to introduce the first spec of the F111, which means a huge design-effort from our side. This is only a first step as we are planning several updates during the season."

Colin Kolles, Team Principal of Hispania Racing added: "The F111 represents a significant step forward for Hispania Racing. We have made a big improvement for starting our second season in Formula 1 and what you see in our new car confirms Hispania Racing's commitment to F1."

Speaking about the new livery, Kolles said it expressed the combination of Simon's personal ideas and those of Hispania Racing.

"Daniel has created a wonderfully confident look for our new car which really captures the effort the whole team has put into developing the F111. The car design and the graphic design perfectly complement one another and mark the real beginnings of our ambitions."

MIKA: HRT are desperate for sponsorship. Let's pitch in a dollar each and we can get the FOH logo anywhere we like!

[ryans]

MIKA: Why would Renault hire Vitantonio Liuzzi to drive for them? IMO, he was an underperforming driver and I am pleased to see they replaced him at Force India. I hope they get someone talented to replace Kubica.

On the same note, I am really happy to see Petrov remain on the team. He deserves a second season.

Well said Mika ,there are plenty of other up and coming drivers out there ,give one of them a chance,maybe they can lure Kimi R away from rallying

Would love to see Kimi back in F1 but I'd think he'd want a lot of money and a multi-year contract; both of which Renault would be reluctant to give.

In my opinion a former World Championship winning team can't afford to miss out on good points and a good championship classification at the end of the season with a driver pair of Petrov and Senna (current third driver).

They would need someone experienced to drive alongside Petrov.

I think Liuzzi hasn't performed for Red Bull, STR, and Force India and was always outshadowed by his teammate.

A person who has always been outshadowed by his teammate but is the right man for the temporary job is Nick Heidfeld.

Always consistently in the points and has performed.

Thoughts on Nick Heidfeld anyone?

[OZCUBAN]

Thoughts on Nick Heidfeld anyone?

Thats a plus for me i think Nick has the goods but has never really gotten the breaks ,but has what Renault needs at the min which is experience

OZ

[MIKA27]

A person who has always been outshadowed by his teammate but is the right man for the temporary job is Nick Heidfeld.

Always consistently in the points and has performed.

Thoughts on Nick Heidfeld anyone?

Nick Heidfeld is one of THE drivers on the grid I absolutely love watching.

He has good race craft, has consistency in his career and is one of the unforseen achievers on the F1 grid.

I have said this many times, the reason why NH is not in the news and spotlight as much as he deserves is because he has a really bad manager IMO. He really needs to get a new manager who knows how to take back some of the well deserved spotlight and bring NH forward to the racing world.

This guy has 174 race starts, 12 podiums, 1 pole positions, 2 fastest laps,225 career points and IMO did a great job for Sauber towards the end of the 2010 season where both times the Saubers scored some points.

NH deserves a hell of alot more recognition and I'd love to see the guy back in a team racing.

[MIKA27]

The Changes For 2011 (Part 3 of 4): India

A concept first brought about early in the last decade, the inaugural Indian Grand Prix, set to be hosted in October later this year, brings Formula One into a whole new area of marketing. Despite opposition towards the movement towards Asian-based races populating a larger percentage of the calendar, Formula One’s long-awaited move into the Indian sphere of marketing stands to both increase the value of the sport, and potentially brings millions of fans into the worldwide audience. In part 3 of this 4-part series, let's look at the reasoning, advantages and the potential future gains due of Formula One’s movement to the Republic of India.

The home of over a billion people and the second most populated nation in the world, India poses marketing potential on an unprecedented scale. When posed a question about the importance of India being placed within the F1 calendar during an interview in early-2009, Formula One supremo Bernie Ecclestone commented, “It’s a large, large country with a big population... it’s good for the sponsors, car manufacturers and everyone involved in Formula One,”. Simply-put, India presents itself as the provider of precisely what Formula One lives on – money. With India being the eleventh-largest economy in the world, one needs not explain the reason for the Indian nation being chosen to host an FIA Formula One World Championship race.

India’s immense population and financial flexibility, as well as its stereotypically sport-loving people and overwhelming pride in its nation’s athletes, are prime reasons for the development of Formula One in India. Despite the nation’s popularly-documented obsession with cricket, there is hope within the F1 fraternity that motorsport, and Formula One in particular, could soon rival the popularity of the sport in India. With the creation of championship constructor Force India, and the debut of drivers Narain Karthikeyan in 2005 and, in 2010, Karun Chandhok, Formula One has grown – some may suggest deliberately – to allow Indian viewers to express the passion they experience when supporting other, similar, national sporting icons. Despite his optimism about Formula One’s success in the nation, Ecclestone (mentioned above), realistically suggested “I doubt in India anything will be a rival to cricket, but let’s see.”

The benefits of India’s booming economy entering the Formula One calendar provide unprecedented potential gain for the nation itself. With such a high-profile event being hosted in the country (following the successful hosting of the 2010 Commonwealth Games and, in 2011, the Cricket World Cup) both India’s financial sector and international image both have the potential to make sudden, and influential, advances. With a suggested potential gain of nearly £100’000’000 and the employment of at least 10’000 individuals, should the event be a success, the numbers alone determine why it is the perfect time for Formula One to build a strong and consistent fan-base in the South-Asian nation.

Following years of negotiation, India will become a feature on the Formula One calendar in 2011. Despite the hassles of negotiation and media speculation, the overwhelming financial and economic advantages of the Formula One circus visiting India on a yearly basis alone defines why Formula One will become important to India, and why India will become important to Formula One. Despite the layout baring a stark resemblance to the Kyalami circuit of post-1990, India is set to provide Formula One audiences around the world with a unique atmosphere. Formula One and the Republic of India are set for a long and profitable future.

To view parts 1 and 2 of this series, click HERE

[MIKA27]

Haug: Merc won't use tyres as an excuse

Mercedes-Benz Motorsport chief Norbert Haug insists the team won't use the new Pirelli tyres as an excuse if they don't to live up to expectations this season.

The Brackley-based team failed to justify their pre-season favourites tag last year and finished a distant fourth in the Constructors' Championship. Michael Schumacher's inability to come to grips with the Bridgestone tyres was apparently one of the reasons for the struggles.

However, the playing field will be level this year when it comes to rubbers as Pirelli has taken over from Bridgestone as F1's tyre supplier.

"The tyres are the same for everybody and at the end of the day you need to live with it," Haug told Autosport. "You cannot blame the tyres.

"We know about our shortcomings from 2010 and we want to do a better job. You can say 'we cannot extract the best from the tyres', which we could say last year, but we could not blame Bridgestone for that.

"You can blame your car, you can blame your set-up, you can blame everything that is built around the tyres. But you cannot blame the tyres."

[MIKA27]

Senna, Liuzzi And Heidfeld On Shortlist

One of Bruno Senna, Vitantonio Liuzzi and Nick Heidfeld will be handed an F1 lifeline after Renault confirmed they are on the shortlist to replace the injured Robert Kubica.

Kubica is likely to miss most of the 2011 season after suffering career-threatening injuries during a rally in Italy on Sunday. The Pole, who has already had surgery to repair his partially severed right arm, will be back on the operating table on Thursday and is expected to remain in hospital for up to three weeks.

Although doctors are yet to confirm how long he will be out of action for, Renault have started the search for his replacement and Senna, Liuzzi and Heidfeld are the men who they are looking at.

The trio were both on the grid in 2010 - Senna drove for rookies Hispania, Liuzzi represented Force India and Heidfeld was with Sauber for five races at the end of the season. However, all three are without race seats this year.

Renault team boss Eric Boullier revealed on Tuesday that Senna, currently the team's third driver, will take over testing duties in Jerez this week and confirmed that the Brazilian along with Liuzzi and Heidfeld are in line to take Kubica's race seat while he is recuperating.

"The first one driving will at the moment be our first test driver," Boullier said. "In the meantime, we will look for Kubica's substitute: the names considered are Senna, Liuzzi and Heidfeld."

The Frenchman added that they hope to have Kubica back before the end of the season and says he had their blessing to go rallying.

"The team is close to Robert," he said. "We wait for him with open arms and we hope he can come back before the end of the season.

"It was Robert's choice, he wanted to go rallying at all costs and Renault authorised it. Now we just wait to know what the recovery time is for our driver."

Boullier and Vitaly Petrov paid a visit to the Pole at the Santa Corona hospital in Pietra Ligure on Tuesday.

"We have been with Robert for about 15 minutes," Boullier said. "We have joked and we have found him very well. Obviously he immediately wanted to know the team's programme for this season."

MIKA: Fingers crossed they pick Heidfeld. Senna is far too inexperienced to fill Kubicas role, Liuzzi is inconsistent at best and Nick Heidfeld whilst not Kubicas calibre, is still experienced so trumps Senna and has historically shown consistency, again, trumps over Liuzzi.

[OZCUBAN]

MIKA: Fingers crossed they pick Heidfeld. Senna is far too inexperienced to fill Kubicas role, Liuzzi is inconsistent at best and Nick Heidfeld whilst not Kubicas calibre, is still experienced so trumps Senna and has historically shown consistency, again, trumps over Liuzzi.

I have my fingers crossed for Nick

[ryans]

I too have my fingers crossed for Heidfeld. Had the pleasure of meeting him briefly when he drove for BMW a few years back - a very down to earth guy and in my opinion the most under-rated driver of the field.

The latest news reports that Heidfeld will test for Renault alongside Petrov and Senna, so it looks like Liuzzi is out of the running

EDIT:

Another quick thought on Heidfeld:

it looks like it's going to be a shootout between Bruno Senna and Nick Heidfeld at the F1 tests in Jerez at the end of this week.

Heidfeld has a good track record in shootouts as he had to do it before for his seats in Jordan and Williams, so things are looking good.

My thoughts on Bruno Senna aren't very good actually - He hasn't awed me away like his uncle did, who we all miss dearly.

He hasn't been amazing in the junior formulas, has never won a championship, and didn't really impress on his last GP2 season when he finished runner up because the field was pretty weak(the season when Giorgio Pantano won)

He just brings a lot of Brazilian sponsorship because of his name.

On similarily, I think it was absolutely disgusting that Williams dumped Hulkenberg, who is one of the most talented youngsters, for the huge sponsorship money of Maldonado.

[MIKA27]

Renault want experienced replacement

Renault will look to sign an experienced driver capable of winning the World Championship should Robert Kubica be ruled out for the season, according to the team's chairman Gerard Lopez.

Kubica remains in intensive care in an Italian hospital after he was seriously injured in a rallying accident on Sunday. He is due to undergo surgery again on Thursday and will remain in hospital for up to three weeks.

Lopez, who visited Kubica on Wednesday, says it's going well the Pole and also revealed Renault will look for an experienced replacement if he's ruled out long term.

"From what I learned from doctors, the postoperative course is going well," Lopez is quoted by Italian website IVG.it. "The situation is more rosy than expected, but we were very frightened by this accident.

"I can say I am more comfortable and confident now that I met him. Robert is a great loss that forces us to revise our plans. Now we need to employ all our energies to support the team. This is clearly a difficult time.

"We have to get all the strength to overcome this moment. We cannot yet know if and when Robert will be back on track. So we must exercise caution and await the evolution of his condition. But I can say that Robert has a very strong character and he wants to return as soon as possible to compete.

"If Robert's recovery will be long and he will not return this season we will rely on a driver with experience. The fate of our season will depend on the new driver. Of course, we must see what happens with the tests we're going to do. Without Robert it's difficult to predict. Obviously, we'll bet on a runner capable of winning the Championship."

He added: "There are drivers who have had good races, for example Nick Heidfeld. We all know that Nick is rather good, but we don't know what level he is in now, we don't know how he does with our car. Same goes for Vitantonio Liuzzi, same goes - I don't know for Bruno Senna, who last year was in a team with a car that could do nothing.

"It's very difficult to say, because it's a combination between car and driver. With Robert, since we know him very well, we were sure we could do something this year. Without Robert we don't know. Should Robert not come back this season, I think we'll take the decision to go for a driver that can win... but we don't know yet."

Renault team principal Eric Boullier revealed on Tuesday that Bruno Senna, Vitantonio Liuzzi and Nick Heidfeld are on the shortlist to replace Kubica.

[MIKA27]

Ford sues Ferrari over F150 name

The Ford Motor Company took Ferrari to court on Wednesday over the use of the F150 name, following the launch of Ferrari's 2011 car of the same name.

The name has been a trademark of the American car manufacturer since 1975 when it introduced the F-150 truck, a vehicle which has seen sales top $180 billion.

The company is seeking damages over infringement of the trademark, cybersquatting and accusing the Italian marque of misappropriating the famous name.

The lawsuit claims Ford has suffered irreparable harm to its F-150 brand and is claiming unspecified damages as well as banning the use of the name on any Ferrari merchandise sold in the U.S.

The Detroit based company is also claiming $100,000 in damages over the registration of the www.ferrarif150.com domain name, which it claims goes against the Anticybersquatting Consumer Protection Act.

"F-150 is an established and important Ford trademark and the name of the best-seller in Ford’s F-Series, America’s best-selling trucks for 34 years and best-selling vehicles for 29 years," read a statement from Ford.

"Through extensive sales and advertising and exclusive use, Ford has earned invaluable goodwill in the F-150 trademark. That hard-won goodwill is seriously threatened by Ferrari’s adoption of 'F150'.

"When Ferrari announced the name of its race car as 'F150', Ford asked Ferrari to change the name. Ferrari did not respond in a timely manner, leaving Ford no choice but to take legal action to protect its important brand and trademark rights."

[MIKA27]

Citroen: Raikkonen is free to return to F1

Citroën Sport director, Olivier Quesnel, has insisted that former F1 driver, Kimi Raikkonen, is a "free agent" and can return to F1 as soon as he wishes.

Rumours of the Finn's return to the sport have been rife as of late, with some suggesting that he will replace the injured Robert Kubica at Renault for the 2011 season.

Although many F1 pundits and fans would love to see the 31-year old return, he is currently still set to start his second season in rally under the "Ice 1" brand in a privately owned Citroën DS3.

"If he wants to leave, I couldn’t say anything because he is a client,” Quesnel told RMC Sport, "He has rented a car from us and drives with his own sponsors."

"I suppose there may be considerable pressure from Bernie Ecclestone, the FIA and the whole world of F1, [but] if he is taking phone calls, they would have to be very convincing to get him back there."

These feelings were echoed by the Finn when he spoke to the media about his Rookie season in the WRC. Raikkonen said, "I didn’t miss F1 at all. Before the start of this year I thought it would be interesting to see if I missed it at all, and in fact I didn’t."

The Renault team have confirmed that they plan to use Nick Heidfeld to replace Robert Kubica in the upcoming Jerez test, but are still undecided on who will replace the Pole in the longer-term.

MIKA: We were all right in the Nick Heidfeld seems to be the favourite for the moment to replace Kubica.

[MIKA27]

Heidfeld ready to 'push' for Renault drive

Nick Heidfeld is confident he can produce the performance needed to secure Robert Kubica's race-seat while the Pole recovers from his horrific injuries.

Heidfeld will test for Lotus Renault on either Saturday or Sunday at Jerez as the team looks to find a replacement for Kubica, who may be out of action for the entire season.

Already team boss Eric Boullier has made it clear that Heidfeld is his favourite to fill in for the Polish driver, saying that if the team are "happy with Nick, then we keep Nick."

But if they are not, "we go to Barcelona and we test some other drivers."

However, the German, who is without a drive after failing to find the money needed to pay for a 2011 race-seat, believes he can deal with the pressure that has suddenly been put on his shoulders.

"I don't think like this," Heidfeld told Autosport when asked if he was feeling the pressure. "It's not my first time in this position.

"I had a shoot-out in Formula 3 with a load of guys, and something similar with the McLaren junior team in Formula 3000. And there was a head-to-head with Antonio Pizzonia at Williams.

"So I'm very confident that I can deliver. The test here is the first and most important step for me to have the chance to race."

He added: "I will push the limit as soon as I feel confident to go there. I don't go in there thinking I will take it slow straight away, I will just do what comes naturally."

[MIKA27]

Schumi: We are moving forward

Michael Schumacher believes Mercedes GP are moving in the right direction with their W02 after setting the pace at Jerez on Friday.

The German was one of the busiest drivers out on track, covering 112 laps as he worked on system checks with shorter runs in the early part of the day.

It was also during the morning that Schumacher posted his best time, a 1:20.352, which put him 0.061s up on Ferrari's Felipe Massa.

The afternoon session saw the 42-year-old switch to set-up work and tyre evaluations as he used the medium and super soft Pirelli compounds over longer runs.

"It clearly was a productive day, and obviously I am happy about that," said the seven-time World Champ.

"We were focusing on long runs and being able to produce such a lot of mileage is positive in terms of reliability.

"It also gives us good data for the test days to come and for the developments we are working on.

"We are moving forward as we should during the testing period but at the same time, we are aware we have to keep pushing."

[MIKA27]

Petrov 'ready' for the challenge ahead

Vitaly Petrov says he has what it takes to lead Lotus Renault despite the team seeking an experienced as his new team-mate.

Lotus Renault are currently a driver short for this season after Robert Kubica sustained career-threatening injuries in a rally crash last Sunday.

And although the Polish driver is determined to return to F1 before the season is over, his doctors are predicting it could take him a year to recover.

As a result, Lotus Renault are looking for someone to fill in for Kubica with the experienced Nick Heidfeld topping their list. The German will test for the team on either Saturday or Sunday at Jerez.

Petrov, though, believes he is ready to lead the team's charge.

"Of course. I was ready before," said the Russian.

"Last year I was not ready because everything was new for me, but this year it is a little bit easier, but also more difficult with new rules, new tyres, and new aerodynamics - a lot of things.

"But I came here to fight so I must do this. Anyway, one day it would happen, it just happened a little bit earlier.

"But what has really changed? Of course something has changed for the team, but for me I have the same job like it was before. Even before if I asked something or was clear about a decision, they would do it for me."

However, he has backed the team's decision to seek an experienced driver, although admits he would rather have Kubica back in the fold.

"It's always good to have two experienced guys to take the maximum information for the team," he said.

"What is good is that our driving styles are quite similar. We chose so much the same set-up, brakes, and things like this. So we didn't change so much on the car from one driver to the other driver.

"But I want him (Kubica) to come back of course. Working with him, okay we were not always talking and eating together like good friends, but we had a good relationship trying to build the car together and work with the team."

[MIKA27]

Jerez: Schumi tops the charts

Michael Schumacher set the pace at Jerez on Friday where once again the times set during the morning session proved to be the best.

The seven-time World Champion clocked a 1:20.352 on a run that was more than ten laps. However, as the day progressed, he struggled to match his best and in fact found himself outside the top half in terms of pace over longer distances.

Thursday's pace-setter Felipe Massa dropped to second place, 0.061s behind his former Ferrari team-mate. Massa had a busy day, finishing with the most laps completed and an average of 1:27s per lap during his long-distance runs.

Jenson Button, who had his first taste of McLaren's MP4-26, was third quickest, although the Brit spent a large part of the morning - which was when the faster times were set - in the pits as McLaren conducted system checks.

Jaime Alguersuari, who was fourth quickest on Friday, just 0.862s off the pace, was the first to run into trouble on Day Two as the Toro Rosso driver spun off the track, bringing out the red flags.

His car was taken back to the pits, however, it wasn't long before he was back in the action, working on a programme that featured three key elements; tyre evaluation, weight distribution and car set-up work.

The Spaniard said: "In performance terms, it is still a bit too early to start drawing conclusions, especially as the lap times here vary a lot from the morning to the afternoon, but I am reasonably confident that this side of the car's progress is on the right track."

Mark Webber was fifth for Red Bull Racing, finishing ahead of Adrian Sutil and Sergio Perez. However, the latter's day was curtailed when he crashed between Turns Seven and Eight during the afternoon session.

Timo Glock was next in line, three-tenths up on Renault's Vitaly Petrov, who was another to bring out the red flags when he spun off track in the morning.

The day's final flag belonged to Pastor Maldonado as the Williams driver became the second rookie to crash. He lost control at Turn Four, damaging the front and rear of his FW32 as he hit the wall.

Jarno Trulli completed the timesheets after failing to make an appearance in the afternoon due to an unspecified mechanical problem.

Times

01. Michael Schumacher Mercedes 1:20.352 112 laps

02. Felipe Massa Ferrari 1:20.413 + 0.061 116 laps

03. Jenson Button McLaren-Mercedes 1:21.009 + 0.657 69 laps

04. Jaime Alguersuari Toro Rosso-Ferrari 1:21.214 + 0.862 72 laps

05. Mark Webber Red Bull-Renault 1:21.613 + 1.261 113 laps

06. Adrian Sutil Force India-Mercedes 1:21.780 + 1.428 73 laps

07. Sergio Perez Sauber-Ferrari 1:21.857 + 1.505 56 laps

08. Timo Glock Virgin-Cosworth 1:22.208 + 1.856 57 laps

09. Vitaly Petrov Lotus Renault 1:22.493 + 2.141 65 laps

10. Pastor Maldonado Williams-Cosworth 1:22.591 + 2.239 38 laps

11. Jarno Trulli Team Lotus 1:23.216 + 2.864 40 laps

[MIKA27]

Pat Symonds returns to F1 with Virgin

Pat Symonds will make his return to Formula One this year after being banned from the sport for his involvement in the crashgate race-fixing scandal of 2008.

The former-Renault executive director of engineering will return in a consultancy role with the Marussia Virgin Racing team.

His five-year ban from FIA events was overturned in January 2010 by a French court. This allowed him and his company, Neutrino Dynamics, to work for teams in a consultancy role. He does however remain banned from being employed within a team until 2013.

Virgin's president Graeme Lowdon believes his experience will add value to the team.

"Pat is retained by one of our shareholders as an advisor, and he's advising the team," Lowdon told Autosport. "He's allowed to do consultancy work through his company.

"Quite a few people in the team have worked with him in the past and all the technical guys are really, really excited. I can see only positive things."

[MIKA27]

Perez ends Jerez test in the barrier

Sergio Perez says he learnt a lot during his second day in the C30, despite crashing heavily into a tyre barrier and destroying the cars front suspension.

It was a good start for the Mexican driver as he got to grips with the new tyre compounds. Though it was unfortunate error during the afternoon's running which caused him the lose the rear, ending his session prematurely.

"Generally it was going fine today, but unfortunately Sergio had an off in the afternoon," said the teams technical director James Key.

"He lost the rear end when he was on hard tyres, but these things happen and are part of the learning process.

"Overall Sergio made a good step forward. He settled in pretty quickly and gave us a lot of useful information. It was a busy day up to the accident."

Sergio Pérez says he's fine after the incident, adding: "I'm fine but I feel sorry for the team, and especially the mechanics, because of the crash. I lost the rear in turn seven and we obviously lost working time.

"I hope the rest of the test will be good for the team and Kamui, and they cover a lot of mileage. For me it was another day during which I have learnt a lot."

The team have checked the car and are positive it will be rebuilt intime for Kamui Kobayashi on Saturday.

[MIKA27]

Webber happy but warns it's still early days

Mark Webber completed his second days testing at the Jerez circuit in Spain on Friday.

The team have opted to concentrate on improving their reliability before the season begins in Bahrain. Early signs look promising with the Australian managing to complete over 200 laps during the two days.

The RB7 has also shown good pace, though Webber warned it was early days.

"The car ran very well and we're continuing to learn," he said. "It's very early days at the moment in terms of performance and there's a long way to go before the first race, but we've got some good mileage in, which is important."

Ian Morgan, Red Bull's head of race engineering added: "We continued to evaluate the new Pirelli tyres today, as well as testing some new aerodynamic components and development parts.

"It was a productive day; we concentrated on long runs and completed our programme. We've had good reliability and Mark's had a solid two days in the car."

[ryans]

Second pre-season test, day three, Jerez de la Frontera, fastest times:

1 Nick Heidfeld (Ger) Renault 1:20.361 seconds

2 Fernando Alonso (Spa) Ferrari 1:20.493

3 Michael Schumacher (Ger) Mercedes 1:21.054

4 Lewis Hamilton (GB) McLaren-Mercedes 1:21.099

5 Kamui Kobayashi (Jpn) Sauber-Ferrari 1:21.242

6 Sebastian Vettel (Ger) Red Bull-Renault 1:21.574

7 Sebastien Buemi (Swi) Toro Rosso-Ferrari 1:21.681

8 Heikki Kovalainen (Fin) Lotus-Renault 1:21.711

9 Rubens Barrichello (Brz) Williams-Cosworth 1:22.227

10 Paul di Resta (GB) Force India-Mercedes 1:22.945

11 Jerome D'Ambrosio (Bel) Virgin-Cosworth 1:25.471

Veteran Nick Heidfeld seems poised to replace the injured Robert Kubica at Renault after setting the fastest time in testing at Jerez on Saturday.

Ferrari's Fernando Alonso was the long-time pace-setter but Heidfeld beat him by 0.132 seconds late in the afternoon.

German Heidfeld was being evaluated by Renault as a potential stand-in for his Kubica, who suffered serious injuries in a rally crash last weekend.

Michael Schumacher's Mercedes was third ahead of McLaren's Lewis Hamilton.

Kubica is expected to miss the entire F1 season after suffering multiple fractures and a partially severed right hand in a crash on a rally in Italy last Sunday.

The normally fast cars are all quick - the Ferraris, the McLarens and the Red Bulls

Mark Webber

Although Renault have said they are also considering former Force India driver Vitantonio Liuzzi, and intend to give third driver Bruno Senna some time in the car on Sunday, they made it clear that if Heidfeld impressed them on Saturday, the drive was his.

And it seems highly unlikely that Heidfeld could miss out on the drive after such a performance - not least because he would rely on the team's backing to provide him with the car settings to be able to post such quick times.

Heidfeld, a veteran of 172 grands prix and a former team-mate of Kubica, wasted no time in proving his credentials. Within two hours of the start of his test, he had surpassed by 0.6secs the fastest time set by Renault number two Vitaly Petrov in two days in the car on Thursday and Friday.

Lap times are not necessarily directly comparable because of differing conditions. And Petrov, whose Friday was punctuated by spins, blamed his struggles on adapting to the Kers energy recovery and power-boost system, of which Heidfeld has experience from his time at BMW Sauber in 2009.

Heidfeld just personified making a good first impression by topping the table on his first outing. It looks like the seat is his unless Liuzzi manages to bring a very large lump of cash.