GP2 Pre-season testing

[Adri_tifosi]

Paul Ricard Day 1

(Morning)

1 - Timo Glock - iSport - 1'14"204 - 18
2 - Antonio Pizzonia - FMSI - 1'14"282 - 28
3 - Javier Villa - Racing Engineering - 1'14"312 - 22
4 - Pastor Maldonado - Trident - 1'14"405
5 - Franck Perera - Racing Engineering - 1'14"418 - 24
6 - Luca Filippi - Super Nova - 1'14"426 - 19
7 - Lucas Di Grassi - ART - 1'14"467 - 30
8 - Kohei Hirate - Trident - 1'14"475 - 23
9 - Alexandre Negrao - Minardi/Piquet - 1'14"548 - 29
10 - Giorgio Pantano - Campos - 1'14"782 - 24
11 - Ricardo Risatti - BCN - 1'14"806 - 26
12 - Borja Garcia - Durango - 1'14"826 - 24
13 - Karun Chandhok - Durango - 1'14"983 - 32
14 - Mike Conway - Super Nova - 1'15"030 - 30
15 - Roldan Rodriguez - Minardi/Piquet - 1'15"065 - 28
16 - Andreas Zuber - iSport - 1'15"078 - 21
17 - Nicolas Lapierre - Dams - 1'15"125 - 22
18 - Michael Ammermuller - ART - 1'15"130 - 31
19 - Kazuki Nakajima - Dams - 1'15"163 - 30
20 - Jason Tahinci - FMSI - 1'15"437 - 27
21 - Andy Soucek - DPR - 1'15"484 - 11
22 - Bruno Senna - Arden - 1'15"656 - 34
23 - Adrian Zaugg - Arden - 1'16"225 - 31
24 - Christian Bakkerud - DPR - 1'16"470 - 17
25 - Sakon Yamamoto - BCN - 1'16"824 - 28
26 - Vitaly Petrov - Campos - Not Time - 3

[Suze]

Any stories behind the above, eg major problems for anyone?

[Jackman]

Originally Posted by Alex K

Di Resta is locked by Mercedes, I do not think they will pay for him to race in GP2.

Lopez did good job in Super Nova, his qual. speed was very good, I think Sears' team didn't have proper race set-up, and suffered from budget difficulties. I don't think anyone could win a race in SNIR. If you are insider you should what did Sears say and you should know Jose's version.

I know what both sides said, but at the end of the day last year was the first time in many years that Super Nova didn't win a race during the season, and I don't think their engineers suddenly forgot how to do it. But the team can only do so much: at the end of the day the nut behind the wheel has to work with the rest of the components. Lopez just didn't get it done.

[chunterer]

Originally Posted by Jackman

Last year was the first time in many years that Super Nova didn't win a race during the season, at the end of the day the nut behind the wheel has to work with the rest of the components. Lopez just didn't get it done.

Sorry if i've carved up your full quote but the SN-Lopez season can't be seen any other way than what you suggest Jackman.

After all his pace was there for a good proportion of the second half of the season and he didn't make the most of it. The killer blow was that devastating loss at Hockenheim where he had utterly domianted the race only to lose out in the last lap!! I still can't get over that!

On one hand i've always thought of him as a very quick driver but on the other hand he's hasn't really come through with the rest of the package has he? Still I would've thought he warranted a 3rd season just to see if he still had the fire in him to right some wrongs as it were?

Re the testing thanks for those times Adri_tifosi.

The 'faces' at the front look like what most people have predicted. I.E Timo, Antonio, but surely a few eyebrows have been raised by young Villa's pace and perhaps also that of Pastor M?

ART doubly unimpressive and Arden look at sixes and sevens so far?

[Euphony]

Wasn't Villa already strong during the last tests?

[META4]

it is still very early to think about anything obviously Glock and Pizzonia are on the pace but i guess ART , and drivers like Zuber,Fillipi,Pantano will not be so far off the pace

[hotwheels]

among newcomers, maybe yes. Definitely first time he did quite well among strong contenders. Time to pay back the confidence put in him...

[Sephirot1]

And afternoon times:

1 - Giorgio Pantano - Campos - 1'13"889 - 21 giri
2 - Borja Garcia - Durango - 1'14"436 - 11
3 - Timo Glock - iSport - 1'14"518 - 7
4 - Ricardo Risatti - BCN - 1'14"712 - 8
5 - Andreas Zuber - iSport - 1'14"984 - 26
6 - Karun Chandhok - Durango - 1'14"991 - 13
7 - Franck Perera - Racing Engineering - 1'15"190 - 6
8 - Vitaly Petrov - Campos - 1'15"238 - 20
9 - Javier Villa - Racing Engineering - 1'15"239 - 12
10 - Pastor Maldonado - Trident - 1'15"388 - 8
11 - Roldan Rodriguez - Minardi/Piquet - 1'15"776 - 9
12 - Kazuki Nakajima - Dams - 1'15"801 - 24
13 - Andy Soucek - DPR - 1'16"013 - 11
14 - Michael Ammermuller - ART - 1'16"070 - 9
15 - Alexandre Negrao - Minardi/Piquet - 1'16"288 - 6
16 - Christian Bakkerud - DPR - 1'16"343 - 13
17 - Sakon Yamamoto - BCN - 1'16"949 - 15
18 - Bruno Senna - Arden - 1'17"086 - 7
19 - Kohei Hirate - Trident - 1'18"184 - 8
20 - Lucas Di Grassi - ART - 1'19"192 - 12
21 - Adrian Zaugg - Arden - 1'20"890 - 11
22 - Mike Conway - Super Nova - 1'29"573 - 7
23 - Luca Filippi - Super Nova - senza tempo - 5
24 - Jason Tahinci - FMSI - senza tempo - 2
25 - Nicolas Lapierre - Dams - senza tempo - 5
26 - Antonio Pizzonia - FMSI - senza tempo - 0

[META4]

What happened for Pizzonia ???

[hotwheels]

not a bad start for Risatti, isn't it?

Durango, as usual, is unpredictable.

GP2 test rules are really non-sense. If these numbers are correct most of the grid did last than 10 (!!!) laps.

[Mekola]

Originally Posted by Jackman

I know what both sides said, but at the end of the day last year was the first time in many years that Super Nova didn't win a race during the season, and I don't think their engineers suddenly forgot how to do it. But the team can only do so much: at the end of the day the nut behind the wheel has to work with the rest of the components. Lopez just didn't get it done.

SuperNova didn't win in 2004 too - and his driver Patrick Friesacher won finally after he had done the move to Coloni Motorsport.
At the end of the day, I think that Conway and Filippi could help us to show the level of SuperNova more clearly this season.

[Adri_tifosi]

Great performance for Racing Engineering

[OJB]

It rained halfway through the afternoon session, so others may have got close to Pantano. Explains why laps are so low and why FMSI didn't appear. No mechanical dramas apparently but several drivers had spins.

Nice to see other teams doing well - Campos, Trident, Racing Engineering and not ART and Arden for a change. Not so keen on ART livery either.

[bella]

the art livery is a definite case of ugly tree and every branch on the way down...

it's a pretty good field this year, isn't it?

[OJB]

I think it is a very good - and even - field. I don't think ART have the best pairing out there either so I reckon we could be looking at a new champion.

Glock's an obvious candidate but Pantano has been quick in every car he has tested and I'm curious to see if he can take Campos to a race win. I reckon Maldonado and Villa could be the ones to watch this year too, but this is 1 test - a season is a different potato.