McLaren finished Jerez test
Team McLaren Mercedes completed the final day of testing for the week saturday at the Circuito de Jerez, Spain. Test driver, Pedro de la Rosa was at the wheel of the interim MP4-20 conducting Michelin wet tyre testing, with the Jerez track artificially dampened to allow for the team to work on the development programme under controlled conditions. Heikki Kovalainen in the Renault was the only other car present.
Pedro work began with intermediate Michelins and during the day the track progressed into extreme wet tyre conditions. The Spaniard completed over 575km in the MP4-20 and put in a quickest time of 1m27.706.
Saturday's wet test was the fourth day the team had been present at the Circuito de Jerez. Work began on Wednesday, with Juan Pablo Montoya and Pedro present for the driving duties. Juan Pablo, who was in the MP4-21 covered over 240km during the day with his main focus set-up work.
Team-mate Kimi Raikkonen took over the wheel of the MP4-21 for Thursday and Friday morning. In that time Kimi racked up 310km over 70 laps. Unfortunately he had an issue with his gearbox and an engine oil leak on Thursday, the repairs of which took up the majority of the afternoon. Then on Friday morning, the track was damp from overnight rain, limiting the work that could be completed.
Pedro and Gary Paffett continued to focus on the Michelin development programme during the test. Pedro was in Jerez all week, with Gary joining the test team in Spain on Friday, when he tested different Michelin compounds for the first three races of the season. Between the two test drivers, the MP4-20 covered over 2000km.
Team McLaren Mercedes test programme relocates to Valencia next week, with Kimi and Juan Pablo in attendance for the entire session, which begins on Tuesday 14th and lasts for four days. The drivers will have two MP4-21s at their disposal, including one in the team's new unique livery, which was revealed by the team yesterday evening.
Juan Pablo Montoya "I had a good day in Jerez on Wednesday with the MP4-21. I got out on track just after 13:00, as the test team had been completing the engine installation, and during the afternoon I covered over 240km, which was a good total. It meant we could work through evaluating a number of set-ups and continue the process of developing and getting to know the car."
Kimi Raikkonen "We have had another productive test session this week. I had a couple of technical issues on Thursday afternoon, but the test team sorted then out and I was back on track on Friday morning. It is a shame that the track was wet and I had to run on intermediates for most of the time, but I am in the MP4-21 for four days next week in Valencia so hopefully will be able to complete some more running there."
Pedro de la Rosa "It has been a busy week for me at the Circuito de Jerez, I have completed over 1800km in total and have been driving both the MP4-21 and the MP4-20. In the 20, of course my focus has remained on our Michelin development programme, and the mileage we have been covering is enabling us to get useful feedback. It was good to be back behind the wheel of the MP4-21 again yesterday afternoon, I have not driven it since its shakedown on Monday 23rd January, and I felt that the car is developing and progressing."
Gary Paffett "I was only at the test for Friday, but during the day I covered over 400km. My programme focused on evaluating the various compounds with Michelin that we have available for the first three races, we had a good days running and have come away with useful data to take racing."
