Renault's testing round-up

The Renault F1 Team has been running at the Catalan circuit since Wednesday, and during the final day, concentrated on pit-stop and qualifying practice. As the programme makes clear, the first race is nearly upon us.

Getting your eye in, approving new procedures, adapting to the return of tyre changes: all of those things meant it was important for the Renault F1 Team to spend time practicing pit-stops today. The team ran through its drills to train and improve their skills: tyre changes, refuelling, nose changes, wing changes, everything was evaluated during today’s work. Fernando Alonso and Giancarlo Fisichella each completed more than a dozen stops today to allow themselves and the team to train, two weeks before the start of the season.

The rest of the day was spent practicing for the 2006 qualifying procedure. The drivers evaluated the new system, the team practiced its operating methods, and spent time working out how to optimise the very restricted operating windows during the hour.

In terms of laps covered, the day was once more a busy one: 96 laps for Fernando Alonso and 97 for his team-mate Giancarlo Fisichella. Both drivers’ performance was once again very promising, with the Spaniard topping the times with a lap of 1:14.085.

After this busy week, the team will test for one final time before the start of the 2006 season, on Monday and Tuesday next week in Valencia.