Force India completes busy first test session
The Force India F1 Team today concluded a very productive three-day test at the Circuit de Catalunya on the outskirts of Barcelona, Spain. With Vitantonio Liuzzi and Christian Klien continuing for a further day each, the team pushed on with its programme of gathering data on the car's behaviour with the new-for-2008 standard ECU.
With no major mechanical issues occurring over the course of the three days, Force India was able to complete its programme. Klien and Liuzzi gave strong feedback throughout their day-and-a half with the team and provided a strong baseline for Force India's next test from 4 - 7 December in Jerez, Spain.
The duo were very closely matched over the day. Klien recorded the team's fastest time, a 1min 23.084, however Liuzzi was just over one tenth of a second slower. With 84 and 92 laps for Klien and Liuzzi respectively, the team completed more than 800km today.
Mike Gascoyne, chief technical officer
"Once again a productive day to conclude a positive week of testing for us. Both Christian and Tonio did a very good job for us, with interesting and informative feedback on the electronics and general set-up of the car. We had no real mechanical problems throughout the day and in general this week, with testing new items and drivers, has had a very positive effect on the team. Overall very good and we look forward to continuing our work in Jerez."
Christian Klien "I think the second day went even better than the first. We kept working on the car, there is still a lot to find obviously and it was interesting to work with the engineers. We kept improving over the day and I think there is still some more lap time to find. The car felt good in the long runs, the rear tyres were consistent and also the braking stability on the new electronics was quite good. There is still quite a lot to improve on this car and I am very optimistic. The team worked hard and I think, all in all, it was a good two days for me here."
Vitantonio Liuzzi "I am pretty happy with the whole day. In the morning we had a very good session and set some quick times but in the afternoon we had a small problem that affected the driveability of car. It was a shame the lap time was not better, but we gave a lot of information to the team and there is more to come as for sure it was just one test. With some more experience the team is ready to grow - there is a good group with some good support from the new owners. There is obviously work to do, but I am sure after some small changes the car can be way quicker and you can make a huge difference over the lap."
