Tom Dillmann tops Day 1 in Jerez (updated)

Hilmer Motorsport driver quickest on first day of GP2 Series pre-season test in Spain

It was a perfect way for newcomers Hilmer Motorsport to start their GP2 career: on the opening day of the first pre-season test session, the German squad put Tom Dillmann at the top of the timesheets. The Frenchman who was testing for Hilmer today set a laptime of 1:25.059 in the final minutes of the afternoon session.

The day started under blue skies but in cold temperatures. As soon as the pitlane opened, the cars fed to the track but once their installation lap was done, the drivers opted to stay safely tucked away in their garages waiting for the temperatures to rise.

Rene Binder at Lazarus was the first man to set a laptime and as the track warmed up, more drivers ventured back on the circuit. A first red flag briefly halted the proceedings, courtesy of returnee Pal Varhaug at Hilmer who spun and stopped on track. At the restart, Dillmann went top, but his laptime was almost immediately bettered by Johnny Cecotto at Arden. As we entered the final hour of the morning session, Marcus Ericsson put his DAMS car at the top of the timesheets before Sergio Canamasas went off track at Turn 2 and saw his Caterham machine end in the tyre barrier, prompting another red flag. When the session went live again, Carlin’s Jolyon Palmer found some extra pace and nipped to the top spot, 0.09s quicker than Ericsson. There was one final interruption with three minutes left on the clock as Mitch Evans stopped his Arden car at Turn 13 following electrical issues which effectively put an end to everyone’s session. Palmer finished top ahead of Ericsson, Rene Binder, Cecotto, Stéphane Richelmi, Jake Rosenzweig, James Calado, Dillmann, Simon Trummer and Felipe Nasr.

The pitlane reopened after a two-hour lunch break, and Fabio Leimer set the early pace at the wheel of his Racing Engineering car. While the drivers mainly focused on covering race distance, Richelmi led the timesheet, but Calado improved and edged the Monegasque driver from the top spot. Just as Leimer reclaimed P1, Daniel De Jong stopped on track at Turn 7 causing a quick red flag. At the restart, Leimer was still sitting pretty at the top of the timesheet with Binder and Nasr in tow. With just twenty minutes left on the clock, Dillmann put his head down and claimed P1 ahead of Leimer, Nasr, Calado, Binder, Ericsson, De Jong, Richelmi, Robin Frijns and Cecotto.

Tomorrow’s session will start at 9am local time.

source: GP2 Series

Caterham Racing

Official GP2 Test – Jerez Day 1

• Circuito de Jerez, Spain, Tuesday 26th February 2013
• Drivers: Ma Qinghua & Sergio Canamasas

The first Official GP2 test of 2013 was slightly more action packed than anticipated for Caterham Racing, who fielded GP2 newcomer Ma Qinghua and 2012 GP2 racer Sergio Canamasas.

The day began slowly, as teams waited for the early morning track temperatures to rise. The initial flying laps were completed just before 11am and Ma responded well to his first ever session in a GP2 car.

Unfortunately Canamasas encountered a technical issue resulting in him leaving the track at turn two, with front end damage ending his morning session. The team worked hard to fix the car, enabling him to run during the afternoon.

The final hours of testing were productive, with both drivers completing three stints and ending the day on a positive note.

Caterham Racing Team Manager Phill Spencer: “It is great to be back at the track with the team and begin our 2013 campaign. We have two new drivers testing for us, so we spent time today familiarising them with the cars, mechanics and engineers. This morning was unfortunate for Sergio as a technical problem curtailed his running, but the team worked very well to get him back out this afternoon. Ma has made excellent progress for his first session in a GP2 car and will continue the good work tomorrow.”

Caterham Racing Chief Engineer Humphrey Corbett: “We had a difficult start to the day with Sergio’s accident, but we are pretty sure it was due to a parts failure from an external supplier. We are very impressed that Sergio stayed so calm and was able to complete three runs this afternoon.

“Ma has done extremely well for his first GP2 test and his feedback is very good. He was compromised by red flags this afternoon and his position today does not reflect his talent. We are very impressed with his capacity to learn and the lap times will come with more time in the car.”

Ma Qinghua: “I have really enjoyed driving the GP2 car for the first time and learnt a great amount today. I worked with my engineers to understand the car and how to get the best out of the tyres. Tomorrow I will build on what I have learnt today and move forwards.”

Sergio Canamasas: “This morning we started with a little problem and I only completed five laps. We began from scratch this afternoon and in the session I concentrated on how I wanted to set up the car and how I was performing. I felt good in the car and tomorrow I will expect to have more performance and improved lap times.”

source: caterham-racing.com