Stefano Coletti tops wet Day 1 (updated)

Rapax driver quickest at Circuit de Catalunya

Stefano Coletti started his three-day test session in the best possible way, topping the timesheets in the afternoon session and on a drying track. James Calado was quickest in a wet morning session.

A short few days following the end of the first GP2 Series pre-season test session in Jerez, the paddock remained in Spain, but relocated to Barcelona for the second and final testing days before the eighth season starts in Malaysia later this month.

The conditions could not have been more miserable as the session opened this morning at Circuit de Catalunya with heavy rain and strong winds sweeping over the track. Simon Trummer was the first driver to test the track conditions, but after thirty minutes of running, only four drivers had set a laptime, Daniel De Jong topping the timesheets.

The proceedings were halted twice in the first hour, first when Rio Haryanto clipped the barrier at turn 2 and then when Kevin Giovesi stopped at turn 8. Halfway through the session, Tom Dillmann went top for newcomers RUSSIAN TIME, but Calado also improved and edged the Frenchman out with a laptime of 1:50.928. De Jong moved up to P2 but remained 1.4s slower than the Brit. With six minutes left on the clock, a final red flag stopped the session when Rodolfo Gonzalez and Ma Qing Hua simultaneously went off track at turns 7 and 12 respectively. Calado, De Jong, Trummer, Fabio Leimer, Julia Leal, Dillmann, Daniel Abt, Felipe Nasr, Robin Frijns, and Rene Binder rounded up the top ten.

The rain eventually bowed out and the afternoon session opened under grey skies. In drying conditions, the laptimes dropped significantly and it was finally time for everyone to tap into their stock of hard compounds. Dillmann and teammate Luciano Bacheta were the first ones to venture out on track on slicks and were rewarded with P1 and P2, the Frenchman ahead of the Brit. Frijns also improved and took control of the timesheets, but his best laptime was first bettered by Coletti who was then nudged out by De Jong with a laptime of 1:30.558.

The final hour of the day saw the drivers constantly improving their personal best and in the dying minutes, Frijns was the first man to dip under 1m30s, but Nasr went quickest until Coletti set a laptime of 1:29.868 and claimed the top spot until the chequered flag. Nasr finished a hair’s breadth of the Monegasque driver, closely followed by Frijns – today’s best rookie. Calado, Johnny Cecotto, Leimer, Stéphane Richelmi, De Jong, Jolyon Palmer and Abt rounded up the top ten.

Tomorrow’s session will start at 9am local time where more rain is expected.

source: GP2 Series

Caterham Racing

• T02 Barcelona – Day 1
• Circuit de Catalunya, Spain – Tuesday 5th February 2013
• Drivers: Ma Qing Hua & Sergio Canamasas

The first day of Official GP2 testing in Barcelona was a soggy one, with heavy rain and wet track conditions catching many drivers out early on.

Ma endeavoured to make the most of his first wet GP2 session, posting 37 laps before lunch and with only one minor off track excursion to find the limit he broke for lunch an impressive P12.

Canamasas also grasped the opportunity to gain as much wet running as possible on his home circuit, completing 30 laps during the morning and ending the session P15.

The rain abated after lunch and all teams were running on slicks by mid afternoon. The final times were not representative of outright pace, due to drying track conditions and the timing of new tyre runs.

Caterham Racing Team Manager Phill Spencer: “The first day in Barcelona has been very wet, but it is always nice to complete some testing in these conditions, especially with new drivers. The weather this morning was quite consistent and I was very impressed with Ma’s first GP2 outing on wet tyres.”

“Sergio worked well through the wet test program, without any mistakes and I am pleased with the performance of both drivers.”

Caterham Racing Chief Engineer Humphrey Corbett: “It was nice to have some wet running today and Ma did an extremely competent job in the difficult conditions, completing thirty seven laps on one set of tyres. He had one spin towards the end of a long run, while finding the limit and drove faultlessly thereafter. Ma also completed pit stop practice and race starts on wet tyres, which is extremely beneficial as there is a high probability of rain in Malaysia.”

“Sergio also only used one set of wet tyres during the morning session to experience a long run and we carried out lots of setup work on his car, yielding some interesting results.”

“Both drivers had a couple of runs on the hard compound slicks at the end of the day in preparation for tomorrow, when we hope to have more dry running and continue our test program.”

Sergio Canamasas: “It was a difficult day with many different weather conditions, so it took time to keep changing the setup but we will be prepared for tomorrow, no matter what the weather and I always enjoy driving at my local circuit.”

Ma Qing Hua: “I felt comfortable today and the car had lots of grip, despite the rain. I started with high downforce and tried to find time during the low speed corners, while getting used to the car in the rain and I can definitely find more time tomorrow. I am happy with the car balance and my engineer James helped me get the setup just right.”

“This afternoon I had lots to learn again, as I have not driven this circuit in the dry in a GP2 car and all my reference points from the morning changed as the track dried. I now understand what I have to do and every lap I found time.”

“Physically today was not too bad, despite doing so many laps as it was wet. I will complete some more long runs over the next few days and see what I need to work on physically before the start of the season.”

source: caterham-racing.com