Jerez Testing, Day 1, 09/12/2008

The ING Renault F1 Team began its final testing session of the year today as Nelson Piquet spent the day behind the wheel of the R28 in Jerez in the south of Spain. Cool and overcast conditions greeted the team this morning with several light rain showers interrupting the team’s programme during the day.

However, the team made the most of the dry conditions in the morning to continue its evaluation of the slick Bridgestone tyres while simulating a 2009 car set-up. The team was also able to put some mileage on the engine in preparation for the three race engine rule that will come into force next season. In all, the young Brazilian clocked up a total of 124 laps to round off a positive first day for the team.

Nelson will hand the R28 over to Fernando Alonso for the remaining couple of days as the Spaniard returns to the cockpit for the first time since the Brazilian Grand Prix.

Nelson Piquet: “It has been a good day, I did lots of laps and we completed what we needed to in terms of putting mileage on the car, despite the rain showers. The cool conditions meant that the track conditions were quite cool throughout the day, but the grip was good, which has given us some more valuable data about the tyres.”

Christian Silk, Chief Test Engineer: “It’s been a positive first day here in Jerez. Nelson did a good job completing a lot of laps and so we’ve been able to achieve the main targets for the day, which is always encouraging. The conditions were quite cold today and the weather was quite changeable which meant we had to keep adapting out programme, but overall we can be happy with our day’s work.”