For the teams this was the first real outing with the new 600bhp A1GP Powered by Ferrari car. For A1 Team Netherlands it was Jeroen Bleekemolen, the teams lead driver for the past two seasons, who took place behind the wheel of the orange car.
Conditions on the British track were harsh, with rain showers for most of the day.
Apart from A1 Team Netherlands New Zealand, Australia, Italy, Malaysia and the A1GP test car, which has now done over 7000 km in testing went out on track. At the end of the day it was Malaysian driver Fairuz Fauzy who was quickest with a lap of 1’35.520.
Jeroen Bleekemolen; “ “It was a useful and fun first day. For me it was the first time driving the Ferrari and it was a good experience. Unfortunately the track was really wet, but we were able to start working on the car straight away. It was the first time that I had to brake with my left foot, something I have never done before. But that felt completely natural after one lap, so that went quite easy. All in all I felt at home right away. Apart from that you feel that the car has got a lot more downforce than the old car, even on a wet track. This will be quite spectacular at Zandvoort I think, because of the many high-speed sections there.
I hope that Thursday will be dry. The car has got a lot of electronical systems, such as launch control and anti-stall control. We had some issues with the electronics, but that’s normal with a first test. We will now prepare everything for Thursday. I am really looking forward to it. Then we will try out some more things, such as the powerboost. The car not only looks good, but it is very much fun to drive. It is a really big step forward, both for drivers and spectators. There are also a number of new faces in our team and the interaction is going very well.”
Jan Lammers; “Because of the pooring rain we were not able to do a lot of driving today. But it gave us the opportunity to check and set up a number of systems. We hope that Thursday will be dry, then we should be able to increase the pace. We expect the new Powered by Ferrari car to be some five or six seconds per lap faster at Zandvoort than the old car. For a part that is due to the difference in downforce. The old and new car have a similar ‘static’ weight, but when you drive the new car is pushed down on the track much more and thus has got much more grip.”
Thursday there will be another test day for the teams and later this month there will be another testing opportunity at the Snetterton circuit.
For more information, please send an e-mail to press@A1teamned.com
For copyright free images, please visit www.A1teamnedfoto.nl