Heidfeld quickest at Jerez
Tuesday 4 December 2007 21:45, UK
BMW Sauber's Nick Heidfeld set the pace on the opening day of testing at Jerez as F1 tried out slick tyres.
Slicks come out for top two in Spain
Nick Heidfeld set the pace on the opening day of testing at Jerez as both he and Jenson Button tried out Bridgestone's slick tyres. Honda driver Button was the first to evaluate the slicks early in the day and immediately shot to the top of the timesheet. However, Heidfeld's laps on the same rubber saw the BMW Sauber driver edge ahead by 0.107 seconds - his best lap being a one minute 19.042s. Pedro de la Rosa was third quickest overall - and fastest on the grooved tyres that Formula One teams will again be using next season. The McLaren-Mercedes test driver clocked a 1:19.712s to beat 2007 World Champion Kimi Raikkonen by over a quarter of a second. It was Raikkonen's first day behind the wheel of Ferrari's F2007 since winning the drivers' title at the season-ending Brazilian Grand Prix. Nelson Piquet Jr., who is vying for a race-seat with Renault for next season, set the fifth quickest time ahead of Toro Rosso's Sebastien Bourdais. McLaren's Gary Paffett and Red Bull's Mark Webber completed the top eight. Meanwhile, Timo Glock was in action for the first time with his new team Toyota, setting the 13th best time, while Giancarlo Fisichella finished right behind him on the timesheet at the end of his first outing with Force India. There were also F1 debuts for three drivers, with Nico Hulkenberg having his first taste of action for Williams, while BMW Sauber tested Marko Asmer and Javier Villa. Tuesday's Times:01. Heidfeld BMW-Sauber 1:19.042 73 laps
02. Button Honda 1:19.155 65 laps
03. de la Rosa McLaren-Mercedes 1:19.712 48 laps
04. Raikkonen Ferrari 1:20.083 73 laps
05. Piquet Renault 1:20.366 66 laps
06. Bourdais Toro Rosso-Ferrari 1:20.615 97 laps
07. Paffett McLaren-Mercedes 1:20.638 50 laps
08. Webber Red Bull-Renault 1:20.682 65 laps
09. Gene Ferrari 1:20.832 67 laps
10. Conway Super Aguri-Honda 1:20.927 87 laps
11. Vettel Toro Rosso-Ferrari 1:21.086 45 laps
12. Rossiter Super Aguri-Honda 1:21.246 71 laps
13. Glock Toyota 1:21.336 69 laps
14. Fisichella Force India-Ferrari 1:21.424 41 laps
15. Hulkenberg Williams-Toyota 1:21.556 28 laps
16. Montagny Force India-Ferrari 1:21.559 65 laps
17. Nakajima Williams-Toyota 1:21.586 33 laps
18. Asmer BMW-Sauber 1:21.962 57 laps
19. Kobayashi Toyota 1:22.186 111 laps
20. Villa BMW-Sauber 1:23.583 53 laps
