Bridgestone motorsport wrap for 26th February 2008
Schumacher back behind the wheel - but Lewis quickest
Seven-time world champion Michael Schumacher again demonstrated that he hasn't lost any of his speed since retiring with some quick lap times in his first test in Ferrari's F2008 car.
He completed more than 80 laps and finished third on the timesheets, just one-tenth of a second slower than Ferrari's defending world champion, Kimi Raikkonen.
However, they were both outpaced by Lewis Hamilton, with the McLaren driver setting a time of 1.22.276s on a day when the track started damp before drying later in the session.
Williams was again the most impressive of the challengers with Nakajima and Rosberg both inside the one-minute-22 second bracket.
Fernando Alonso's low-key return to Renault continued with the seventh-fastest time, but both he and teammate Nelson Piquet Junior spent most of the day refining the team's race-day procedures with the pair completing 20 pit stops between them.
Adrian Sutil impressed for Force India in ninth ahead of the Red Bull of Mark Webber.
However, the Hondas were again off the pace with Barrichello and Wurz more than two seconds slower than Hamilton's McLaren.
Testing times from Barcelona (February 25)
1. HAMILTON McLaren 1m22.276s
2. RAIKKONEN Ferrari 1m22.319s
3. SCHUMACHER Ferrari 1m22.428s
4. NAKAJIMA Williams 1m22.724s
5. KOVALAINEN McLaren 1m22.852s
6. ROSBERG Williams 1m22.974s
7. ALONSO Renault 1m23.021s
8. HEIDFELD BMW 1m23.075s
9. SUTIL Force India 1m23.091s
10. WEBBER Red Bull 1m23.115s
11. VETTEL Toro Rosso 1m23.188s
12. LIUZZI Force India 1m23.239s
13. GLOCK Toyota 1m23.270s
14. KLIEN BMW 1m23.442s
15. PIQUET Renault 1m23.609s
16. KOBAYASHI Toyota 1m23.880s
17. BARRICHELLO Honda 1m24.460s
18. WURZ Honda 1m24.667s
19. COULTHARD Red Bull 1m24.826s
In other news...
America's two major open-wheel racing series - the Indy Racing League (IRL) and the Champ Car World Series - are to unify for 2008 after a split that lasted 12 seasons.
Bridgestone has been a key player in both series since 2002 with Bridgestone the official tyres of Champ Car and Firestone the official tyres of the IndyCar Series, Indy Pro Series and Indianapolis 500 Mile Race.
"Overall, Bridgestone Firestone Motorsports is quite pleased for the sport," said Al Speyer, Executive Director, Bridgestone Firestone Motorsports.
"We are looking for a unified American open-wheel racing series to maximize fan interest, as well as bring in additional teams, drivers and sponsors - all of which will contribute to the health and growth of that series. We are eager to work with everyone involved in the transition and look forward to an even more promising future."