Testing at the Spa-Francorchamps in Belgium continues as teams look for the winning setup on their cars. On the first day of testing, it was championship leader and rookie sensation Lewis Hamilton who posted the fastest lap time. But on the second day of testing, it was a Ferrari who clocked in the fastest time around the circuit.
All eleven teams are once again present at the second day of testing. The unpredictable weather in Belgium gave teams problems as they continually changed their setups to adapt to the dampness of the track. Rains showers limited the number of laps the drivers spent on the tracks. In fact, only a few drivers spent more than 50 laps on the tracks.
Ferrari's Felipe Massa posted the fastest lap time on the second day of testing with a lap time of 1 minute and 46.698 seconds. The Brazilian Formula One driver who just came from a disappointing fifth place finish at the British Grand Prix worked on the set up and the integration of new components into his Formula One car. Massa who was recently overtaken by teammate Kimi Raikkonen in the drivers' championship standing only covered 56 laps.
Taking over test driving duties for McLaren, double world champion Fernando Alonso posted the second fastest lap time of the day. Alonso's best lap tie is jut three tenths of a second off Massa's time. The Spaniard worked on the set up of his MP4-22 as well as its aerodynamic program.
Third fastest for the day is Renault's Heikki Kovalainen. Making his first appearance at the track in a Formula One car, the Finn also focused on the set up programs of his car. The team worked on adapting the car for dry and wet conditions.
"We tried to get the most out of the changing track conditions by working on tuning the set-up for the wet conditions, particularly focusing on the control systems," explained the Finn Formula One driver. "That was a good program, and we found some interesting things. In spite of the changeable weather, I think we got the most out of the day, and the results were encouraging."
Renault recently claimed that they are aiming to overtake BMW Sauber for the third spot in the constructors' championship standings. BMW Sauber, on the other hand, reacted with a better finish at the British Grand Prix. The duo of Nick Heidfeld and Robert Kubica on board their respective F1.07 with BMW engines as reliable as BMW 528i parts are also making a good run to strengthen their position as the 'best of the rest' behind McLaren and Ferrari.
Fourth fastest for the day is Toyota's Ralf Schumacher. The German Formula One driver started his run mid-morning after the weather postponed his run. Schumacher worked on various systems of his Formula One car like the car's cooling system. The younger brother of seven-time world champion Michael Schumacher is coming from a disappointing race at the British Grand Prix.
Adrian Sutil completed the fastest five during the second day of testing. The German Formula One driver is driving for Spyker. The team's chief race and test engineer Dominic Harlow has this to say about Sutil's test session: "Adrian completed his initial setup work and tire evaluation before the familiar wet conditions set in over lunch. The afternoon provided a useful opportunity to look at the Bridgestone wet tires, and car settings for wet conditions in preparation for the race here, which is after all in September."
