First steps towards Melbourne

Posted: 01.02.2014
Source: Ferrari

Maranello, 1 February – Back from the first test of the year, the team has lost no time in getting together in Maranello for the usual technical debrief, overseen by Team Principal Stefano Domenicali. Because of the new regulations, the work load was greater than ever during the Jerez de la Frontera test. “These were four very demanding and important days to give us something to work on over the coming days in Maranello,” commented Domenicali on www.ferrari.com. “The technical parameters of the F14 T, as well as the aerodynamic validation we saw on track, match our expectations and provide a solid starting point, which we must now exploit as much as possible. In Jerez, we concentrated our efforts on fine tuning the new systems to ensure that all the components that make up the new power unit were working as well as possible and the team was focused on its tasks. I was also very pleased to see, even if was hardly a surprise, how our drivers worked in harmony and that they have already provided excellent feedback relating to the development of the car.”

There was not much to say when it came to the team’s current place in the hierarchy. “We can’t evaluate performance levels at the moment, neither that of the F14 T, nor those of our rivals,” continued Domenicali. “The important thing is to do as many laps as possible to give our engineers the data they need to continue with the development of the car. It would be premature to make any precise evaluations. What counts for more is to have clear ideas on what we must do now and on the direction to take, so that we arrive in Melbourne in the best possible shape.”

” Another aspect that Domenicali chose to discuss was the overall Formula 1 situation. “We are definitely on the eve of a new era in this sport,” concluded the Team Principal. “As usual when there are such radical changes, it’s best not to rush to make any premature judgement and in our opinion, the new technologies are really fascinating. They also represent a challenge which Ferrari, as a car constructor, has welcomed because of the technology transfer it will ensure across all activities of our company.”

 

Over 1000km in Jerez

Posted: 31.01.2014
Source: Ferrari

Circuit: Jerez circuit – 4.428 km
Driver: Fernando Alonso
Car: Ferrari F14 T
Weather: air temperature 11/14°C, track temperature 11/15 °C. Rain in the morning, cloudy in the afternoon with light rain at times.
Laps/Kms. completed: 115/509
Best time: 1:29.145

Scuderia Ferrari’s first pre-season test session ended today at Jerez de la Frontera.

For the second consecutive day, Fernando Alonso was at the wheel of the F14 T. Given the weather, work in the first part of the day centred on evaluating the Pirelli wet tyres and on further work on management of the various procedures that are used on the new car. In the afternoon, the team and driver were able to make some set-up adjustments on the F14 T.

In total, car number 14 covered 115 laps, the quickest in a time of 1.29.145. Over the four days, the F14 T did 252 laps, equivalent to 1116 kilometres. “A busy and very demanding day, during which we were able to do a good number of laps, which is the real aim of this first test,” Fernando said to www.ferrari.com. “It’s difficult to get a clear picture of the behaviour of the wet tyres because the track conditions were in between damp and dry, which is maybe the worst situation for understanding how the Intermediates perform. The afternoon went well and we tried various aerodynamic and mechanical configurations, gathering a lot of data that will prove useful to continue the development work of the car.”

With the Jerez test now over, the next time the car will appear on track will be on 19 February at Sakhir, Bahrain, for the second test session that runs for four days until the 22nd.

 

Testing in the wet for Alonso

Posted: 31.01.2014
Source: Ferrari

Jerez de la Frontera, 31 January –It was a busy morning for Fernando Alonso, working at the fourth and final day of testing at Jerez in Andalusia.

Rain meant the track was wet almost all morning long, which gave the Scuderia the opportunity to carry out a more in-depth assessment of the intermediate and extreme wet Pirelli tyres, while also continuing to work on starts and on managing the complex procedures that are a feature of the 2014 cars.

The Spaniard was able to run continuously, even doing a run of over 20 laps. At the moment, it’s the lunch break, as it’s not just the cars that need “refueling!” At this stage, Fernando had completed 71 laps, the fastest in a time of 1.35.334.

 

Alonso’s first

Posted: 30.01.2014
Source: Ferrari

Circuit: Jerez circuit– 4.428 km
Driver: Fernando Alonso
Car: Ferrari F14 T
Weather: air temperature 5/18°C, track temperature 6/22 °C. Sunny
Laps/Kms completed: 58/257
Best time: 1:25.495

Fernando Alonso made his first on-track appearance of the season at the wheel of the F14 T on the penultimate day of testing at Jerez de la Frontera.

It didn’t take long for Fernando to get to grips with the new car. In the morning, he worked on a programme centred on aerodynamic mapping measurement, while in the afternoon work on development continued with particular attention paid to car set-up. It was another profitable day for the Scuderia.

Alonso completed a total of 58 laps, the fastest in a time of 1:25.495.

“It’s always nice to be driving again, especially in front of your home crowd” – said Fernando to www.ferrari.com – “I’ve missed it for a few months now, even if I’ve spent hours in the simulator in Maranello and the feeling I got from the track was as exciting as ever. Now we have a lot of work ahead of us, but we have a very big potential to make progress and that’s encouraging.”

Testing continues at this circuit tomorrow, the fourth and final day of work at the Jerez circuit with Fernando Alonso.

 

Alonso still gets excited

Posted: 30.01.2014
Source: Ferrari

Jerez de la Frontera, 30 January – “It’s always exciting driving a Formula 1 car again.” The years go by, the cars and the rules change, but Fernando Alonso still loves his job. It doesn’t matter how fast you go, as long as you’re on the limit,” he said after his first day of testing this season. “Ten years ago here in Jerez, maybe we were going ten seconds quicker than today, but the enjoyment is the same.

In fact, if I went out on track now in my Alfa Romeo Giulietta, I’d have as much fun, just as I did when I was a kid and as I do now, if I get into a kart, which is much slower than the speeds you reach in a Formula 1 car. It’s not enough driving on the simulator to get some feelings, you need to be out on track in a real car in front of the fans who have come just to support you: that’s real excitement.”

Fernando reckons the 2014 cars don’t require a big change in driving style: “There’s not much difference,” he explained. “A lot has been said about this, but the fact is that when it comes to what a driver has to do, not much has changed. Of course, now there are many more parameters to manage, for example the battery has to be charged, but we are used to that.”

The main aim of this test is to rack up the kilometres. “Every lap we do is important, with every lap you learn something and discover problems and opportunities,” continued the Spaniard. “The aim is to do a lot here and especially in the next two tests in Bahrain. The F14 T seems to have a good potential, but there’s a lot to do. The others? We have so much to do in our pit that there’s absolutely no time to think about what they are doing. From here to Melbourne, we must just concentrate on ourselves.”

 

Another good start in Jerez

Posted: 30.01.2014
Source: Ferrari

Jerez de la Frontera, 30 January – At the risk of sounding boring, the first half of the third day of testing for Scuderia Ferrari and nine other teams at Jerez, can be summed up, at least for the Prancing Horse squad, in the same way as the previous two days, which is to say it’s been a good start.

This time the start refers to Fernando Alonso, back behind the wheel of a Ferrari Formula 1 car for the first time after the winter break. This was the Oviedo man’s debut in the F14 T and the first hours have gone well.

So far, Fernando has covered 32 laps, the quickest in a time of 1.25.495. There was just one small glitch in the technical programme, when the car briefly stopped out on track, but the work was already back on schedule before the team stopped for lunch. In the afternoon, the work will continue on car development and on set-up changes.

 

Kimi: “Two positive days”

Posted: 29.01.2014
Source: Ferrari

Circuit: Jerez circuit – 4.428 km
Driver: Kimi Raikkonen
Car: Ferrari F14 T
Weather: air temperature 9/14°C, track temperature 10/15 °C. Light rain in the morning, sunny and cloudy in the afternoon.
Laps/Kms completed: 47/208
Best time: 1:24.812

Second day of testing at the Jerez de la Frontera circuit for Kimi Raikkonen at the wheel of the F14 T.

Because of the wet start to the day, the morning programme began with the testing requested by Pirelli, relating to development of their wet weather tyres. The Scuderia was quickly able to assess the intermediate tyres, thus making the most of the time remaining and the progressively drying track to begin work on the car in preparation for the afternoon’s programme.

By the end of the day, Raikkonen had managed to complete a total of 47 laps, the fastest in a time of 1.24.812. He continued the task of checking the car’s functionality as well as trying a few set-up changes.

“Every time we go out on track we learn something new” – said Kimi to www.ferrari.com – “This week the times don’t matter and the only thing that does is to do a good number of laps without any problems and fortunately, we have managed that on both days. The team is working hard and at the next test in Bahrain, we will continue to improve.”

Testing continues at this circuit tomorrow, when Fernando Alonso will make his season debut on track.

 

Allison on Kimi: “Very strong, incredibly precise”

Posted: 29.01.2014
Source: Ferrari

Jerez de la Frontera, 29 January –A good start with Kimi Raikkonen and James Allison on the same wavelength at the end of the second of four days of testing at the Jerez circuit in southern Spain.

“We have obtained some good baselines from which to continue the development of the F14 T,” said the Scuderia’s Technical Director, talking to www.ferrari.com. “We are working mainly on car reliability and so far, we can claim to be reasonably satisfied because, even though we are talking about a car that’s almost totally new, we haven’t encountered any particular problems. We are also happy with the data parameters we have seen in terms of cooling, as well as those relating to aerodynamic downforce: both of them have matched our expectations.”

Asked for an opinion on Kimi’s second debut in red, Allison had this to say. “He is still the same strong driver, with his usual phlegmatic approach,” added the Englishman with a smile. “It’s difficult for him to get over excited about something, but he gives the engineers the feedback they need to do their job. He might not say much, but he is incredibly accurate when it comes to explain what needs to be done to make the car quicker.”

Allison confessed to not having paid the slightest attention to what the other teams have been doing, therefore he is unable to give an opinion on how competitive the F14 T might be. “There’s too much to do to think about the others. We have to keep an eye on every detail, because it only takes the smallest thing to leave you stranded. Between now and Melbourne, we will have to organise every last detail to be ready for the first race.”

 

Rain tyres come out in Jerez

Posted: 29.01.2014
Source: Ferrari

Jerez de la Frontera, 29 January –Wet weather tyre testing this morning at Jerez de la Frontera, scene of the first of three pre-season test sessions. There had been plans to artificially water the track later this week, but the weather forecast meant the test of the Pirelli wet weather tyres was brought forward, although the expected rain didn’t come so the track was watered anyway.

Kimi Raikkonen got through the planned programme, covering 15 laps, the quickest in a time of 1.38.272, as well as doing some practice starts. Given the track conditions, the team also took the opportunity to bring forward some work on the F14 T, which had been planned for the middle of the day, with the aim of continuing to shake down the car over the rest of the day.

 

Raikkonen: “A good start”

Posted: 28.01.2014
Source: Ferrari

Jerez de la Frontera, 28 January – “A good start.” As usual, Kimi Raikkonen’s evaluation was short and to the point, after the F14 T’s track debut. The Finn completed 32 laps on the Andalusian track, which was more than anyone else today.

It was a very unusual day, although that was to be expected. It was inevitable that, with cars that are of an almost completely new design, there would be teething troubles that would slow down the teams’ work of developing the cars. Scuderia Ferrari had its troubles, especially in the morning. But in the afternoon, the Finn was able to do a bit more consistent running.

“The biggest challenge now is to ensure everything works,” Kimi told www.ferrari.com. “The new cars are much more complicated than the previous ones and there are a thousand details that can slow down the work. This morning, we’d have liked to do a few more laps but in the afternoon I think we did a good job. From a driving point of view, I didn’t feel any amazing difference, although it’s much too early to give an opinion on this.”

“Overall, we can say it was a good start. We have a solid base from which to work over the coming days.  The times from this test mean nothing and we will only begin to understand something only in Bahrain. The cars are much slower? It’s pointless making comparisons with the past because everything is completely different.”

 

Jerez Test Session – 28 January 2014

Posted: 28.01.2014
Source: Ferrari

Circuit: Jerez circuit – 4.428 km
Driver: Kimi Raikkonen
Car: Ferrari F14 T
Weather: air temperature 7/15°C, track temperature 8/19 °C. Sunny in the morning, cloudy in the afternoon with some light rain.
Laps/Kms. completed: 32/141
Best time: 1:27.104

It was a double debut today at Jerez de la Frontera, as pre-season testing got underway. The F14 T took its first steps and Kimi Raikkonen was back at the wheel of a Ferrari Formula 1 car, after an absence of over four years. The day’s technical programme was only interrupted once, right at the beginning, when the driver was asked to stop the car at the side of the track as a precautionary measure. Over the course of the day, work centred exclusively on checking the functionality of the F14 T’s on-board systems and some aerodynamic mapping. By the end of what was a good day’s testing, Raikkonen had completed 32 laps, the quickest in a time of 1.27.104. “We had a lot of new things to learn today” – said Kimi to www.ferrari.com – “Even if we would have liked to do more laps, I think that for a first day it was alright. Towards the end, when the track was damp, we chose not to take any risks. Now we have a lot of work ahead of us, but all in all, we are pleased with our first day.” Testing continues here tomorrow, again with Kimi Raikkonen on track.

 

Formula 1 at a snail’s pace

Posted: 28.01.2014
Source: Ferrari

Jerez de la Frontera, 28 January –Less than 40 laps in four hours. That’s the outcome so far after a morning of testing, which could be seen as a good enough total if it was just for one car. However, that’s the sum total for all five cars that have ventured out onto the Andalusian track. Only five, because the other four have spent the whole morning in their garages. Therefore the 2014 Formula 1 season could be said to have got off at a snail’s pace, which is fairly predictable. This years cars are almost completely new and obviously, especially right at the start, it takes longer to control all the systems that are more complicated than in recent years. The F14 T was not exception, as Kimi Raikkonen made his second Prancing Horse debut this morning. The Finn had to stop his first installation lap when the engineers instructed him to cut the engine as a precaution and then he completed two more trouble free ones before noon. Then in the early afternoon, he started to string a few consecutive laps together.

 

Even in Jerez #ForzaMichael!

Posted: 27.01.2014
Source: Ferrari

Jerez de la Frontera, 27 January –There are now just a few hours to go to the F14 T’s track debut and the whole race team is already working at the track in Andalusia.

These are busy times as everything must be ready down to the smallest detail: there are only twelve days of testing before the start of the season and they are too precious to waste even a few hours with even trivial problems that could halt the track programme.

Furthermore, this first session in Jerez can be considered as a four day long shakedown. The 2014 cars are already very complex creations and will definitely take a few days running in before the usual development work can really get underway.

While awaiting Kimi Raikkonen’s first time behind the wheel of a Ferrari Formula 1 car since the 2009 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix, today the entire team wanted to show once again the support it has for the driver and man who played such an important part in the history of the Scuderia, namely Michael Schumacher, who is still fighting the most important battle of his life.

During a break in the day, the Ferrari crew got together behind a board bearing the  message #forzaMichael, the same one that has for many days now identified the page of the Ferrari websire where 72 messages from friends and colleagues of the German champion are being posted, one for each of his wins with the Maranello team.

Tomorrow, the hashtag will also adorn the F14 T, a sign of how much everyone at Ferrari and his fans from all four corners of the globe  are thinking of Michael at this difficult time.

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