Rosberg rules third day of final F1 pre-season test

On the third day of proceedings, Mercedes GP's Nico Rosberg went round the Circuit de Catalunya, Barcelona, Spain fastest of the day on a 1:20.686 in 128 laps despite morning showers which delayed the third day's progress.

Rosberg spent the first part of the day on qualifying simulations and developing the car set-up before completing a race simulation exercise later. 7-time F1 champion Michael Schumacher will take over the MGP W01today for the fourth and final day of the test.

Sebastian Buemi came second quickest on the day for Toro Rosso, grabbing a 1:21.413 on 106 laps. "Despite the rain, my first day in Barcelona has gone well," commented the Swiss driver. "Carrying out a race simulation was very useful and it was particularly interesting to see how the tyre behaviour changed depending on the fuel load. In the races, it will be important to drive smoothly, as on full tanks it is very easy to damage the tyres if you slide too much."

Current F1 champion and McLaren newbie Jenson Button was able to complete a race simulation - a run that was only mildly disrupted by late red flags. Button and the team mechanics were also able to take the opportunity to undertake a series of live pitstops, all of which went without problem.

The day’s long-run times established a benchmark for the final day of pre-season running today, which will be carried out by 2008 F1 champion, Lewis Hamilton.

Williams was the fourth best team on the day, thanks to Rubens Barrichello who covered 101 laps. The Brazilian said, "The 101 laps we ran was good without any glitches. Unfortunately, we had some rain during the day which affected the program a little bit. Everything that the team has brought to this test seems to be working well, so it’s been a positive day altogether."

Ferrari's Felipe Massa was in action for the Prancing horse, driving for the first time this year on this circuit. The Brazilian concentrated mainly on some set-up work and carried out a race simulation, which was completed successfully. In the end, he fetched a total of 115 laps, the fifth quickest in a time of 1.22.344. Testing at this circuit continues today, again with Massa in the F10.

Renault F1 team was represented by rookie Russian driver Vitaly Petrov. Although the earlier part of the session was affected by rain, but when the conditions improved later, the team took the chance to complete qualifying simulations and long runs.

Petrov commented: "We had a lot planned as it was my last day in the car before Bahrain and we did some good work and we’ve improved the car quite a bit. The qualifying simulation was useful and it was important I did this before the first race."

Sebastian Vettel completed his program for the Red Bull Racing squad, and due to the light showers, the team did mainly setup work. When the track dried, Vettel was on hand again to sprint the RB6 to eighth quickest on the very last lap. Today, both Vettel and Mark Webber will share the driving duties at the conclusion of pre-season testing.

Adrian Sutil replaced Vitantonio Liuzzi for the final two days. After a switch to the second race chassis overnight last night, Sutil's earlier session was principally concentrated on baseline runs and set-up checks. Then, later the team chose to include performance running rather than a race distance as originally scheduled. Sutil only managed to complete just 61 laps as a result, setting the seventh quickest time of the day, a 1:22.606.

The Lotus F1 Racing team continued its preparation well for the inaugural F1 season, or rather a return into the big leagues, with Jarno Trulli helming the T127. In the second half of the session, Trulli had already completed 60 laps and went on consistently throughout the day to finish on a total of 102 laps for ninth best on the time sheet. The team completed a full race distance and were satisfied with the timings and quality of the day’s activity. Today, Heikki Kovalainen will be in the cockpit of the T127.

BMW Sauber F1 Team’s Kamui Kobayashi continued to do some set- up work. The Japanese driver and the team did pitstop simulations to improve skills in communications and procedures in actual race conditions.

Virgin Racing’s Timo Glock concluded his final day of running which was a rollercoaster ride for the team. The team’s race preparation work with the VR-01 punctuated by minor but frustrating problems which cost valuable running time.

On a brighter note, Team's Chairperson Sir Richard Branson was trackside to support his Virgin Racing in their pre-season testing push.

* Article taken from www.motorsportchannel.com