Jerez first 2015 test Test day three
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As Ricciardo returns to the track (via a very stuttering exit from the pits).
Raikkonen has headed back out and starts his first flier.
And Rosberg returns too.
Sainz heads back out, as Massa returns to the garage.
Massa's lap is the fastest we have seen from Williams so far in this test.
Massa improves to third fastest on a 1m22.276s. That's seven-tenths off the pace.
And we also have Massa on track.
....and he improves to a 1m22.950s to go fourth.
...and again in sector 2...
Personal-best first sector time for Maldonado...
The Lotus is back out in the hands of Maldonado.
Nico Rosberg at Jerez
Just Rosberg on track right now. He's on his 120th lap.
BEN ANDERSON is trackside for us, watching from the chicane at the moment: "Massa has been going along smoothy - short shifting out of the chicane to keep the rear end in check.
"Rosberg is less bothered on that front - he holds onto each gear longer coming out of it."
"Rosberg is less bothered on that front - he holds onto each gear longer coming out of it."
Massa pits.
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We won't be seeing any more of the McLaren today due to problems with the Honda engine, but plenty of you have been asking about the design of the car. So here's CRAIG SCARBOROUGH on it:
"I have to say the McLaren in design terms looks as though it could be the best out there. Their packaging of the rear end is a step ahead of the other teams.
"Of course there’s more to making the package work than a tight rear end, but once sorted on the power unit McLaren could be threatening for podiums later in the year."
"I have to say the McLaren in design terms looks as though it could be the best out there. Their packaging of the rear end is a step ahead of the other teams.
"Of course there’s more to making the package work than a tight rear end, but once sorted on the power unit McLaren could be threatening for podiums later in the year."
Rosberg has now done 114 laps. He said on day one that he was still a little rusty, and that he ached a bit after his marathon stint of 157 laps. The rust will certainly be clearing by now.
Massa runs very wide onto the blue paint beyond the kerb at the exit of the Turn 10 right-hander.
Raikkonen is back in the pits, leaving only Rosberg and Massa on track.
Rosberg improves to 1m22.047s. But he's still not as fast as the all-conquering Sauber of Nasr, currently in P1. That relegates Raikkonen to third.
Rosberg is also on mediums.
Raikkonen made a quick visit to the pits.
We also have Rosberg in the Mercedes out.
Felipe Massa testing at Jerez
And we have another car. This time its the Williams of Felipe Massa. He's been doing plenty of practice starts, and has decided to do another. He is also on mediums.
Raikkonen is on mediums.
And it turns out to be Ferrari that has broken the silence. Raikkonen heads back out onto track.
ENGINE NOISE!
BEN ANDERSON has headed trackside. He will shortly be supplying some information as to what the track looks like with no cars on it.
Just under two hours to go here at Jerez. The track is silent. More significantly, the cars, which are usually the thing that make the noise, are silent.
SAUBER FACT: Sebastian Vettel made his F1 debut for the team in its BMW Sauber guise in 2007. He finished eighth, meaning he scored a point on debut.
Twitter
@redbullracing: "Hitting all the notes, just not necessarily in the right order... That's testing!"
Nasr returns to the garage.
SAUBER FACT: Switzerland, home of Sauber, is one of 48 land-locked countries in the world - although four of those are only partially-recognised states. Thanks to Wikipedia for helping with that one.
SAUBER FACT: Nasr will be the third Brazilian to race for Sauber in F1. He follows Massa and Pedro Diniz.
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@Nuclear_Fishin asks: "#askautosport Why is it that the McLaren setup issues couldn't be figured out at the factory before reaching the track? Is it that new?"
CRAIG SCARBOROUGH: "I understand the entire Honda power unit is new since the Abu Dhabi test. It will have been rig tested but once installed in a car other factors can come into play. With these extremely complex engines even a small problem can stop the car for hours."
CRAIG SCARBOROUGH: "I understand the entire Honda power unit is new since the Abu Dhabi test. It will have been rig tested but once installed in a car other factors can come into play. With these extremely complex engines even a small problem can stop the car for hours."
Maldonado is back in. That leaves only Nasr on track.
Twitter
@WilliamsRacing: "Felipe reports the track is improving as he completes an 8 lap run taking his total to 47 for the day"
1993 German GP
SAUBER FACT: In recognition of Sauber finishing ninth 46 times in its history, here's a start shot from the first of those occasions - the 1993 German GP. By our count the black cars are 13th and 15th in this picture.
...but he doesn't improve.
Purple middle sector for Nasr...
By: Glenn Freeman, Ben Anderson, Jonathan Noble, Edd Straw, AUTOSPORT staff
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