Jerez first 2015 test Test day three
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Nasr has a very lively moment with the rear end of his Sauber in the rapid Turn 4 left-hander.
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And Nasr hits the track as well.
Massa heads back in but is heading back out again via a practice start.
Kimi Raikkonen
And Raikkonen heads back out again. He's joined on track by Massa, who is having his first day in the Williams FW37.
And Raikkonen returns to the pits...
Raikkonen heads out on track in the Ferrari. He's yet to complete a flier.
Nobody out on track at the moment. We've seen every team except Lotus on the track so far in damp conditions.
Rosberg is out on track going deliberately slowly at the moment - suggesting he might be getting an aero run out of the way this morning.
The fact that so many teams are making use of these unfavourable track conditions to get some early laps in bodes well for today. This has been the busiest morning so far, so hopefully that means we'll see a lot more action throughout the pitlane as the day goes on and the weather hopefully clears up.
An "excellent" practice start from Felipe Massa (on inters) has impressed our man in the pits this morning.
Ferrari tech chief James Allison has been out in the pitlane, and BEN ANDERSON reports that he seems pretty optimistic that conditions will be dry soon.
Raikkonen is one of the first drivers to take to slicks, heading out with a big aero sensor on the front-left corner of the car.
The track is still damp, and intermediates are the tyre of choice at the moment. Sainz gives us a perfectly-timed illustration of the lack of grip, having a tank-slapper into Turn 1 and just about keeping the Toro Rosso under control and out of the run-off.
Fernando Alonso
'McLaren watch' from BEN ANDERSON:
"Alonso is back in the pits with what seems to be a healthy car. He pulled up and switched the engine off as normal before being pushed into the garage.
"The screens have gone up again, and the wheels are taken off as mechanics get some fans into the car for cooling. Alonso is still sat in the car, while team-mate Jenson Button is watching on with a hot drink in his hand.
"The mood looks brighter at McLaren so far - a few people are even managing a smile."
Stopwatch
Rosberg goes fastest with a 1m33.059s, while Sainz opens his account with a 1m36.868s.
Alonso is back in the pits, but he's already got four laps to his name. It looks like we might finally see McLaren get some useful mileage under its belt with the Honda engine.
This is the busiest start we've had to a day of testing here so far in 2015 - the only car we haven't seen on track is the Lotus E23, which made its debut yesterday.
While Alonso was approaching the chicane in the final sector, just ahead of him Kimi Raikkonen decided not to bother with the right-left-right sequence and headed for the cut-through that used to form part of the F1 layout here.
We have a laptime from the McLaren - a 1m42.304s puts him seven seconds off the pace in these (pointless) damp conditions. And it's only a couple of seconds off the time the car managed on day one - its current best from Jerez.
Stopwatch
Ricciardo lowers the benchmark to a 1m34.7s. The McLaren is in the third sector though, so all eyes are on Alonso.
Alonso stays out for a second lap. Who knows, maybe we're going to get a laptime out of the MP4-30 nice and early today.
Stopwatch
Ricciardo and Nasr both post times quicker than Rosberg's first effort. The Red Bull is quickest with a 1m35.289s.
And out goes the McLaren again for lap two. Compared to the previous two days, a second appearance in the first 17 minutes is progress, that's for sure.
And out goes the McLaren again for lap two. Compared to the previous two days, a second appearance in the first 17 minutes is progress, that's for sure.
BEN ANDERSON is keeping an eye on things at McLaren from the pitlane: "Screens are up here but the garage doors are open and a set of tyres has just been taken in. Alonso is still in the car and all seems to be well at the moment."
Daniel Ricciardo
Here's a look at the track conditions, courtesy of LAT photographic. The sun is trying to break through the clouds, so hopefully the track will dry quickly.
To the delight of SAUBER FACTS creator EDD STRAW, Felipe Nasr takes the C34 out for a second lap. He's joined by Ricciardo, who will be playing catch-up for Red Bull today, and we have a first appearance of the week from Felipe Massa in the Williams.
Twitter
@HondaRacingF1: "Our new power unit is snarling like a beast; ready for a fully committed #McLarenHonda test session."
Rosberg clocked a massive 157 laps during his first day in the new Mercedes on Sunday. He's already got another three on the board today, but has dived back into the pits so it's all quiet again at Jerez.
GLENN FREEMAN was trackside as the McLaren came past for its first lap. He reports that the engine note sounds much improved from yesterday - although it still stands out compared to its more-developed rivals.
Alonso, Nasr, Sainz, Raikkonen and Ricciardo are straight back into the pits after installation laps. Rosberg is the only man who stays out.
Green flag
Rosberg is the first man out on track at 9am sharp. Raikkonen, Alonso, Sainz, Nasr and Ricciardo have all joined him on a damp circuit.
Here's the full driver line-up for today:
Mercedes - Nico Rosberg
Red Bull - Daniel Ricciardo
Williams - Felipe Massa
Ferrari - Kimi Raikkonen
McLaren - Fernando Alonso
Toro Rosso - Carlos Sainz Jr
Lotus - Pastor Maldonado
Sauber - Felipe Nasr
Mercedes - Nico Rosberg
Red Bull - Daniel Ricciardo
Williams - Felipe Massa
Ferrari - Kimi Raikkonen
McLaren - Fernando Alonso
Toro Rosso - Carlos Sainz Jr
Lotus - Pastor Maldonado
Sauber - Felipe Nasr
JONATHAN NOBLE: "Will be fascinating seeing what McLaren-Honda do today. It's been a difficult test so far, but the team is upbeat that early problems have now been fixed.
"Last night, Jenson Button delivered big hope of a breakthrough as he completed a troublefree lap just before testing finished - proving that Honda had finally found the root of its reliability issues.
"The success of the rest of the test will be judged on mileage not lap time - as it is essential the team and its Japanese engine partner get laps under their belts."
"Last night, Jenson Button delivered big hope of a breakthrough as he completed a troublefree lap just before testing finished - proving that Honda had finally found the root of its reliability issues.
"The success of the rest of the test will be judged on mileage not lap time - as it is essential the team and its Japanese engine partner get laps under their belts."
Pastor Maldonado gave the new Lotus E23 its debut yesterday, after a late start to testing for the Enstone team. The Venezuelan will remain at the wheel today before handing over to team-mate Romain Grosjean on Wednesday.
Twitter
@McLarenF1: "Business as usual: nightshift back to the hotel, and we're gearing up for Tuesday running."
The camo-liveried Red Bull RB11 also suffered a setback yesterday when Daniil Kvyat went off and damaged the front wing on his out lap.
The team was set to fly a replacement out from Milton Keynes, so Daniel Ricciardo should be ready to take over a complete car today.
The team was set to fly a replacement out from Milton Keynes, so Daniel Ricciardo should be ready to take over a complete car today.
Yesterday the team was confident - for the second day running - that it was all set up to bounce back from a disastrous day. It didn't prove to be the case at the first attempt, but will Fernando Alonso finally get some useful mileage in for the team today?
We're around 10 minutes from the start of today's action in Spain, and we've already heard the McLaren-Honda engine fire up in the garage.
Good morning from a gloomy, damp Jerez, and welcome to AUTOSPORT's live coverage of day three of F1 2015 pre-season testing.
By: Glenn Freeman, Ben Anderson, Jonathan Noble, Edd Straw, AUTOSPORT staff
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