Irvine Plays Down Significance of Slow Test

Eddie Irvine played down the significance of lap times after his new Jaguar R3B was the slowest car on track on its debut in testing.

Irvine set his best time of the day, a lap of 1:19.912, in the standard car before switching over to the new version in the afternoon in Barcelona.

The Northern Irishman performed 15 laps in the new car without posting a competitive time and said he needs more time to evaluate the performance of the revisions, which include a new aerodynamic package.

"It's very difficult to say anything, because it's a different car," Irvine told Autosport's website after the test. "I never got much running in it today, so we've got a lot of work to do."

His team principal Niki Lauda added: "It's too early to say, but it is encouraging."

Irvine will hand over to teammate Spaniard Pedro de la Rosa on Friday, while Minardi's Australian Mark Webber will test for the team in a one-off outing.