Button Fastest, Dixon Shines at Paul Ricard - Final Day

BAR driver Jenson Button stayed at the top of the timesheets on the final day of testing at the Paul Ricard circuit in France.

Button, who had already gone fastest on Thursday, continued to impress at the wheel of the Honda-powered 006, posting the fastest time of the week with a best lap of 1:10.887. British test driver Anthony Davidson, meanwhile, drove the '04 Concept car and set the third fastest time.

"It has been a really good test for me," said Button. "We have had no reliability problems and have again been on the pace. We have done a lot of good work with the tyres choice for Imola, and also some aero revisions and engine improvements for Bahrain.

"It's good to see we are still consistent and I'm looking forward to getting to Bahrain and getting back on the race track."

Williams gave Indy Racing League (IRL) champion Scott Dixon a first taste of Formula One in a test that could boost his hopes of driving for the team next year. Dixon drove this year's FW26 chassis and set an impressive time, lapping less than half a second slower than German Ralf Schumacher.

"Although it's a steep learning curve, I've had a really enjoyable day and, in general, I'm pleased with how it went," said the New Zealander. "Unfortunately, I had a problem with the gearbox this morning so my time in the car was limited. When the team fixed the problem I was happy with how it went at the end.

"I would have liked to have had a few more runs in the car as I think I could have gone quicker but I'm now looking forward to the next test in Barcelona."

Although today's test was billed as a simple familiarisation exercise, with a more meaningful session scheduled for Spain's Barcelona circuit early next month, Dixon's times stood up well to those of Schumacher.

McLaren test drivers Alexander Wurz and Pedro de la Rosa were fifth and eighth quickest respectively as they wrapped up the British team's preparations ahead of the Bahrain Grand Prix. Both men worked with the Mercedes-powered MP4-19.

Renault's test driver Franck Montagny concluded the French squad's programme, testing new components for the San Marino Grand Prix with the R23 car. The Frenchman also carried out tyre testing for the Imola race.

"A very pleasing conclusion to the week," said Renault's executive director of engineering Pat Symonds. "The story of the day was all about tyres, and we were very pleased with the progress Franck made. The new constructions we tested were a step in the right direction for us, and the compounds showed improvements in laptime and consistency."

The Toyota team completed their programme ahead of the Bahrain Grand Prix, with only Ricardo Zonta on track after Australian Ryan Briscoe completed his work yesterday. Brazilian Zonta was again at the wheel of the TF104 chassis, and set the sixth quickest time.

"I think it has been a good test this week," said Zonta. "We have again managed to get a lot of laps under our belt and completed over 1500 kilometres in just four days. We have worked intensively on testing Michelin tyre casings and compounds in preparation for Imola, and today we focussed on various set-ups, playing with the suspension. Unfortunately we had some gearbox control problems today, which limited us to 55 laps.

"Although I have run the TF104 in two race weekends this season, this week was my first actual test session with the new car and things have run very smoothly. Now, I am looking forward to going to Bahrain for what promises to be an exciting Grand Prix in the Middle East next week."

Today's times:

Pos Driver Team-Engine Tyres Time Laps 1. Button BAR-Honda (M) 1:10.887 80 2. R.Schumacher Williams-BMW (M) 1:11.330 144 3. Davidson BAR-Honda (M) 1:11.623 48 4. Dixon Williams-BMW (M) 1:11.753 59 5. Wurz McLaren-Mercedes (M) 1:12.256 22 6. Zonta Toyota (M) 1:12.427 57 7. Montagny Renault (M) 1:12.733 141 8. de la Rosa McLaren-Mercedes (M) 1:12.638 96 All Timing Unofficial

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