Heidfeld buoyant after first Sauber runs

The 23-year-old German, who suffered a dismal debut season in Formula 1 with Prost Grand Prix last year in which failed to score a point, was seventh quickest in testing today, just over half a second off Juan Pablo Montoya's fastest time. His C19 machine was also the second fastest of the Bridgestone-shod cars.

"I'm absolutely over the moon," he told Autosport.com. "I'm pretty happy with the engine and pleased with the team. We've been getting to know each other, although I know my engineer from Formula 3000, and I feel a lot more welcome here. That's probably down to the culture and language, which is more German than French."

Heidfeld says the Sauber-Petronas is more than a match for his mount of 2000 - the much-maligned Prost-Peugeot.

"There is no comparison between the two cars," he added. "The rear-end of the Sauber is so stable, and the engine is more driveable and has a lot more power. After what happened last year, I feel I am now showing what I'm capable of doing."

Heidfeld had been in the top five for much of the day, following on from his fourth quickest time yesterday. His team-mate for 2001 will be decided tomorrow when the FIA World Council decides if Kimi Raikkonen is worth of a Formula 1 super-licence. The Finn was seventh quickest yesterday - less than a second slower than McLaren's David Coulthard - and ninth fastest today, 0.7s slower than Heidfeld.

To see pictures from Wednesday's Jerez testing, click HERE.