Raikkonen Lowers Jerez Record Again - Day Three

McLaren's Kimi Raikkonen lowered the Jerez track record for the second consecutive day as the Formula One teams continued their preparations at the Spanish circuit.

Finn Raikkonen, who on Wednesday was already nearly two seconds quicker than the previous record, went even faster today, lapping almost half a second quicker to leave the circuit record on 1:18.876 after 84 laps at the wheel of the Mercedes-powered machine.

Toyota's Mika Salo was again second quickest, but nearly a whole second behind Raikkonen. Salo, whose Japanese team tested at the Spanish circuit for the first time on Wednesday, will be replaced on Friday by Toyota's test driver Ryan Briscoe.

"We did mainly tyre testing today, but also worked on suspension and dampers to improve the car's balance," said Salo at the end of the day. "The car handled much better than yesterday, but there is still room for improvement. This track has a twisty layout, putting a premium on gear shifts and brake efficiency - two areas very important for Nurburgring next week."

Italian Jarno Trulli was third fastest with the first of the Renaults, while Spanish test driver Fernando Alonso posted the sixth quickest time. The French squad had a troubled day, with both their drivers suffering engine problems during the morning that hampered their progress. Alonso could only complete 20 laps.

David Coulthard joined the test today, taking over from Austrian Alexander Wurz at the wheel of the second McLaren. The Scot finished in fourth place ahead of Brazilian Luciano Burti, who continued working on tyre testing for Ferrari with an F2001 chassis.

Frenchman Olivier Panis was seventh quickest on his first day of work for the British American Racing team this week, while Spaniard Pedro de la Rosa was eighth fastest with the only Jaguar on track.

Colombian Juan Pablo Montoya, who took over from Williams' test driver Marc Gene, was unable to set a time, his BMW engine letting go after the Colombian had completed only the installation lap with the Williams.

"Just after Juan Pablo's installation lap this morning, we suffered a fire that concluded our running today," explained Tim Newton, Williams' test team manager. "Juan safely exited the car in 4.1 seconds and our attentions have been focused on the preparing of the car for tomorrow."

Testing at Jerez will finish on Friday.

Today's times:

Pos Driver Team-Engine Tyres Time Laps 1. Raikkonen McLaren-Mercedes (M) 1:18.876 84 2. Salo Toyota (M) 1:19.828 55 3. Trulli Renault (M) 1:20.549 63 4 Coulthard McLaren-Mercedes (M) 1:20.610 63 5. Burti Ferrari (B) 1:20.668 101 6. Alonso Renault (M) 1:20.848 20 7. Panis BAR-Honda (B) 1:21.152 54 8. De la Rosa Jaguar-Cosworth (M) 1:21.852 53 9. Lemarie BAR-Honda (B) 1:23.791 77 10. Montoya Williams-BMW (M) no time All Timing Unofficial

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