Ralf forced to pull out of Jerez test

Schumacher has had minor issues with his back for the past year and, although the problem is not believed to be serious, the team decided to not take any risks and have drafted in Jarno Trulli again.

Toyota technical director Mike Gascoyne said: "Ralf was pretty pleased with the car and the balance and he looked very competitive.

"Unfortunately he aggravated a minor back injury which meant the team decided to cut his testing short. It's not a major problem but it was causing him some discomfort and we did not want to make the problem worse."

Schumacher said: "It's a pity we had to finish this test early, but we are pleased with how the work is going on the new car so far."

Toyota had already had to make one change to the testing line-up already by drafting in Ryan Briscoe, after test driver Olivier Panis was forced out of action through illness.