Sauber to Switch to Friday Testing in 2004

Sauber are to sign up for the private Friday morning testing option during Grand Prix weekends in 2004, team boss Peter Sauber said today.

The Swiss-based privateer team opted against signing up to the 'Heathrow Agreement' this year but Sauber said at the German Grand Prix that a decision has already been made to take part in testing next season.

Renault, Jaguar, Jordan and Minardi all currently run in the two-hour private testing sessions before each Grand Prix and it has proven to give them an advantage in setting up their cars before the practice and qualifying session.

Those teams have just 20 test days away from Grands Prix, while the other six teams on the grid - including Sauber - have been permitted unlimited testing. Sauber insisted the move is not a cost-cutting measure and said with Formula One visiting two new tracks in China and Bahrain it will prove a tactical decision.

"Two additional hours of testing will be a huge bonus at those circuits," he said. "That is one reason why we consider it an advantage. In addition, not all of the testing we have done over this year has produced the results we expected to get.

"And we are also building a new wind tunnel which allows full scale running so we will then have the opportunity to do some of the track testing that we currently do in the tunnel itself."

The sport's governing body, the FIA, have not set a deadline for teams to sign up to the testing scheme, but Sauber have decided to announce their decision now to allow them to restructure their team.

Sauber added: "If we do not test as we do now then we don't need a test team so we can make structural changes and by announcing now we have time to do it."