Testing News Round-Up

The Minardi team will use Antonio Garcia, Franck Montagny and Matteo Bobbi along with contracted driver Alex Yoong to start the team's 2002 preparations in testing at Valencia later this month.

Yoong will be behind the wheel of a 2001-spec car from January 15-18 and Spaniard Garcia, Frenchman Montagny and Italian Matteo Bobbi will join him during the four-day test. Minardi have performed bench tests of their new Asiatech engine and gearbox and expect to launch the 2002 car in the last week of February.

Toyota have confirmed that Scot Allan McNish will be the only driver on duty for the first two days when they begin their first public test of the TF102 in Barcelona on Tuesday, January 8. McNish will drive the car on Tuesday and Wednesday, with Finn Mika Salo taking over duties for the final two days of the test on Thursday and Friday.

"This will be the first time that the new Toyota Formula One team has been on the track at the same time as the opposition," a Toyota spokesperson said. "It is a more than usually interesting litmus test for the new team as they move closer to the green light in Melbourne."

McLaren expect to have three MP4/17 chassis ready before the team's launch on Saturday, January 19, but David Coulthard, Kimi Raikkonen and Alexander Wurz will share two MP4/16B's in Barcelona next week. Managing director Martin Whitmarsh said: "By the time we launch the new car we should have three MP4/17 chassis completed.

"Number one will have been used for the FIA crash test programme, number two will be on hand for unveiling and the third chassis will be being finished off in the factory."

Williams have provisionally scheduled the launch of the FW24 for January 25 and will hold the event at Silverstone again. Ralf Schumacher, Juan Pablo Montoya, Marc Gene and Antonio Pizzonia will all be on duty before the launch when they take to the track at Barcelona in up-rated FW23C cars next week.