Carlin Motorsport's Red Bull backed Jean-Eric Vergne ended the 2 day Rockingham test as the driver to beat, after topping the testing times with a time that took the Frenchman under the 71 second mark.
It was a case of déjà vu for Vergne, as he set his 1m10.970s time, then ended the session prematurely after he spun out and ended up in the gravel trap. Vergne ended the day as the overall fastest driver, even with a slower time during the afternoon, and ended up leading a Carlin Motorsport 1, 2, 3 – Vergne's team mates James Calado and Adriano Buzaid finished the second and third fastest drivers on the day, and the third and fourth fastest over the 2 days.
Speaking after the test, Vergne said: “We had a good test,” before adding: “I think we learned a lot about the car and the circuit and I was very happy to finish quickest overall. I think we are really making some good steps forward now. With every session I feel I know more about the car and feel more comfortable.”
Fortec Motorsports Formula Renault Graduate Oli Webb ended the opening day of the test as the fastest driver, and his fastest time on Monday was fast enough to classify him in 2nd for the 2 days.
Raikkonen Robertson Racing team mates Daisuke Nakajima and Carlos Huertas finished 5th and 6th fastest on the 2 day test classification.
The National Class was again dominated by F3 graduate Menasheh Idafar and the T-Sport team, even though he was pushed close by visiting Indonesian Rio Haryanto, who is looking to enter some British F3 races alongside a GP3 campaign. Haryanto tested with Team West-Tec and is the reigning Formula BMW Pacific Champion.
The 2010 Cooper Tyres British Formula 3 International Series will have a one day test at Oulton Park on the 10th March. Oulton Park hosts the opening 3 rounds of the season over the Easter weekend, the 3rd and 5th April.
Photo credit: Jakob Ebrey Photography
