Pedro De la Rosa satisfied after the latest Pirelli test session
Pedro De la Rosa became the official test driver for Pirelli, the tyre manufacturing company that is expected to provide tyres for Formula 1 next season. Pedro tested for 7000-kilometers at the Le Casellet circuit in France. The test session was carried
out using a Toyota TF109 car.
De la Rosa is one of the most experienced Formula 1 drivers and has been driving on the French track since 2006. Pedro had to test the soft and super-soft compounds over close tight corners and long straights on the testing track to ensure that Pirelli provides
the most suitable tyres for the 2011 Formula 1 season.
“These have been two of the most productive days of testing that we have seen yet, and I'm particularly encouraged by the consistency of the times that we managed to set on both the short and the long runs, demonstrating that the tyres are quick to reach
a constant level of peak performance,” said De la Rosa.
Pedro believes that he could not test the slick tyres properly due to damp conditions but managed to test the wet compound before the track dried. After that, the Spaniard carried out a number of runs with the slick tyres using the soft compound before testing
the longer straights.
“There were a number of interesting solutions that we have started to investigate in depth. We enjoyed perfect reliability from the car and the tyres, which allowed us to cover more than a thousand kilometres and take some important steps forward in the
development programme,” he added.
The second day of testing was relatively more consistent since the weather was sunny enabling Pedro to work on the tyre’s construction. The Spaniard provided Pirelli with some vital information before switching to super-soft compound rubber for the first
time in these test sessions.
The super-soft compound was tested in the same way as the softs were tested, to provide the cars with maximum grip and performance. Pirelli eventually called it a day and it seems that the tyre manufacturers are very satisfied with their product.
After a week’s break, Pedro will continue the test session for two more days at the Le Castellet and take advantage of the track’s latest features in order to complete the European series of test sessions before the 2010 season ends and the teams get their
hands on the tyres for the first time.
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