February 11, 2007
Published on tags: Superleague
After months and months of waiting for some action and the first Winter Test session seems to have passed in the blink of an eye…
But quite an eye-opening blink it was!The results show that there are quite a few heavyweights slamming in fantastic fast laps, and even more exciting is the amount of drivers who seem to be punching above their weight given last years results. The 3-day test threw up names old and new on the results leaderboard and all teams showed a strong presence throughout. Apart from gaining valuable data and drivers premiering their driving abilities, most of the teams ensured that they took home the most important prize of maximum points to expand their quests for perfect performance and maximum speed.

Dominating the top three positions on the first 2 days were 3 names…
2 veterans of the league, and 1 rookie!

DAY 1
Eire’s Jorge Caranti set the pace with a (1.17.688) with Steve Elencevski a (0.066) whisker behind him in the FinOz, closely followed by new comer Alberto Martin who placed 3rd with an impressive (1.17.870) maiden lap for his new team Bracciano.

DAY 2
The roles were switched slightly with Elencevski (0.797) and Caranti (0.577) adrift of Martin, who slammed in a searing (1.16.885) lap. However Elencevski can be forgiven as his (1.17.682) lap was impressively achieved on his 13th lap, showing that he was driving a hybrid set-up most closely matched to a race breed than a test car.
The first bold sign of race pace rather than just qualifying speed!

DAY 3
However Laurent Keersmaeke joined in and spoiled their party by setting a blistering pace with a (1.16.301) in the Simsoa-VR, beating Martin by an incredibly close (0.004)
Caranti ensured his 3 day top 3 finishes with a (1.16.906)

The Best of the Rest were:
David Brown (Stealth) 1.17.921 (Day 3)
Kari Koski (FinOz) 1.18.012 (Day 3)
Matias Trosset (KOT) 1.18.101 (Day 2)
Javier Aparicio (Simsoa-VR) 1.18.492 (Day 2)
Keiran Ryan (FinOz) 1.18.495 (Day 2)
Leontin Nemet (Vod:Bul) 1.18.611 (Day 3)

Most notable however were Adam Rouse (Vod:Bul) doing a fantastic job of knocking on the door of the top 3 on both his test days ( Day 2 / 1.18.065 / Day 3 / 1.17.871) firmly showing his determination to improve on the back of last seasons ‘Rookie of the Year’ Award and instead prove himself a podium contender for 2007.
Also Wilhelm Frueh (KOT) who drove a textbook testing role over the 3 day spread, from Day 1 he gradually improved and grinded down his final day lap times by almost 2 seconds, going from 10th, to 8th, to finally 7th position on the leaderboard.

Top Speed was attained by Martin Buchan in the Bracciano, he was clocked doing (308.52kmh) but when you take into account that the top 4 times were all clocked nearer the 298.00 mark it gives an important insight into set-ups and grip, and as we all learn, top speed does not always equal a quick laptime!

So all in all a successful first winter test weekend that leaves us with a valuable insight into the ability of the teams, the car, and their drivers. There is no doubt that it’s fast going on the hotlaps, but we have a few months to wait to see if these performances, along with stamina and focus can pull off a podium finish in the first full race of the 2007 Season.

A very promising start, to hopefully an amazing season!