The last test of 2002 begins

Nick and HHF
By Phil Huff
December 12 2002

Sauber Petronas began its final test of the year in Barcelona, at the Circuit de Catalunya today, running the 2002 specification C21 cars for Heinz-Harald Frentzen and Nick Heidfeld.

Frentzen completed 83 laps while Heidfeld, who was not feeling very well, managed just 28 laps.

Jacky Eeckelaert (Head of Vehicle Engineering) said "The weather was not good and the track was wet until lunch time. We have therefore adapted our program to cater for this. This morning, Heinz-Harald Frentzen ran a wet tyre program for Bridgestone and concentrated on aerodynamic in the afternoon. Nick felt better in the afternoon and conducted a program of damper development." Oh, the irony.

Sauber returnee Frentzen commented "We had not expected it to be wet today, but we made the best of the conditions and thanks to the reliability of the car we were able to get plenty of data."

Heidfeld said "I felt slightly feverish this morning, which made it uncomfortable to drive the car. I was better this afternoon. I'll feel fit for the rest of the test."

P	Driver	Team	Engine	Car	Tyre	Best Lap	Laps
1	L Badoer	Ferrari	Ferrari	F2002	B	1:19.162	71
2	HH Frentzen	Sauber	Petronas	C21	B	1:20.350	83
2	N Heidfeld	Sauber	Petronas	C21	B	1:20.944	28