Racing Engineering Abu Dhabi test report day 2

Racing Engineering satisfied with the first two days of testing in Abu Dhabi

Rodolfo Gonzalez, Andrea Caldarelli and James Jakes were the three drivers Racing Engineering put at test during the first two days of winter testing at the Yas Marina circuit in Abu Dhabi. Rodolfo Gonzalez, who competed in the 2010 GP2 Series, quickly adapted to the Racing Engineering car and finished the test day in an excellent 4th position. Andrea Caldarelli, the young Italian who participated in the Italian Formula 3 championship in 2010, was with Racing Engineering during both days and finished every single session within the top 10. Andrea was joined by James Jakes for the second day and the Briton finished the afternoon session setting the eleventh fastest time, leaving no doubt that much more would have been possible.

Numerous red flags during all sessions forced the drivers in the Racing Engineering cars to slow down while on their fast laps - and often when a new set of tyres was mounted. But even though their lap times could have been better without the influence of external factors, Racing Engineering saw the potential of each of them and is very satisfied with the work conducted during the last two days.

Rodolfo Gonzalez: "I was really happy with the final result of my test day with Racing Engineering. The team was really supportive and we have made steady progress throughout the day which was also shown in the lap times. I would like to thank the team for this test. I am really happy with the improvements made and the results achieved. It would have been nice to test a second day."

Andrea Caldarelli: "I am quite happy of the work we did. It was the first time for me to drive in Abu Dhabi and I only did one day of testing last year in a GP2 car in Paul Ricard. I felt well within the team, with the engineers and how the car is responding. All my work and the one of the engineers has gone in a good direction. I improved steadily and with each lap. I am, obviously, still missing a bit of confidence in the car and could also improve my driving even more. I'm really happy, although the lap times could have been a bit better. We know that I could have marked a 1:47,.6, but I wasn't able to finish my fast lap due to traffic on several occasions. But overall I am happy with the performance and would like to thank the team for these two days."

James Jakes: "Thanks to Racing Engineering for today's test. It was really enjoyable to work with the team. I think we've made some good compromises and it looks very positive. By adapting to each other, we've improved this afternoon and are only three tenths of a second off P3. Obviously, it is difficult with only two sets of new tyres to get the optimum, but we know that given more time, we could achieve great results. "

Alfonso de Orleans-Borbon, President of Racing Engineering: "The drivers we tested during these two days , Andrea, Rodolfo and James, did great. It's nice to see young talent coming up through the ranks. All three drivers we tested these two days are definitely ready to achieve good results in GP2. So once we test the other four later in the week, we should have a good idea of the line up for next season."

-source: racing engineering