Ferrari test driver leads the way after first day in Spain

Ferrari test driver Luca Badoer (pictured), filling in for Kimi Raikkonen and Felipe Massa, set the fastest time on the first day of testing at Barcelona.

The 37-year-old Italian, a test driver at Maranello for almost a decade, set the pace early in the morning and held the top spot throughout the day - rain in the afternoon prevented any of the other drivers from setting a serious time.

The Circuit de Catalunya is crap. Discuss…

Yet again the pole sitter won in Spain, a damning indictment of a track that allows almost zero overtaking. Put yourself in Bernie Ecclestone’s tiny, handmade leather shoes – would you scratch the Spanish GP from next season’s F1 calendar? Vote below:

Grid Crasher dishes out the green and red lights after an eventful race in Barcelona

Five winners:

1. Kimi Raikkonen He hardly put a wheel wrong all weekend and kept team-mate Felipe Massa at bay with ease. Seems very happy with the set-up of his Ferrari now, which is ominous news for the rest of the field. Who can stop him retaining his world title now?

2. Lewis Hamilton As we predicted, the British driver bounced back after a nightmare race in Bahrain – his gutsy move on Robert Kubica essentially ensured a place on the podium. However, the McLaren is still a good half second off the pace of Ferrari, which means he could struggle to climb higher than the third step this season.

Barcelona football star attends Spanish Grand Prix

Little Lionel Messi was one of several non-motorsport celebs to show their face at the Circuit de Catalunya for the Spanish Grand Prix. The Argentine maestro was rested at the weekend for Barca’s Primera Liga game against Deportivo (they lost 2-0), allowing him the opportunity to check out the four-wheeled action.

The best photos from race day in Barcelona

Local hero Fernando Alonso strolls around the paddock before the start of the race.

Some of the best snapshots from Barcelona, as the drivers prepare to do some driving

Renault’s Fernando Alonso dons his racing overalls to promote a driving video game.

Grid Crasher guesses uses expert judgment to forecast ten things that may happen this weekend in Barcelona

1. The grid girls in Spain (see above for the 2007 models) will show more flesh than the grid girls in Bahrain.

2. No fans will be stupid enough to black up in “support” of Lewis Hamilton. Probably.

3. Max Mosley will not turn up wearing a cheap Groucho Marx “glasses and false nose” disguise.

Build-up to Spanish Grand Prix starts today. Bet here

Our bet-happy friends at Chicken Dinner have come up with ten reasons why Lewis Hamilton won’t win this weekend’s Spanish GP. Grid Crasher wouldn’t dare cut and paste the whole story, but we’ll reveal a couple of their reasons, as a cheeky tempter:

There hasn’t been a British winner in Spain since Damon Hill in 1994.

McLaren have won one of the last seven Spanish GP, to Ferrari’s five wins.

Head over to Chicken Dinner for the full skinny, and also for a free £25 bet with Betfair: LINK

Seven-time world champion tests new Bridgestone slicks in Spain

Your eyes don’t deceive you – it’s Herr Schumi back in red Ferrari overalls, in a photo taken just hours ago. The German F1 legend is helping the Italian team evaluate new Bridgestone slick tyres this week, during F1’s first European test session of the season. How did he do? As you might expect, he’s still got it. In today’s test session at the Circuit de Catalunya, only Fernando Alonso went faster than Schumacher (at time of writing, at least). Grid Crasher still has the feeling that F1 hasn’t seen the end of Schumi quite yet.

Grid Crasher rounds up the key stories from testing in Spain

Day One (Monday): Ferrari’s Felipe Massa set the fastest pace at Barcelona’s Circuit de Catalunya on day one of the four-day F1 test session. Nine teams were in action, each fielding a single car, with the majority evaluating new components and aerodynamic packages ahead of the Spanish Grand Prix. [Official F1 site]

Day Two (Tuesday): Force India driver Vitantonio Liuzzi hailed Bridgestone’s slick tyres as “amazing” after testing with them for the first time yesterday. The Italian test driver was also working with a 2009 aero configuration, with less downforce in his car. [Autosport]