Ferrari’s world champ sets pace in French test

Kimi Raikkonen was quickest on the second day of testing at the Paul Ricard circuit in Le Castellet, France. The reigning world champion’s best lap - he completed 102 - was less than a tenth of a second faster than that of second-place man, Heikki Kovalainen. The BMW Sauber of Bobby Kubica was third-fastest. Full timesheet from the day coming up next…

Technical notes from the Paul Ricard circuit

Honda’s biggest aero tweak for the current French F1 test session is this pair of developed elephant ears - or rabbit ears, if you prefer - on the car’s nose cone. The struggling team has fixed endplates to the ears, in a bid to improve downforce ahead of this month’s Monaco GP - the famous Monte Carlo street circuit is a high-downforce track, y’see.

McLaren No.1 leads the way in French test

Lewis Hamilton was fastest on the first day of testing at the short Paul Ricard circuit in Le Castellet, France. The Brit was half a second quicker than world champion Kimi Raikkonen of Ferrari, with BMW Sauber’s rising star, Robert Kubica, in third. Only ten drivers took to the track, one from each team. For a full rundown of the drivers and their times, click below: