Robert Doornbos testreport from Jerez de la Frontera

JEREZ DE LA FRONTERA, JULY 20 2006 - Under tropical conditions, Robert Doornbos completed his two-day testing programme at Jerez de la Frontera for RBR today. With two hot Grand Prix ahead of the Milton-Keynes based team, Robert and his teammate David Coulthard evaluated Michelin tyres, tested several new aerodynamic components and practised a lot of starts.

ROBERT DOORNBOS: “It’s really very hot here, but this suited us just fine as we planned to complete an extensive programme for the upcoming two GP’s. With several quick bends but also some slow hairpins, the Jerez circuit has many comparisons with Hockenheim and Budapest. No wonder, most of the teams are here to test as well!”

“David and I had a lot to do these two days, but as we have similar driving styles and have the same thoughts on how we want to set up the car, we really made progress. Both of us tested new Michelin tyres, and practised quite a lot of starts. We also focussed on how to keep the temperature in our tyres in low speed situations like installation laps or when the safety-car is employed. Last weekend, David unfortunately missed out on points as he lost a position to Heidfeld at the start. We have changed a few settings, practised a lot of starts and it seems that we gained an advantage.”

Today I also tested some new ‘gadgets’ on the car which will be introduced soon. As usual, I pushed 100% and both my engineers and I are pretty satisfied with the outcome of this test so far. Also our laptimes prove to be pretty competitive here, so I look forward to the Free Practises in Hockenheim. I hope that the same amount of Dutch fans will show up there again as they did last year!”

WEDNESDAY JULY 19 2006: Robert Doornbos, 53 laps, P07, 1:18.982
THURSDAY JULY 20 2006: Robert Doornbos, 48 laps, P10, 1:19.104

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