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Rydell fastest at Magny-Cours

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Alfa Romeo, BMW, SEAT and Ford teams have tested for three days in Magny-Cours, from Tuesday to Thursday. Alfa Romeo ran two cars for their four drivers: Farfus, Giovanardi, Tarquini and Thompson. “We are happy with the work done in these three days, which gave important indications”, said Matilde Tomagnini, chief of FIAT Group sporting activities.

“Again we have focused on the balance of the car, and our performances were excellent compared to our competitors,” Tomagnini continued.

SEAT Sport toom part with three cars driven by Gené, Rydell and Terting. The Swede was clocked as the fastest driver over the three days – 3 and 5 tenths faster than Giovanardi and Jörg Müller – confirming that the French track suits very well the Toledo Cupra. All three BMW teams attended the test: BMW Team Deutschland with Dirk and Jörg Müller, BMW Team UK with Priaulx, and BMW Team Italy-Spain with Zanardi and García.

BMW Team Italy-Spain principal Roberto Ravaglia commented: “We had a few problems. First we tested a technical solution that proved to be wrong, then Zanardi’s car was plagued by electrical bugs that prevented the ECU of the driving aid system from working properly.” Priaulx remained one second off Rydell’s fastest lap. “It’s difficult to understand where we really are now, because it’s impossible to say in which configuration the different cars were running,” BMW Team UK team manager Bart Mampaey declared.

At the wheel of a car which is very close to the 2005 full specifications, Jörg Müller was the fastest of the BMW drivers. Him and his BMW Team Deutschland fellow mate Dirk, tested only two days, then they moved to the Nürburgring for taking part in a long distance race on the Nordschleife with a BMW M3 GTR, in preparation of the 24 Hours.

Both Ford Focus cars were also in Magny-Cours with Klenke and Jäger. “We are working so much under pressure now,” Ford Motorsport manager Eberhard Braun admitted. “We were testing with the gear ratios for Monza, meaning that our drivers could not shift up to fifth. Anyway, at this stage lap times are not important to us, and we are rather focusing on the car’s handling and reliability.”