Sahara Force India: Jerez Test Report, 8 February 2013

Sahara Force India completed its fourth and final day of testing in Jerez as Jules Bianchi shared driving duties with Paul Di Resta.

Day Four Statistics:Chassis: VJM06-02Laps: Jules = 56 laps / Paul = 49 lapsMileage: Jules = 248 km / Paul = 217 kmFastest lap: Jules = 1:18.175 / Paul = 1:23.435Classification: Jules = P2 / Paul = P12

Jules Bianchi: “My first experience of the new car was very positive and it’s clearly an improvement over last year’s car. I spent most of the time on the medium tyres, but I got a chance to run the softs as well and they offered a lot of grip so I enjoyed that. It was also nice to do some long runs, so I’ve felt the car on heavy fuel, which is good for my experience. I’m pleased the team asked me to help out this week and I’m happy with how things went today.”

Paul Di Resta: “Overall it’s been a positive test. We’ve worked our way through the programme set by the factory, done some aero mapping, explored the set-up and gathered lots of data. We covered a lot of laps and I’m feeling comfortable with the car. The main challenge at the moment is learning about the tyres, but we have lots of information to help us move in the right direction before the Barcelona test.”

Jakob Andreasen, Chief Race Engineer“We leave Jerez feeling pretty satisfied with the work we have completed and what we have learned about the VJM06. We’ve completed a lot of aero mapping and carried out a big tyre evaluation programme, so reviewing all that data will be our focus in the build-up to the Barcelona test. It’s good that we have a ten-day break because that should give us enough time to evaluate our performance and really understand where we stand. As always, the trackside guys have worked incredibly hard this week, supported by the factory, and that has allowed us to maximise the time on track with the new car.”