Sato tops first day of winter testing

F1 Test, Barcelona, Circuit de Catalunya

Winter testing officially started today at the Spanish Circuit de la Catalunya in Barcelona. Takuma Sato, who was testing for Toro Rosso, was the fastest man on track followed by Sebastian Buemi and Alexander Wurz. Testing will continue tomorrow.

As Toro Rosso ran its car in normal configuration, it was obviously the fastest today. The two drivers together also amassed 238 laps.

Honda meanwhile ran its modified RA108 with a temporary KERS system installed. They did however not introduce anything new on the aerodynamic side until late in the day when they debuted their 2009-spec front wing.

Renault, who have earlier declared they will not make an interim car for testing purposes were running their R28 with low downforce, seamingly with the Monza specification front and rear wing.

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BMW Sauber drew all the attention to them as they are the first to actually test a car with a new bodywork and their KERS system fully installed. The new aerodynamic package consisted of the wide and low front wing, a small rear wing and new curvy sidepods complying with 2009 regulations.

The Ferrari F2008K was also on track, running ballast where the KERS system is about to be positioned during further winter testing. The car was however equipped with a new cooling solution with inlets on top of the sidepod and on the outer sides of the car's floor.