Tiago got back behind the wheel

Rookie of the Year for the 2005 Formula One championship season, Tiago Monteiro, was back in action after a two month break, the Portuguese driver taking to the Jerez circuit in Southern Spain at the wheel of the Toyota powered Midland contender.

During his first day of action, Tiago was in charge of the team’s first development program and adaptation of the Jordan Toyota EJ15B to the new technical regulations for the 2006 season, namely the transition from V10 litres to V8 2.4 litres. Tiago was particularly happy to be handed this important program for Alex Shnaider’s team, but his day was somewhat hampered by a string of mechanical gremlins.

Tiago Monteiro “The car is very different; it is a hybrid which is powered by a V8 engine that I had to adapt to initially. Unfortunately we had a few problems in the morning, in regard to the fuel pump. In the afternoon the gear box was the issue and finally I had to be satisfied with just 20 laps or so, a lot less than I would normally have done. We have 120cv less than the V10, which makes a considerable difference. I ran constantly ran with a lot of fuel on board, more than 80 litres, so as not to take the risk of any issues due to fuel pressure problems.”

The Portuguese driver will work alongside new MidlandF1 teammate, Christijan Albers, for the first time today and he is looking forward to a good partnership with the Dutchman.

“We are the official drivers, we must do our best and help the team move forward during this week of testing.”