Raikkonen once again topped the timesheets on the penultimate day of testing in Bahrain, forcing some commentators to question whether they had been dropped into the film Groundhog Day, where the lead actor Bill Murray was forced to relive the same day over and over again until he became a better person! The World Champion set a time of 1:30.015 around the Bahrain International Circuit in Sakhir, two tenths faster than team-mate Felipe Massa, and almost one second ahead of the lead Toyota of Jarno Trulli.
However, as quick as the F2008 may be, today the Ferrari team suffered failures on both cars. An oil leak was identified on Raikkonen s car, and Massa, who experienced hydraulic issues yesterday, finished his day with engine failure. Raikkonen completed 61 laps despite problems early on, and Massa a total of 70.
Toyota, as mentioned yesterday, completed a full race simulation. Both drivers completed mock practice and qualifying sessions, before being fuelled for a long distance run.
The fastest time recorded during qualifying for the Bahrain Grand Prix last season was 1:31.359, Kimi today set a time 1.3 seconds faster than that. Read Chris Hayes s article What can be read into Raikkonen s pace? for more insight into what we can expect from the 28 year old Finn and the Ferrari team when the season officially starts in just over one months time.
