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This is F1 minute and today is the 22nd July 2008.

All ten teams turned up in Jerez for the first day of testing this morning, and by the afternoon, Vettel was top of the leaderboard. He beat Paffett in the McLaren and Badoer in the Ferrari. The only other racing driver out there was Trulli who finished 7th. The day was not without it’s mishaps though.

BMW were testing out their new KERS, but when a mechanic touched the car, he received an electric shock.  He fell to the ground, and later went to the medical centre but was unharmed. BMW were understandably cautious, and Klien didn’t complete any timed laps in the car. The team have also now decided to halt testing the system for now.

Elsewhere today, Toyota have confirmed that Glock will be back in action on Thursday, and Glock himself says: “It was a really hard impact and my back hurt immediately after I got out of the car but now it is fine. Actually, it looked worse on TV than it really was.”

That’s all for today, please join me again tomorrow for another F1 Minute.

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This is F1 Minute for the 1^st February 2008.

Lewis Hamilton posted the fastest time at the first of a three day test in Barcelona, beating Alonso in the Renault by over half a second. BMW were third but the big surprise came in the form of Fisichella, putting his Force India car in fourth. There were plenty of red flags, Webber and Coulthard causing one each, and McLaren test driver Gary Paffett causing no less than three.

Red Bull also hit headlines today with a new development on their car, a strange and quite large engine cover fin. It’s designed to help add stability to the car, after the new ECU regulations mean less control under braking. Despite surprise from the rest of the grid, Red Bull have already noted some improvement thanks to the fin.

Also in Barcelona, Kazuki Nakajima was involved in a high speed crash, caused by a technical problem with the front wing. The Williams driver walked away unhurt after the accident, but the team decided to call off Rosberg’s run until they’d established the problem. They expect to resume testing tomorrow.

That’s all for this week, enjoy the testing over the weekend and I’ll be back on Monday for another F1 Minute.

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Today is the 8^th January 2008, I’m Christine and this is F1 Minute.

Today is a day for looking forward. Super Aguri have announced they will be launching their new car in February. It will be revealed and take to the track in Barcelona on the 19^th.

Force India have announced they will be confirming their second driver on Thursday. Pitpass reports they have an incredibly reliable source telling them that Fisichella has been signed, with Tonio Liuzzi as the test driver. Only a few more days and then we’ll know for sure.

McLaren test driver Gary Paffett is looking to 2009 for a chance of a race drive, hoping that Prodrive will be able to get on the grid by then. He says he was very disappointed when Prodrive had to withdraw their 2008 entry, as he felt the links between McLaren and the new team worked in his favour.

Both Ron Dennis and Luca di Montezemolo have been talking up their competitiveness for the season ahead. Dennis was optimistic, saying he couldn’t wait to build on the momentum of last year. Montezemolo was a little more realistic saying the new rules would make things tough but he’s still feeling confident.

That’s all for today, please join me tomorrow for another F1 Minute.

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I’m Christine and this is F1 Minute for Friday the 14^th December 2007.

McLaren have confirmed that Heikki Kovalainen will be joining them as Lewis Hamilton’s partner for 2008, with Pedro de la Rosa and Gary Paffett remaining as third driver and test driver respectively. It’s the second time Kovalainen has replaced Fernando Alonso in a team, after joining Renault in 2007 as the double champ left. Now he fills the Spaniards boots once more, and McLaren believe they have a formidable line up for the new season.

McLaren also announced that they have no plans for a 2008 launch at all, compared to the spectacular display in Valencia this past year. So far it looks like the car will just take to the track at Jerez, with no fanfare, and pictures will be circulated to the media at the same time.

It’s also worth mentioning that Williams have signed Nico Hulkenberg as test driver after he impressed them at Jerez. And it’s probably not worth mentioning, Honda have announced their intention to announce their test driver at some point before Christmas.

That’s all for today, have a great weekend, and join me on Monday for another F1 Minute.