By Huw Alban
February 17 2006

The anti-s out there are probably loving this – Midland permanently at the bottom of the pre-season timesheets, technical problems today, Tiago off the track today, Christijan off yesterday – but here at MF1O we see things a little more positively. Today, Tiago Monteiro took the wheel of the M16 in what was supposed to be a full days running in the new car. However, technical problems and an off-track excursion limited track time and gave the team mechanics plenty to do.

Midland turned the occasion into an opportunity though, concentrating again on setup and tyre development.

“Today was not quite as productive as some of the days we've had this week, but that's the nature of the sport,” Tiago said in the team press release. “It was a tough run for me, and we had to deal with a few problems. On a positive note, we have a much better understanding of the new compounds Bridgestone is giving us, and that is what we will have to concentrate on in Barcelona next week, in preparation for Bahrain.”

Today’s test saw the last outing for the interim EJ15B, with Christijan taking the honors and completing the team’s tyre testing programme. According to the team press release this evening there is a lot of data to look over and examine as a result of the mileage put in using this car.

Adrian Sutil found time today to put in another 55 laps on the EJ15B and the team were very pleased with his attitude. “Adrian turned in a very impressive performance today,” said the team press release. “His approach to familiarising himself with the car and his motivation to consistently improve his lap times with every new set of tyres reinforced the team's faith in his abilities. We look forward to working with him again in the future.”

This week has been one of mixed emotions for me – concern on Tuesday, moving to growing confidence today. Despite the dramas of today, the team are doing what they need to – they’re testing the car, working out the weaknesses, learning what makes it tick, and then putting all of that into practice. None of what we’ve seen this week means anything anyway – the competitive race track is where it counts – and from what I’ve seen this week Midland are preparing themselves very nicely indeed.

Tiago Monteiro, in his week summary for the team press release, appears to share my sentiment. “Overall, though, it's been a great week. We've definitely seen some significant improvements. The new car is evolving and continues to cover a large amount of miles without any major issues. I'm really happy with the reliability, and the lap times are improving every day.”

The team now move to Barcelona for another three day test with Tiago Monteiro taking centre stage on Tuesday. “I'm looking forward to running in Barcelona next week and getting a chance to further develop the car,” he concluded this evening.

Full list of times from Valencia:

1. K. Raikkonen - McLaren Mercedes MP4/21 - 1'09"976 (+0"000) - 80 laps
2. G. Fisichella - Renault R26 - 1'10"918 (+0"942) - 83 laps
3. D. Coulthard - Red Bull Ferrari RB2 - 1'11"068 (+1"092) - 34 laps
4. H. Kovalainen - Renault R26 - 1'11"074 (+1"098) - 161 laps
5. P. de la Rosa - McLaren Mercedes MP4/21 - 1'11"262 (+1"286) - 113 laps
6. C. Albers – MF1 Racing EJ15B - 1'13"062 (+3"086) - 52 laps
7. A. Sutil – MF1 Racing EJ15B - 1'13"513 (+3"537) - 58 laps
8. T. Monteiro – MF1 Racing M16 - 1'13"812 (+3"836) - 55 laps