F1 test in Jerez: Schumacher fastest on the second day

Michael Schumacher closed the second day of Formula 1 testing in Jerez with the best time. The German from Mercedes, at the wheel of the 2011 car, preceded Mark Webber on his second day of testing with the new Red Bull RB8.

Schumacher's time of 1.18.561 from the morning remained unbeaten in the afternoon with the seven-time world champion busy analyzing the new Pirelli tyres. His best time was achieved in a short run on soft tires which saw Schumacher leapfrog Webber into the lead. It was a more productive day for Red Bull after yesterday's initial problems: Webber gradually lowered his times to 1'19"184 before focusing on long runs in the afternoon.

Daniel Ricciardo with Toro Rosso is third after completing 100 laps with a best time of 1.19.587 and precedes Jules Bianchi (Force India). The French tester then handed the wheel over to Paul di Resta who finished sixth behind Kimi Raikkonen (Lotus). The Finn himself caused the first of today's two red flags when he ran wide on the first run and ended up in the gravel. The second red flag was displayed due to the presence of oil on the track. Raikkonen was then involved in another off-track crash at the end of the afternoon session. In total the Lotus driver completed 117 laps.

Ferrari still far from the top, Felipe Massa continued his work on evaluating the aerodynamics of the F2012, closing the day 1"893 behind with a best time of 1.20.454.

Jenson Button is eighth with McLaren and like the Brazilian he seems not to have sought outright performance with his MP4-27. Tenth time for Sergio Perez with the new Sauber ahead of Pastor Maldonado's Williams.

F1 Jerez Test Times, second day:

Pos Driver Team Time Laps 1. Michael Schumacher Mercedes 1m18.561s 132 2. Mark Webber Red Bull 1m19.184s + 0.623 97 3. Daniel Ricciardo Toro Rosso 1m19.587s + 1.026 100 4. Jules Bianchi Force India 1m20.221s + 1.660 46 5. Kimi Raikkonen Lotus 1m20.239s + 1.678 117 6. Paul di Resta Force India 1m20.272s + 1.711 69 7. Felipe Massa Ferrari 1m20.454s + 1.893 95 8. Jenson Button McLaren 1m20.688s + 2.127 85 9. Sergio Perez Sauber 1m20.711s + 2.150 68 10. Pastor Maldonado Williams 1m21.197s + 2.636 97 11. Heikki Kovalainen Caterham 1m21.518s + 2.957 139 12. Pedro de la Rosa HRT 1m22.128s + 3.567 64