Formula One news

'Bring back testing' - Kovalainen

Heikki Kovalainen would like to see the in-season testing ban abolished and return to circuit driving during the season. Governing body the FIA put a stop to testing outside of race weekends this year in a bid to cut costs although the rule has been brought up several times due to safety concerns.

2009 is the first year of the testing ban

Although it can be argued that complacency has found its way into Formula One teams surrounding the appointment of race-ready drivers, several have raised points over the testing ban regulation as replacement reserve drivers have been unable to drive an F1 car on a circuit until the Friday practice session of a race weekend. The rule has also made development harder, with teams being unable to test new components between races.

"As a driver, I'd prefer to get the testing back," McLaren's Kovalainen, who is racing for his job next year, told Reuters. "I'm a Formula One driver and I want to drive the car - that's the best part of the job."

The Finn explained that, for the likes of his own team, catching up with the leaders has been close to impossible for most of the season. "The fight last year went on very late so all the top teams - us, Ferrari and BMW - had to develop the car until very late into the season," he explained. "This compromised the work for this year.

Kovalainen tests in Jerez in March

"The testing ban is a big factor because teams like us and Ferrari would have been able to catch up quicker if we'd had more testing; quite a lot of work had to be done in the factory, which is not always as accurate as when you go on the race track. We're also doing a lot of testing on Fridays, which is compromising our setup work a little."

Teams are permitted to limited amounts of straight-line runs for aerodynamic analysis, however, although running on circuits is strictly prohibited. "I think it's the same with other teams, which is why the season has been a bit silly, up and down," Heikki added. "You have to find a balance with the difficult circumstances, you have to do something; for me, the ideal situation would be that we wouldn't limit the driving but we would limit other things."

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