First Day Practice For Kovalainen

Heikki Kovalainen ended the first day of practice for the United States Grand Prix with the fifth fastest time, despite track-time on his Lotus debut falling short of the expected three hours.

The Finn, called up as replacement for countryman Kimi Raikkonen after he decided to have season-ending back surgery, had not sampled the E21 before the morning practice session, and then found his first lap delayed by heavy fog, which descended on the Circuit of the Americas with little warning. After a long hiatus, Kovalainen was the first driver out on track, but the session was interrupted for a second time after the medical helicopter developed communication problems and needed replacing.

Once allowed to put a few laps together, the Finn – who has only has sporadic FP1 outings with Caterham in 2013 - was quickly up to speed, posting the 13th best time, before greater running after lunch saw him improve to fifth spot as the E21 showed equal promise on both the hard and medium compound tyres.

“It's been a pretty smooth landing,” Kovalainen commented, “We've had no major issues on track today and we just need to keep chipping away to see how good we can get the car for tomorrow and Sunday.

“We lost a bit of track time in the morning, but the car balance was reasonably good straight away. I was able to settle in and work immediately on the set-up and tyre work. All the procedures and routines are quite similar up and down the pit-lane, plus I'm familiar with all the systems from driving with a Renault engine already this year, so it was a pretty straight-forward day.”

Team-mate Romain Grosjean, expected to pick up the mantle of team leader as Raikkonen heads to Ferrari in 2014, was only a couple of tenths slower than his new colleague, as both drivers used the long wheelbase version of the E21, but that left him eighth overall after a number of niggling problems further interrupted his day.

“It was an interesting start to the day, waiting to see what the helicopter would do and, after that, the morning was about finding grip in the cold conditions,” he noted, “The afternoon was much warmer and we were able to complete some good work, although we struggled a bit to get the brakes exactly as I want them on low fuel. But, once that's sorted, we should be well placed for tomorrow. Certainly, the car feels good on the long runs so it's a positive start to the weekend.”

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Successful Surgery For Kimi Raikkonen

Kimi Raikkonen's back surgery has gone ahead as planned and been a complete success, according to a statement released by the Lotus F1 team.

"As planned, Kimi Räikkönen underwent back surgery yesterday at The University Hospital of Strasbourg," read the statement issued shortly before 4pm GMT on Friday.

"Lotus F1 Team is happy to report that the operation was totally successful, according to Professor Afshin Gangi," the statement added. "Kimi will now rest for a few days and he will start his recovery process as early as next week.

"Everyone at the track and at Enstone wishes him a quick recovery."

After it emerged last weekend that Raikkonen had elected to schedule surgery for this week and miss the final two races of the season with Lotus, Raikkonen has been replaced for the US and Brazilian Grand Prix races by fellow Finn Heikki Kovalainen.

The sides of both Lotus cars are sporting a new hashtag slogan, #GetWellSoonKimi as they compete in this weekend's race at the Circuit of the Americas in Austin, Texas.

Fernando Alonso - who will be Raikkonen's team mate at Ferrari next season - has been passed fit to race this weekend after suffering from back pain of his own following an incident at Abu Dhabi in which he was forced to run wide over some aggressive kerbing in a racing incident with Jean-Eric Vergne.

Alonso was photographed secured to a back board as a precaution after the race ended and he was dispatched to hospital for further checks, but Ferrari insisted there was nothing untoward with the Spaniard's condition and that they weren't worried about any long-term problems for their star driver.


crash.net

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Mazda6 SKYACTIV D-Race Car Detroit Auto Show 2013

The latest generation Mazda6 will debut in the world of competition next January 26 in the 24 Hours of Daytona replacing the RX-8 in the category GX. This Japanese company has developed a specific version with SKYACTIV technology and, most curious, a high power diesel engine.

Following many touches on the block, the Mazda6 SKYACTIV-D 2.2-liter increase its power up to 400 hp , a truly impressive figure considering that the standard version develops 150/175 hp. One of the three units of the Mazda6 racecar that can be run at Daytona in Detroit Auto Show 2013 wearing the number 70 and its spectacular aesthetic logically adapted to new circumstance

When one first sees the redesigned Mazda6, one is struck at the overall upgrade to the styling, primarily with the front end grille and rear tail light configuration. The front impresses the eye with a look similar to a blending of a Mercedes and a Volvo (not bad styling company), with the rear leaving one with the feel of a high-end Lexus without the ridging jut of the tail-light. The Mazda6 being smoothed and rounded, say sophisticated.

This announced entrant marks the first time a diesel-powered vehicle of any type will have ever raced at the Rolex 24. Mazda will be seeking their 24th class win in the American endurance classic, having most recently won in 2008 and 2010.

examiner

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