Zoom A new venue for the Formula One teams in Portugal

Today marked the first Formula One test at the impressive new Autodromo Internacional do Algarve facility in Portugal for McLaren Mercedes.

Gary Paffett spent the majority of the day in the KERS-equipped MP4-23K putting further mileage on the electrical unit and 2009-spec front wing.

He also carried out some brief running in the 23A in a bid to more accurately assess the set-up required for this new circuit. Paffett completed 63 laps with a best time of 1:31.788s, 1.1 seconds ahead of Ferrari rival Felipe Massa who ended his day early after unwell.

Pedro de la Rosa takes over for the remaining two days of this single-car test.

E.A. © CAPSIS International