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Vettel 3rd In The First Friday Testing Session
By BMW Sauber F1 Team
March 16 2007
In the first free practice session for the Australian Grand Prix, which began in wet conditions but ended with a dry track, both BMW Sauber F1 Team drivers impressed. Nick Heidfeld was clearly the quickest in the wet, while Sebastian Vettel finished third overall.

When the light at the end of the pit-lane went green for the first practice session of the 2007 season, BMW Sauber F1 Team test and reserve driver Sebastian Vettel was the first to go out. The young German lived up to the performances he delivered in 2006 and held a top position in each of the three stints he completed. Altogether, he covered a total of 22 laps of the 5.303-kilometre Albert Park Circuit. With his personal fastest lap of 1:30.857 minutes he held the lead with just two minutes remaining. In the end however, he had to settle for third position behind McLaren's Fernando Alonso (1:29.214 minutes) and Ferrari's Felipe Massa (1:30.707 minutes).

Nick Heidfeld also delivered in fine style. Unlike his compatriot, the German BMW Sauber F1 Team GP regular completed just one installation lap and one 10-lap stint with 30 minutes of the session remaining. In this stint, however, he outclassed the entire field. Setting a personal fastest lap time of 1:37.249 minutes, he was some two seconds faster than anybody else and only lost his lead when the other drivers went out on dry weather tyres in the closing stages of the 90-minute session.

In the second free practice session (14:00 to 15:30hrs local time, 03:00 to 04:30hrs GMT), Robert Kubica will join Nick Heidfeld to continue the preparations for the qualifying session and the race.

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