By Parminio
April 15 2005

At Barcelona, McLaren got off to a good start having the top time for day 2, but Jenson Button for BAR blasted around the circuit for a new track record. Where the new found speed for BAR has come from is anyones guess. In preperation for the San Marino Grand Prix, all teams have been testing at Barcelona and just recently at Paul Ricard where BAR set yet another track record.

McLaren have been doing a great deal of tire compound and setup testing trying desperately to correct the problem of not getting enough heat into the tires. After the race at Bahrain, McLaren revealed that the biggest problem was that the car was 'too good' to it's tires.

Some sources are suggesting that Michelin simply isn't providing a soft enough compound for McLaren. This is a bit hard to believe however as Renault are having such tremendous success with a very similar tire. One wonders if once again the suspension geometry of the McLaren has been sacrificed in favor of the aerodynamics.

McLaren have suffered with low speed understeer since the MP4-18 began testing. That car was never raced. The MP4-19 did race however, and suffered the same problem: Low speed understeer. That tends to suggest that the mechanical grip of the car is simply not there.

BAR have been suffering a similar fate, but reports suggest that the front spoiler has been a major culprit in the cars problems. It's going to be interesting to find out if McLaren and BAR, who have topped the time sheets in both test sessions lately, have sorted out their issues or if both are in fact 'hot lapping' to impress.