Date    Tuesday 11 September  Track   Magny Cours Driver   Sam Bird 

No of Laps  95 laps   Best Lap Time  1:19.094   Kms Covered  419 km Track Length  4.411 km 

Weather   Warm and dry  

MERCEDES AMG PETRONAS began the team's three day Young Driver Test at the Magny Cours circuit today.

- Development driver Sam Bird was at the wheel of the F1 W03 car

- The programme focused on acclimatising Sam to the car and evaluating the team's latest upgrades

- These included a new exhaust package, along with further work on understanding the Pirelli tyres

- A productive day saw Sam complete a total of 95 laps and 419 km over the course of the day

Sam will continue the team's programme for the second day of the test tomorrow.

Sam Bird"We've had a very productive first day of the test today and were able to complete everything that we had planned on our programme. It felt great to be back in the car again and I enjoyed every minute of it. I've driven at Magny Cours previously in a Formula 3 car and it was good to experience it today in a Formula One car. The layout here is nice and smooth whilst also being quite challenging. We've collected a lot of data today which will take some time to sift through this evening and I'm looking forward to another good day tomorrow."

TIMES

Pos Driver   Car    Time Laps 1. Jules Bianchi  Ferrari   1:18.070 87 2. Luiz Razia  Sahara Force India  1:18.535 65 3. Sam Bird  MERCEDES AMG PETRONAS 1:19.094