FEBRUARY 10, 2002

F2002 makes impressive debut at Fiorano

MICHAEL SCHUMACHER gave the new Ferrari F2002 it's first test at the team's Fiorano circuit, and quickly showed the car's potential by breaking the track record.

The world champion completed 67 laps, the fastest in a time of 58.62s. "The new car's debut today was very promising," said Schumacher. "I had a good feeling from the first moment I was driving the F2002."

The team is still undecided on which car they will start the 2002 season with. If the new car proves reliable over the next few weeks of testing, the Scuderia are expected to use it in Melbourne on March 3rd, but they conveniently have last years world championship winning car as a backup if the F2002 needs a bit more time to be developed.