Michael Schumacher was back on track at the wheel of the Ferrari F2007 yesterday in Jerez for the first time since his successful return to the F1 cockpit in testing for the team at Barcelona last month.

Thursday saw third day of testing this week for Scuderia Ferrari, working again, alongside all the other F1 teams, at the Jerez circuit, in southern Spain. While the first day (Tuesday) had seen newly crowned world champion Kimi Raikkonen and tester Marc Gené out on track, and the next day had seen the Finn joined by team mate Felipe Massa, yesterday saw Michael Schumacher back on track for the first time since his successful return to the F1 cockpit in testing for the team at Barcelona last month.

Schumacher was joined on track in the F2007 yesterday by Massa, with the pair working mainly on the development of new components and electronics in preparation for next year's championship. With the new regulations for 2008 outlawing a whole swage of 'driver aids' the Scuderia are tapping into the German's knowledge in this area.

In addition, during the afternoon, Schumacher ran with Bridgestone's experimental tyres aimed at the 2009 season. The day in figures was as follows: 68 laps for Massa, his best time a lap of 1.19.333, and 67 for Schumacher, the quickest being in 1.19.885.

Meanwhile, BMW Sauber’s Robert Kubica was the fastest man in action on Thursday at Jerez during the third day of testing, clocking a best time of 1:19.157 - almost two-tenths of a second quicker than the McLaren of Wednesday’s fastest runner Lewis Hamilton. Kubica was testing for the first time on non-grooved tyres, as Bridgestone continued to evaluate slicks ahead of their possible return in 2009.

Testing continues at this circuit today, again with Michael Schumacher and Felipe Massa on track for the Scuderia.

Unofficial Thursday times from Jerez:

1. Robert Kubica, BMW Sauber, 1:19.157
2. Lewis Hamilton, McLaren, 1:19.331
3. Felipe Massa, Ferrari, 1:19.333
4. Mark Webber, Red Bull, 1:19.605
5. Timo Glock, Toyota, 1:19.687
6. Pedro de la Rosa, McLaren, 1:19.787
7. Nelson Piquet Jr, Renault, 1:19.834
8. Michael Schumacher, Ferrari, 1:19.885
9. Rubens Barrichello, Honda, 1:19.905
10. Nick Heidfeld, BMW Sauber, 1:20.125
11. Nico Rosberg, Williams, 1:20.301
12. Sebastian Vettel, Toro Rosso, 1:20.339
13. Sebastien Bourdais, Toro Rosso, 1:20.507
14. Jarno Trulli, Toyota, 1:20.775
15. Kazuki Nakajima, Williams, 1:20.802
16. Luca Filippi, Honda, 1:20.915
17. David Coulthard, Red Bull, 1:21.055
18. Takuma Sato, Super Aguri, 1:21.093
19. Vitantonio Liuzzi, Force India, 1:21.194
20. Ralf Schumacher, Force India, 1:21.853