After Red Bull junior team member, Sebastien Buemi tested for Scuderia Toro Rosso on Wednesday, yesterday it was the turn of a more established F1 name to try out the cockpit of the STR3 in testing at Jerez, and it came in the shape of Takuma Sato, the popular Japanese grand prix driver who has raced for Jordan, BAR and Super Aguri during the last seven seasons.

Just days after Sebastian Vettel sensationally won the rain-soaked Italian Grand Prix at Monza, to hand Scuderia Toro Rosso its first ever F1 win, the little team is now trying out his successors, as the 21-year-old German star is heading for a drive with the senior Red Bull squad for 2009. Buemi and Sato are just two of the many names that the Faenza-based team are evaluating this autumn with a view to a seat for next year.

Sato, who last raced in F1 in this year’s Spanish Grand Prix spent the early part of the session, working on set-up to get a feel for the car, while also completing an aero test which produced positive results. The team was pleased with the work he did, clearly demonstrating his previous experience in a grand prix car. However, when the rain arrived mid-afternoon, it was decided to bring the test to an end, as the team had nothing to evaluate in wet conditions and did not want to take any risks with a driver new to the car. Sato, who has started 90 grands prix since he graduated to F1 with Jordan in 2002, turned in a best lap at the wheel of chassis STR3-02 was in 1:19.574. He completed 49 laps.