Just forty eight hours after the ending to the 2010 F1 World Championship, Scuderia Ferrari was back on the same Yas Marina circuit that hosted Sunday's Abu Dhabi Grand Prix, for the first of two days of testing for young drivers. Driving for the Maranello squad, and back at the wheel of an F10, was Bianchi who is part of the Ferrari Driver Academy, which aims to bring on young talent.

For Bianchi, this was his debut in his official role as test driver for the Scuderia and his programme for the opening day (Tuesday) centred mainly on gathering data relating to the handling of the car. The Frenchman covered a total of 58 laps during the day, the quickest in a time of 1.43.894.

“I am happy to have this opportunity to do two days of testing with the F10 and I am pleased to be able to give the team a hand in preparation for next season,” said Jules at the end of the first day. “It was an unusual day, in that we worked exclusively on measuring various parameters, without ever looking for performance. I am learning a lot being here with the team and seeing at first hand how they go about their work. These two days will be extremely useful to get as well prepared as possible for my role as test driver for the Scuderia.”

The two day duration test for the young drivers came to an end late yesterday afternoon for Ferrari and the other Formula 1 teams. Bianchi was again on track for the Scuderia on the second day, tasked with gathering data on the handling of the car and continuing to get to grips with the intricacies of his new role. The Frenchman eventually completed a total of 93 laps of the circuit yesterday, the fastest in 1.39.916.

“The past two days have been very interesting,” commented Jules at the end of the final day, yesterday. “We were able to gather a lot of data to improve our understanding of the handling of the car and for me, it was useful in terms of my work with the team next year. While yesterday we did not run much, today we did a lot of laps and also tried to set some times. The track had improved, also because there were no longer the cones at some corners, so you could cut the line. For me, it was a great way to finish what has been a positive season, given that I finished third in the GP2 championship.”

Although it was a normal day of testing yesterday, it was also a very special one for Ferrari as it brought the curtain down on its long collaboration with Bridgestone in Formula 1. It began in 1998 and since then went on uninterrupted until now: during that time, Ferrari won 14 world titles (6 Drivers and 8 Constructors) and 102 Grands Prix. “I wish to take this opportunity to once again thank Bridgestone for their efforts throughout the many years of our partnership, which saw us enjoy so much success together,” commented Stefano Domenicali. “It has been a pleasure working alongside the people from the Japanese company, getting to know a different company culture to our own and exchanging our experiences always in a professional manner and with a great passion for our work. Arigato gozaimasu, Bridgestone!” Ferrari resumes testing at this track tomorrow when Felipe Massa will be on track.

Test details: Circuit: Yas Marina Circuit – 5.554 km; Driver: Jules Bianchi; Car: Ferrari F10; Weather: Tuesday - air temperature 24/30 °C, track temperature 23/39 °C. Sunny; Wednesday - air temperature 24/30 °C, track temperature 23/39 °C. Sunny.