Sauber Team News Archive 1996


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Fri, 30-Nov-1996 Now the deal is perfect: Today the Ferrari Team published an official statement that the Sauber Team will get the 1996 V10 engine. The contract about this technical cooperation will last for 2 years. Inofficial reports say that this cooperation will cost the Sauber Team 20 million US-Dollars. Another rumour says, that Bernie Ecclestone himself helped to arrange the deal. The Sauber Team stated that Nicola Larini (I) will drive the second Sauber car besides Johnny Herbert during the next season. At the tests at Estoril Johnny Herbert improved his previous best time. He reached a fastest laptime of 1:21.76 within 14 laps. He was about 2.1 seconds away from Gerhard Berger who set this years test record at Estoril with a 1:19.69 (79 laps).
Thu, 29-Nov-1996 Again the Sauber Team tested car components for 1997. Johnny Herbert drove 46 laps and marked a best laptime of 1:22.06. He was eighth fastest out of nine drivers at Estoril and was about 2.2 seconds slower than Heinz-Harald Frentzen's and Jacques Villeneuve's absolutely fabulous laptimes of 1:19.88/1:19.87.
Wed, 28-Nov-1996 Further tests were made by the Sauber Team at Estoril. Johnny Herbert drove 46 laps with a best laptime of 1:23.89 (26 laps) and was eighth out of ten drivers at this day. He was 3.5 seconds away of Villeneuves best time of 1:20.31.
Tue, 27-Nov-1996 The Sauber Team continued the tests at Estoril. Johnny Herbert drove 24 laps with a best laptime of 1:22.98 performing nearly 2 seconds better than on the day before. He was 7th fastest out of 9 of the day and he was about 2.5 seconds away of Jacques Villeneuves best time of 1:20.41.
Mon, 26-Nov-1996 The Sauber Team made tests like other teams at Estoril/Portugal. Johnny Herbert drove 23 laps with the C15 and with a best laptime of 1:24.89. The team was testing car components for 1997.
Sun, 17-Nov-1996 It has reported that the negotiations between Sauber and Ferrari about the engines now have another aim. Sauber will buy 40 V10 engines of the Suzuka specification and will develop them further with the label of Petronas.
Tue, 12-Nov-1996 Sauber officials have reported on Monday that the Team would drive with Ferrari V10 (!) engines for the next two years! But Ferrari officials demented this today. They said that there were negotiations about a engine-technology-transfer but no transfer of whole engines. Latest reports show that Ferrari stopped the negotiations.
Wed, 23-Oct-1996 There were rumors loud, that Peugeot is not very content with the situation at the Jordan Team and is thinking about supplying Sauber with engines next year. A decision should be made at 29th of October by the French engine manufacturer.
Tue, 15-Oct-1996 German television reported that the Sauber Team will build his own formula one engine. Project manager will be the japanese engineer Osamu Goto the former chief engineer from Honda. He led Honda engines to the victories during the turbocharger era. After that he joined Ferrari and helped them to build powerful engines. Now he joins Sauber. The engine will be a V10 and should be ready for the season 1998. The teams main sponsor Petronas will give financial support. This report is not confirmed officially yet.
Sun, 13-Oct-1996 The warmup session took place on a wet track. Heinz-Harald Frentzen drove the 11th fastest lap (1:54.896) and Johnny Herbert drove the 14th fastest lap (2:02.452). In the race Frentzen lost two positions after a bad start but gained the positions again. In the end he finished on 6th position and gave Peter Sauber the 53rd point of the Team as a birthday present. Peter Sauber had his 53rd birthday on this day. Johnny Herbert ended on 10th position. Damon Hill celebrated his 21st victory and the World Championship. The Sauber Team finished the season on 7th position in the Constructors Championship. After the race Peter Sauber and Heinz-Harald Frentzen went to the Williams pit and Peter Sauber handed Heinz-Harald over to his new team boss Frank Williams ;-). Frank Williams was a little bit surprised but for the first time this year you saw a smile in his face.
Sat, 12-Oct-1996 During the qualifying session Heinz-Harald Frentzen drove the 7th fastest lap with 1:41.277. Johnny Herbert came to a 13th fastest lap with 1:42.658 in the spare car after he had a spin at 250 kph. The car was damaged severely but Johnny escaped unhurt. The session was stopped for 20 minutes to remove the wreck.
Fri, 11-Oct-1996 In the first free practice session Heinz-Harald Frentzen performed the 10th fastest lap with 1:44.598. First the track was wet but dried up during the session. Johnny Herbert came to a best lap of 1:45.194 and this was the 12th fastest lap of the session.
Thu, 26-Sep-1996 Further tests were made by several teams. There were 15 drivers on the track. The Sauber Team made further tests with components for 1997 and did preparations for the Grand Prix at Suzuka/Japan. Heinz-Harald Frentzen came to a best laptime of 1:21.7 while doing 26 laps and ended up at 3rd place of the laptimes table. Johnny Herbert did 20 laps and had a best lap of 1:22.4. He was then 6th overall. Villeneuve performed a unbelievable overall fastest time of 1:20.3 minutes.
Wed, 25-Sep-1996 Again there were nearly all teams - without Ligier - performing tests on the Estoril circuit. There were 18 runners at this day. The Sauber Team tested components for 1997, aerodynamical and mechanical parts. Jean Alesi topped the times with a fastest lap of 1:21.2. Heinz-Harald Frentzen drove 41 laps and had a fastest lap of 1:22.4 which got him 6th fastest overall in the list. Johnny Herbert did 57 laps with a best laptime of 1:23.0 (14.) and Norberto Fontana did a best laptime of 1:23.5 laps (14.) while driving 24 laps.
Tue, 24-Sep-1996 Most of the teams stayed at Estoril after the Grand Prix to perform tests. The Sauber team made tests with Heinz-Harald Frentzen, Johnny Herbert and testdriver Norberto Fontana. This day Herbert and Fontana drove several laps. Johnny Herbert did a best laptime of 1:22.96 within 35 laps. It was the sixth fastest lap of all teams and drivers here. Norberto Fontana drove 70 laps and came to a best laptime of 1:25.11. It was the 14th fastest lap of the 15 runners at Estoril. Michael Schumacher topped the times with a fabulous lap of 1:21.61. But he tested a new Goodyear tyre for 1997.
Sun, 22-Sep-1996 Heinz-Harald Frentzen finished the race in Estoril on 7th position after hving a bad start with loosing 3 places. Johnny Herbert first overtook Frentzen but he had 3 stops while Frentzen had only 2. So Herbert took the checkered flag one position behind Frentzen.
Sat, 21-Sep-1996 It went better for Heinz-Harald Frentzen in the free practice session. He drove the 9th fastest lap. During the qualifying session he gained the 11th place on the starting grid with 1:22.325. Johnny has to start from 12th position (1:22.655). It was reported officially that Johnny Herbert signed a contract for two more years with the Sauber Team.
Fri, 20-Sep-1996 At the free practice sessions on Friday Heinz-Harald Frentzen drove the 10 th fastest lap with a laptime of 1:25.567. Johnny Herbert drove the 19th fastest lap with 1:26.700.
Sun, 15-Sep-1996 The Sauber Team made tests at Mugello/Italy. Heinz-Harald Frentzen drove 61 laps and had a best laptime of 1:29.16.The track had an artificial chicane. The test program included preparations for the GP of Portugal. Heinz-Harald Frentzen confirmed again, that he spoke many times to Frank Williams before making the contract and Frank Williams said to Frentzen that he wants him to only to beat Schumacher and Ferrari in 1997. So Frank Williams is not very optimistic that Jacques Villeneuve is able to beat Schumacher.
Sun, 08-Sep-1996 Before the race team boss Peter Sauber said in an interview that Johnny Herbert wants to stay at the Sauber Team in the season 1997. In the race it didn't went well for the team: In lap 7 of the Grand Prix of Italy at Monza Heinz-Harald Frentzen spun off after hitting a tyre barrier.His right front suspension broke. The same thing happened Damon Hill 3 laps before. Frentzen found himself in the gravel trap and had to retire. Johnny Herbert first held position 6. But there must have been a technical problem therefore he got the 9th place at the end after getting slower. Finally the engine went out at the beginning of the last lap. But then the race was just over.
Sat, 07-Sept-1996 In the free practice sessions Heinz-Harald Frentzen couldn't get a much better laptime than on Friday. He reached a 1:25.954 and position 11. But Johnny Herbert was with a best lap of 1:26.024 about 0.7 seconds faster than on Friday. He reached position 13. In the qualifying session Johnny Herbert outqualified Heinz-Harald Frentzen with a 1:26.345 about 0.16 seconds. Frentzen did a best lap of 1:26.505.
Fri, 06-Sep-1996 At the second free practice session the Sauber drivers were good at work. Heinz-Harald Frentzen had a best lap of 1:25.973 (much faster than in previous tests) and ended at 8th position just behind Damon Hill. Johnny Herbert had a best laptime of 1:26.706 and got the 10th position for the day. By the way: Frentzen said that he signed a contract with Williams for two years not for only one.
Thu, 05-Sep-1996 Today Heinz Harald Frentzen had a big press conference at Monza. He said that he never spoke to more press people than today. But he also said he has to get acquainted with these new circumstances. Frentzen warned Schumacher that he would be a new opponent for him next year. Heinz-Harald said that it was this fact why Frank Williams made a treatment with him.
Wed, 04-Sep-1996 Now it's official: Heinz Harald Frentzen signed a treatment with Frank Williams for the year 1997. The Williams-Renault Team announced this fact in Paris officially. Frentzen will replace Damon Hill. It is not known if Villeneuve or Frentzen will get the number one status in the team. This treatment lasts for one year. With this treatment Frank Williams followed Ayrton Senna's wish who wanted to have Frentzen as second driver in early 1994 instead of Hill. But then Hill already had a treatment with Williams. Senna saw Frentzen's driver abilities in an early stade and was much impressed.
Sun, 01-Sep-1996 Heinz Harald Frentzens manager Ortwin Podlech was in the USA at Saturday to contact IndyCar teams as a security measurement for the future of Heinz-Harald. Meanwhile it was official that Damon Hill wouldn't drive next year for the Williams Team anymore. So it could be that there is a car at Williams Team available for Frentzen for the next season.
Thu, 29-Aug-1996 The Sauber Team made further tests for the Italian GP. This time Johnny Herbert was on duty. He tested a new evolution of the Ford V10 engine in the Sauber C15 and came to a best laptime of 1:27,31 (54 laps) while Michael Schumacher in the Ferrari F310 did a best lap of 1:25,62.
Wed, 28-Aug-1996 Again the Sauber Team made tests for the Italian GP. Frentzen 43 laps with a best laptime of 1:27,655. In comparison Michael Schumacher - who tested the F310 with a new diffusor and the old 6speed gearbox here - came to a best laptime of 1:25,13 while Eddie Irvine with the test car came to a 1:27,10.
Tue, 27-Aug-1996 Today the Sauber Team tested at Monza/Italy. Heinz-Harald Frentzen drove 55 laps and came to a best time of 1:27,33. The team was trying to find the best setup for the Italian GP. The Ferrari Team tested here too. Irvine had a best laptime of 1:26,77. His F310 had the old 6speed gearbox.
Sat, 24-Aug-1996 Desaster for the Sauber Team in the race. First in the warmup all was o.k.: Heinz-HArald Frentzen did the 10th fastest lap (1:55.618) just 1,531 seconds slower than Villeneuve's fastest and Johnny Herbert drove the 13th fastest lap (1:56.039). But then in the race both Saubers collided just after the start at La Source. Heinz-Harald Frentzen said that he was inside and Johnny Herbert came from the outside and drove over his left front wheel. Could be that Panis first nearly crashed into Johnny Herbert's car and Johnny wanted to avoid this. But some seconds later Panis really crashed into Herberts car. So no points again for the Sauber Team.
Sat, 24-Aug-1996 An impressive performance by Heinz-Harald Frentzen again: He drove the 5th fastest lap during the two timed free practice sessions. It was nearly at the end of the second session when he did his personally best laptime of 1:52,977 min. Heinz-Harald then was 2.056 seconds behind Villeneuve's time who was unbelievable 1.707 seconds faster than Coulthard with the 2nd fastest time. Johnny Herbert ended up at 12th position with a 1:54.876 min and 3.955 seconds behind Villeneuve. During the qualifing session it began to rain and Heinz-Harald Frentzen didn't reach his laptime from the practice session. He marked a 1:53.199 min 2.625 seconds behind Villeneuve's pole position time and got 11th position at the starting grid. When it started to rain he had 4 laps left, but it was no use for them. Johnny Herbert had similar problems and with his laptime of 1:53.993 he ended on 12th position just behind Heinz-Harald. Another interesting thing: Heinz-Harald Frentzen's topspeed was 10 kph slower in the first section of the track than the fastest topspeed, but he was the 3rd fastest in the middle section with its lots of corners. Let's hope for rain tomorrow.
Fri, 23-Aug-1996 During the second free practice session at Spa-Francorchamps circuit Johnny Herbert drove the 11th fastest lap. At the end of the second free practice session most of the top team drivers took new tyres to get better laptimes. So did Heinz-Harald Frentzen. He then drove the 5th fastest lap overall. His laptime was 1:54,984 min and he was 1,278 seconds behind the fastest driver Gerhard Berger. Seems that the current version of the Ford engine is more driveable since the drivers have about 50 horsepowers more at lower revolutions and 20 horsepowers at maximum revolution. According to Frentzen the car has now a much better balance and there is less understeer.
Thu, 15-Aug-1996 Sauber made further tests at Mugello circuit/Italy. This time testdriver Norberto Fontana drove 89 laps and reached a best laptime of 1:30,9. Again the test program included aerodynamic setup.
Wed, 14-Aug-1996 Sauber tested the C15 at Mugello circuit/Italy. Frentzen drove 70 laps and had a best laptime of 1:27,15. Again he was more than 2 seconds faster than at the test at 31-Jul-1996 here. The test program included mechanical setup and aerodynamics.
Tue, 13-Aug-1996 The Sauber Team made a test at the revised A1-Ring circuit in Austria with Johnny Herbert and Austrian Le-Mans-Winner Alexander Wurz. The 22 year old Wurz drives currently for the Opel (GM) Company in the International Touringcar Championship (ITC). Herbert did a best lap of 1:17,5 while Wurz had a best laptime of 1:20,5. Meanwhile Heinz-Harald Frentzen did tests for the Sauber Team at Mugello/Italy. He had a best laptime of 1:26,8 and was more than 2 seconds faster than his previous best at 31-Jul-1996 here at the circuit. Some TV commentators got the chance to drive some laps with the C15. John Watson (Eurosport channel) commented that the chassis of the C15 would be very 'user-friendly'. There was no situation where he had to be afraid that the car wasn't under control anymore.
Sun, 11-Aug-1996 During the start of the race Johnny Herbert gained 6th position right behind Gerhard Berger's Benetton. Heinz-Harald Frentzen first overtook Herbert and Coulthard during the start but then he was blocked and lost some places. Later on Johnny Herbert's Ford engine went out and he had to quit the race on 6th position. It was a engine elctronics failure. Heinz-Harald Frentzen who planned to make four stops had to retire after a problem with his engine electronics too.
Sat, 10-Aug-1996 During the Qualifying Johnny Herbert outqualified his team mate Heinz-Harald Frentzen the second time this season. Herbert got 8th position on the grid while Heinz-Harald got 10th position. The new version of the Ford V10 engine with more torque overall and about 20 horsepowers stronger helped to get the best qualification result so far this season.
Mon, 05-Aug-1996 Once more the Sauber Team did tests at Monza circuit in Italy. Heinz-Harald Frentzen did 66 laps with a best time of 1:27,44. The test program included improvements of the car aerodynamics and mechanical set-up. This test was a further preparation for the race at this circuit. The same time the Ferrari team tested their car at Monza. Eddie Irvine had a best laptime of 1:25,99.
Wed, 31-Jul-1996 On Wednesday the Sauber Team did tests at Mugello circuit in Italy. Heinz-Harald Frentzen did 55 laps with a best time of 1:29,2. The test program included improvements of the car aerodynamics.
Sun, 28-Jul-1996 On Sunday morning it was a normal temperature at Hockenheim circuit, not hot. There were clouds and sun wasn't shining through. At warmup session Frentzen did the 13th fastest lap and I presumed he would go for one stop during the race. After the warmup session it started to rain for an hour. The race direction decided to allow a information training because the track was wet, especially on the straights through the forrest. The training was at 10:45 c.e.t. and lasted 15 minutes. Heinz-Harald Frentzen did the 16th fastest lap while Johnny Herbert did a much faster one. Frentzen had the special helmet design only for this race day designed by a 15 year old boy. When the race started I could see Frentzen and Herbert take off through my binoculars. Olivier Panis who was in front of Frentzen and Herbert had a very fast start. But Frentzen managed to overtake him and Diniz at the first corner. Then he was behind the two Jordans. Panis had to come into the pits after the fourth lap. He locked the brakes behind Frentzen and ruined his front tyres. During the race Heinz-Harald Frentzen could follow Barrichello and Brundle in the Motodrom/Stadium section although he had a really flat and little rear wing. But he lost time on the straights. The Jordans were one of the fastest cars in terms of topspeed. To my surprise Heinz-Harald made two pitstops. But they were the fastest ones. 7.1 secs the first one and 7.4 secs the second one. Johnny Herbert had to quit the race at lap 20 due to a gearbox problem. He was at this time two laps behind because he had a pitstop of over 2 minutes. Clearly there was a technical problem at that time. So Frentzen ended the race at 8th position. But he was quite content. Because he knew that the race track at Hockenheim is a engine-power-circuit and with a lack of 70 to 100 horsepowers to the top engines he had a quite good result. He said that the Sauber team would get a more powerful engine at the next race at Hungaroring circuit at Hungary. The engine will have more torque at lower revs and about 20 horsepowers more than the current version of the Cosworth engine. Another thing: Frank Williams asked Frentzen to give him more time to think about his drivers for next year. He has a sort of option for Frentzen. It was said that he will will make a decision in four weeks.
Sat, 27-Jul-1996 I arrived at Hockenheim when the first free practice session had already started. But I came just right to see Frentzen doing his first lap. First it didn't go well for Heinz-Harald because the time gap to the fastest drivers was more than 5 seconds for nearly half an hour. But then he did a lap within 3 seconds to the fastest time so far. During the second free practice session the drivers chose their setups for the qualifying session. The laptimes got faster and faster. Heinz-Harald Frentzen did the 10th fastest laptime so far while his team mate Johnny Herbert got into troubles with his gearbox and had to leave it beside the track. Frentzen said that he drove his fastest laptime with the knife between the teeth - a so called chaos lap. But he had time twice when he passed us to wave his right arm to the crowd which gingered him up. In the qualifying session he performed a fastest laptime of 1:46,899 minutes and ended up 13th grid position about 2,9 secs behind the pole position time of Damon Hill. Johnny Herbert managed a 1:47,711 and got 14th place on starting grid. There were about 100,000 people to watch the qualifying session live at Hockenheim. The crowd went mad when Schumacher or Frentzen drove through the Motodrom/Stadium section.
Fri, 26-Jul-1996 I was there at Hockenheim circuit watching Heinz-Harald Frentzen and Johnny Herbert during the two free practice sessions (and the other drivers too ;-) ). Around me was a bunch of Michael-Schumacher-Fans and I was one of the few Frentzen-Fans. OK, a lot of them like Frentzen too, but Schumacher is their favourite one. After second practice session Heinz-Harald ended up 13th on the provisional grid with a best laptime of 1:48,157 and Johnny Herbert got 14th place with a best laptime of 1:49,220. Both Saubers had a really little rear wing. You could see that in comparison to the other cars. But therefore they had a relatively good top speed. Just in the Motodrom/Stadium section with it's lot of corners they were a little bit slow due to the little rear wing. But it was great watching both of them. I was sitting at the Sachs-Curve in the Motodrom/Stadium section and could see them clearly. David Coulthard had his spin into the gravel bed just in front of me. Tomorrow I will be there watching the qualifying session and on Sunday it will be BIG FUN watching the warm-up session and the race there. One other thing: A british motorsports magazine reported that Heinz-Harald already would have a treatment with Williams replacing Damon Hill next season. This is not true, not yet. The Williams Team placed a communique, which said that the drivers question is still open.
Sat, 20-Jul-1996 Johnny Herbert did 55 laps testing aerodynamic features and improvements on the brakes system at Nogaro. He drove a best lap of 1:13,25. The test program included further preparations for the Hungaroring race.
Fri, 19-Jul-1996 This day Herbert completed a whole race distance. His best laptime was 1:13,85. Once more the test was for the race at Hungaroring circuit. The test program included improvements on aerodynamics, brakes and gearbox.
Thu, 18-Jul-1996 Frentzen completed a whole race distance at Nogaro. He tried to improve on his starts. His best laptime was 1:13,88 and he was half a second faster than the day before. The test was for the race at Hungaroring circuit.
Wed, 17-Jul-1996 The Sauber Team did tests at Nogaro/France. Unfortunately there is no other information available besides the tests where for the race at Hungaroring/Hungary.
Sun, 14-Jul-1996 Heinz-Harald Frentzen finished at 8th position in the British Grand Prix at Silverstone while Johnny Herbert finished just behind him at 9th position. Both were driving almost the whole race together with Heinz-Harald slightly in front of Johnny.
Sat, 13-Jul-1996 Heinz-Harald Frentzen qualified at 11th position. Johnny Herbert got 13th position on the starting grid. Not bad for a team that is not allowed to test at Silverstone like Williams, Benetton, McLaren, Jordan, Tyrrell and Arrows.
Mon, 08-Jul-1996 Rumors came up that Heinz-Harald Frentzen has already a provisional contract with Williams Team owner Frank Williams! And it is said that these aren't just rumors! Frank Williams will tell his decision before the British Grand Prix at 14-Jul-1996.
Fri, 05-Jul-1996 Only Johnny Herbert was testing with the Sauber car. He drove a test program for Goodyear with new tyres and a different rubber mixture. His best time was 1:27,6. Michael Schimacher drove a new record lap at Monza with 1:24,832 (49 laps) and was about 4 tenth of a second slower than the official record with an 3.5- litre-engine and better aerodynamic regulations at that time.
Thu, 04-Jul-1996 Another test day for the Sauber Team at Monza. They tried new aerodynamic features and new mechanical parts. Frentzen set his fastest time with 1:27,81 (23 laps), Johnny Herbert set his fastest with 1:28,70 (46 laps) while Michael Schumacher with the Ferrari Team set his fastest time with 1:25,95 (34 laps).
Wed, 03-Jul-1996 The Sauber Team made tests in Monza. The test program included aerodynamics for German Grand Prix at Hockenheim, mechanics and engine measurements. Heinz-Harald Frentzen set a fastest time of 1:28,12 with 52 laps done. The same day Michael Schumacher tested his Ferrari with the new 7-speed-gearbox and set a fastest time of 1:27,19 with 59 laps. That's nearly a second faster due to an engine with about 80 to 100 horsepowers more than the Ford engine!
Sun, 30-Jun-1996 During warmup session Damon Hill caused an accident with Heinz-Harald. He drove over his left front wheel. The car's suspension was damaged and the team had to prepare the t-car for Frentzen because they couldn't get his car right until the start of the race. Hill apologized for that incident. In the race Heinz-Harald Frentzen had to retire in lap 56 because his electronic drive-by-wire-system got stuck. Johnny Herbert finished the race in 11th position. He was disqualified later on due to a wrong aerodynamic feature on his car.
Sat, 29-Jun-1996 In second free practice Heinz-Harald had only 20th position on the grid. Again the cars suffered from heavy understeer. The Magny Cours circuit had a very special effect to the cars. In qualifying Heinz-Harald Frentzen got 13th while Johnny Herbert got 17th place.
Fri, 28-Jun-1996 In first free practice Heinz-Harald Frentzen only reached position 16 of the grid. Johnny Herbert reached only 19th place. Reason was heavy understeer of the cars although in last testing the team had found a relatively good solution for this problem.
Sun, 16-Jun-1996 In warmup session Heinz-Harald Frentzen drove the 7th fastest lap but then it wasn't his day anymore: He had to quit in lap 19 of the Canadian Grand Prix due to a broken gearbox. He had to set up flat wings due to the lack of engine power. So he always drove at the edge of spinning. Johnny Herbert finished in 7th place.
Sat, 15-Jun-1996 Heinz-Harald Frentzen qualified 12th in qualifying session and Johnny Herbert got 15th position on grid.
Fri, 07-Jun-1996 Johnny Herbert drove 76 laps (=363 km) and tested different front wings and improvements at airbox, gearbox and engine electronics. He drove the second fastest lap time (1:23,8) behind Boullion (1:22,9) and was faster than Coulthard (1,24,3).
Thu, 06-Jun-1996 This day Johnny Herbert did the testing for the team. He ended as third fastest (1:24,62) behind Boullion (1:23,00) and Alain Prost (1:24,47) in the McLaren.
Wed, 05-Jun-1996 Heinz-Harald Frentzen did further tests for the Team. At the morning he tested different mechanical systems, in the afternoon he concentrated on aerodynamics. He said that they've made some little improvements overall. Frentzen did the third fastest lap (1:24,3) behind Villeneuve (1:22,4) and Jean-Christophe Boullion in the Williams (1:22,6).
Tue, 04-Jun-1996 The Sauber Team made some tests at Barcelona track. Heinz-Harald Frentzen (1:24,9) was second fastest about 1.9 seconds behind Jacques Villeneuve (1:22,7) and about 0.7 seconds faster than David Coulthard (1:25,6). Frentzen simulated a whole Grand Prix distance.
Sun, 02-Jun-1996 Grand Prix of Spain: In a wet race Heinz-Harald Frentzen finished at 4th position. Johnny Herbert spun off due to aquaplaning as he chose too soft springs for his car setup.