Rewind to 2008 and that was the last time that Formula 1 runners were allowed the luxury of an in-season circuit test for their racing drivers.
But kickstarting today, we have our first in-season test, with the F1 circus – with the exception of the HRT F1 team – heading to the Autodromo Internazionale del Mugello, near the Italian city of Florence, for three days of all-important running.
This is the one and only opportunity that teams will have to put some serious mileage on their cars ahead of the all-important European leg of the championship.
All will be bringing major updates to their cars, and some of the underperforming teams – most notably Ferrari – will be desperately hoping that these new components bring about a much-needed improvement in their competitiveness.
As always, RichardsF1.com will provide you with a daily round-up – and the best photos – from the three days of activity in Italy, so let’s take a look at who will be piloting the cars for the next three days:
Team | Day(s) Running | Driver | |
Red Bull Racing Renault RB8 | Tue, Wed AM | Mark Webber | ![]() |
Wed PM, Thu | Sebastian Vettel | ![]() |
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Vodafone McLaren Mercedes MP4-27 | Tue AM, Thu | Oliver Turvey | ![]() |
Tue PM, Wed | Gary Paffett | ![]() |
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Scuderia Ferrari F2012 | Tue, Thu | Fernando Alonso | ![]() |
Wed | Felipe Massa | ![]() |
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Mercedes AMG Petronas F1 Team W03 | Tue AM, Thu | Nico Rosberg | ![]() |
Tue PM, Wed | Michael Schumacher | ![]() |
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Lotus F1 Team Renault E20 | Tue | Jérôme d’Ambrosio | ![]() |
Wed | Romain Grosjean | ![]() |
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Thu | Kimi Räikkönen | ![]() |
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Sahara Force India F1 Team Mercedes VJM05 | Tue | Jules Bianchi | ![]() |
Wed | Paul di Resta | ![]() |
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Thu | Nico Hülkenberg | ![]() |
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Sauber F1 Team Ferrari C31 | Tue, Wed | Kamui Kobayashi | ![]() |
Thu | Sergio Pérez | ![]() |
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Scuderia Toro Rosso Ferrari STR7 | Tue, Wed AM | Jean-Éric Vergne | ![]() |
Wed PM, Thu | Daniel Ricciardo | ![]() |
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Williams F1 Team Renault FW34 | Tue | Valtteri Bottas | ![]() |
Wed | Bruno Senna | ![]() |
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Thu | Pastor Maldonado | ![]() |
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Caterham F1 Team Renault CT01 | Tue | Rodolfo González | ![]() |
Wed | Vitaly Petrov | ![]() |
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Thu | Heikki Kovalainen | ![]() |
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HRT F1 Team Cosworth F112 | Tue, Wed, Thu | Not Running | |
Marussia Racing Cosworth MR01 | Tue, Wed AM | Charles Pic | ![]() |
Wed PM, Thu | Timo Glock | ![]() |
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Richard Bailey
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