Formula Master points leader Chris van der Drift made an impressive debut in the latest GP2 Series car when he joined Trident Racing for last week's group test at Paul Ricard, but warned both seasoned rivals and ambitious hopefuls that there is more to come should he get another chance.
The 22-year old New Zealander took a break from his title-chasing 2008 campaign to join former
F1 pilot Narain Karthikeyan in the Trident camp for the two-day test, emerging with two top five performances that left him as the second fastest newcomer on show.
"The test went very well," van der Drift acknowledged, "On Thursday, we made a new seat and, at the end of the afternoon, I could still get out on track for the last hour. We used that time to ensure that everything was working as it should, and it gave me a chance to get to know the new car. It was very pleasing therefore, that, after a few laps, and on old tyres, I was quicker than Karthikeyan."
Friday, however, was even more impressive as van der Drift got into his stride and caused problems for the top five in both sessions.
"My lap times were very good straight off and, with a new set of tyres, I took what was ultimately the fifth fastest time of the [morning] session," he reported, "I know that there are a couple of tenths I can grab as, on my quick lap, I came across some other cars. I tried again to do a quicker lap but, because the tyres were past their peak, that wasn't possible. All in all, though, it was a good time.
"In the afternoon session, I began with a set of good tyres and was able to set the fourth quickest lap before it began to rain. Of course, I am very pleased with the effort, as I have been able to prove that am capable of mixing it with the top drivers. This is certainly not a bad effort for a first test with the new GP2 car - and I know that there are still a few tenths that can be found."
![Chris van der Drift - Trident Racing [pic credit: GP2 Series Media]](http://pix.crash.net/thumbs/496117.jpg)
