Davison hits testing trail.

Australian Formula Three international Will Davison recently completed four days of rigorous pre-season testing in Spain, as well as two days at Donington Park, in preparation for his assault on the 2003 British F3 Championship with defending champions Alan Docking Racing.

The 20-year old tested alongside American team-mate Scott Speed in a 2003-spec Dallara-Mugen at the Guadix circuit in the south of Spain, chasing warm weather in order to get as much experience of team and car before the first round of the British title chase in early April. Two further days of testing followed at Donington on his return from Spain.

"The weather was really good bar for the second day, where it was so cold it was snowing for a while," Davison said of the Spanish test, "The start of each morning was quite greasy, but it dried up early, which gave us valuable running time. We had the track to ourselves so we clocked up nearly 400 laps over the four days.

"There's lots of things to learn about the new car and to get the feel of it again after the Christmas and New Year break. A lot of it is to do with getting confident and knowing the limits of every part of the package.

"I did a few race simulation distances of 28-odd laps, and didn't do any laps that were more than two-tenths apart from one to the other, so I'm feeling comfortable in the car. ADR has a very good baseline set-up to work from, so we weren't fiddling around with things too much."

Further good news for Davison was that his times were achieved without the latest specification Mugen-Honda engine, which experts say is worth two or three-tenths of a second per lap at most circuits. The Australian will have the latest-spec four-cylinder powerplant in his Dallara chassis when the championship begins in April.

Davison, who finished fourth in the competitive British Formula Renault Championship last year, said that his fitness programme over the Australian summer, conducted under the watchful eye of trainer Anthony Klarica in Melbourne, had paid real results over the four days.

"This time last year, I would probably have been hurting a little bit after four straight days in the car, but I feel brand new," he admitted, "I am really, really happy with my progress in the fitness department."

Since returning to England in January, Davison has been busy training with fellow Aussie Jaguar F1 racer Mark Webber.

"It's fantastic working with Mark," he said, "We get along really well and he's really helping me, which is great. The fact that he drove for ADR in 1997 and has gone on to do so well gives me real motivation for this year."

Both Webber and Davison will return to Australia for the Foster's Australian Grand Prix next weekend, an event for which Davison is an official AGP Corporation ambassador. It'll also be a chance for the 2001 Australian Formula Ford Champion to see elder brother Alex race in the Porsche Carrera Cup support race.

"Coming home is always nice," Davison said, "It's great to catch up with family and friends, as well as have a look at what's happening in Australian racing. There'll be a lot of media commitments to keep me busy, but it's going to be a great grand prix."

Davison returns to England immediately after the Albert Park event to continue his pre-season testing program at Rockingham on 11 March.