First F3000 test proves positive for Tielemans.

Rookie Olivier Tielemans had his first FIA F3000 test this week, when he took to the track at the Jerez de la Frontera circuit in Southern Spain.

Prior to that on Monday the 19-year old driver had his seat fitting at the MA-CON Motorsport factory and Tuesday morning he was finally on track.

First F3000 test proves positive for Tielemans.

Rookie Olivier Tielemans had his first FIA F3000 test this week, when he took to the track at the Jerez de la Frontera circuit in Southern Spain.

Prior to that on Monday the 19-year old driver had his seat fitting at the MA-CON Motorsport factory and Tuesday morning he was finally on track.

Tielemans debuted under ideal weather conditions and did his first laps for the German/British team MA-CON Motorsport. With 26 laps under his belt, he posted a best time of 1mins 38secs.

Wednesday Tielemans tested again in the afternoon session, with new tyres he improved his time by more than two seconds!

"The intention of this two-day test session is to let Olivier get used to the car, the power, and the circuit," said team manager Sam Boyle.

The tests went well and Tielemans was pleased with his performance.

"I enjoyed this test very much," he said, "The car does exactly what I want it to do. The combination of braking, accelerating, and steering make this car much faster and more reliable than the cars I have driven previously."

"Everything was new to me on Tuesday morning," he added, "Tomas Enge [ex-FIA International F3000 champion] and I had the same car and despite my lack of experience I made good progress by going faster and faster.

"The Jerez circuit is a great track to work this way. The corners, straights, chicanes, and the hairpin made sure I got a complete picture of the capabilities of the Lola B02/50 F3000.

"On Wednesday it went even better. The mechanics improved my seat position and I went out with new tyres. I immediately improved upon my fastest lap within the first two laps! I learn't that during qualifying you drive your best lap within the first two laps. The wear on the tyres is enormous and it is necessary to 'peak' immediately when you get out there."

Tielemans is looking forward to the coming FIA International F3000 season. "I am very enthusiastic about this class," he continued, "On Wednesday there were around 18 drivers with lots of experience here and I could keep up with my team-mates."

The team was very satisfied with the young Dutchman. Team boss Marian Hamprecht noted: "Olivier has adapted to the level of this class very fast and has shown he is ready for it in the 50 laps he drove. We are very pleased to work with him."

For the Dortmund-based MA-CON Motorsport team, a total of four drivers tested. Apart from Tielemans these included German's Tony Schmidt, Christopher Bruck and Czech driver Enge. Tielemans showed his potential by being 1.1 seconds faster than Bruck!

The young MA-CON Motorsport driver made a good first impression. "I trained the last couple of months at the 'Esporta' sport centre and this has helped me enormously. Despite the switch from Formula Renault to this prestigious class, I did not have any physical problems," said an enthusiastic Tielemans, who will drive again during the F3000 test at Silverstone, March 27th and 28th.

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