Fisichella involved in traffic crash in Italy

Giancarlo Fisichella has this week been involved in a minor traffic crash.

The 3-time grand prix winner and now a Ferrari test driver rear-ended a small car driven by a 52-year-old woman in Campagnano, north of Rome, according to Italian media reports.

Fisichella, 38, was driving a Ferrari.

The driver of the car he hit was taken to hospital and discharged shortly afterwards.

Fisichella reportedly told the traffic police - the Polstrada - that he came across a long queue of traffic caused by road works and was not able to stop in time.

In 2005, when Fisichella was caught doing 148kph in a 60kph zone in Rome, he explained to police that he was rushing to his child who had a high fever.

Source: Nextgen

In Fisichella's boots

Turun Sanomat 23.10 2010

Kimi Räikkönen knows how Giancarlo Fisichella felt as his team mate last autumn in Ferrari. When Räikkönen even won with a car that didn't go so well, Fisichella dropped to the back over one second slower.

Fisichella had to race with a strange car and learn to know the tricky KERS-alphabet at the same time.

This year Räikkönen has had to experience the same difficulties in the strange WRC-world. There's been too much to learn during a short time. When the team mate is the super performer Sebastien Ogier, the rookie's know-how level is reviewed unreasonably hard.

And it's not about losing the talent, it's purely about the lack of experience.

Fisichella won three races during his career and was on pole before he moved from Force India to Ferrari. Räikkönen has already flashed his speed in a couple of rallies but he has made mistake after mistake - just like the man himself knew to expect.

Two work mates who know Räikkönen very well understand the difficulties Kimi has.

Andrea Stella emphasizes that rally differs so much from F1 that Kimi has as much to learn as his former team mates Luca Badoer + Fisichella together had.

Kaj Lindström compares the difference between rally and F1 as ice-hockey and figure-skating. The similarities are extremely few even though both are on ice and nobody learns anything completely new in a flash.

Robert Kubica has a higher and higher rally fever. He has already drove 8 rallies this year so it's more than a random hobby.

Kubica's training car is Renault Clio S1600, which is of a remarkably lighter caliber than Räikkönen's WRC-Citroën. The stronger the car is, the more highlighted the rookie's mistakes will be.

When Kubica will change from F1 to WRC permanently he has at least had time to practice in a remarkably smaller spotlight than Räikkönen has.

Mokpo/Heikki Kulta

Courtesy: Nicole

Fisichella tests new Ferrari rear wing

Ferrari test driver Giancarlo Fisichella was present at Italian track Vairano on Saturday in order to test a brand-new rear wing configuration, which could be used in this weekend's Spanish Grand Prix. The test was part of permitted aerodynamic runs, as agreed by all teams.

Although a strict ban is in place on in-season circuit testing, all teams are allowed to conduct straight-line runs for aerodynamics for a total of four days during the season.

With the Maranello-based team having experimented with an f-duct system last time out in China, former Force India racer Fisichella trialled with a 'blown' rear wing, featuring a bubble-like centre section.

Driving Ferrari's latest chassis - code numbered 284 and to be driven by former Sauber team-mate Felipe Massa this weekend - Fisichella is also the first to drive the 2010 Ferrari with in-board cockpit side mirrors, as out-board mirrors are banned from Round 5 onwards for safety reasons.

With the data from Saturday now being analysed by Ferrari technicians, the team will run the new rear wing - including an f-duct system - on both Massa and Fernando Alonso's cars in Friday's two practice sessions at the Circuit de Catalunya; an evening decision will then be made with regards to whether the new component will remain in use for Saturday's qualifying session and Sunday's race.

Source: GP Update