A fog delay was the last thing the new Ilmor team needed during day two of the Jerez test, as it sought to complete further vital set-🌼up mileage on the new spec engine.

Testing finally got underway aℱt lunch time, but Jeremy McWilliams went on to complete just 26 Saturday laps, a 'frustratingly' small number - but enough to show him that the team's new powerplant is a step forward.

"I have mixed emotions - on the one hand, I didn't do enough laps today so I'm disappointed but on the other the new engine is without doubt a step in the right direction," said the Ulsterman, who lapped a tenth quicker than team-mate Andrew Pitt and within a few tenths of Duc﷽ati test rider Vittoriano Guareschi. "We had a lot of down time in the garage making adjustments but that's normal with a new engine - frustrating but normal. I'm hoping for much more track time tomorrow.🧜"

Pitt completed a more subsꦕtantial 57 laps refining the new V4: "We had good dry conditions today, so the riding was better,💟" said the Australian. "We made good progress particularly on the electronic side. I managed a good long run at one point and clocked up some consistent lap times. I think we're in better shape today."

"All in all it was a productive day for us," stated team principal Mario Illien. "It was a real shame that we couldn't start earlier - we lost out on a lot of time over the past few days due t🎀o bad weather conditions. We are not quite where we want to be time-wise but we have definitely made progress and hopefully that can continue for tomorrow."