EUROPEAN Minardi Cosworth brought its three-day test at the Circuit Ricardo Tormo to a satisfying conclusion earlier this week.

After a slightly frustrating introduction to the European Minardi PS03 chassis the previous afternoon, when a gearbox problem curtailed his running, the Faenza team's new Hungarian recruit, Zsolt Baumgartner, enjoyed a solid day's testing in Spain.

The 23-year-old, from Budapest, completed a total of 105 laps as he worked through a programme that included the evaluation of mechanical and aerodynamic parts for the 2004 European Minardi chassis, as well as a short tyre test for the team's technical partner, Bridgestone.

European Minardi's next test is scheduled to take place at Misano, between February 9 and February 11.

Baumgatner said: "I was able to run 105 laps, which was good because it meant I could recover the time lost the previous day. I'm very happy, because after a busy day of work, I don't feel particularly tired. Strangely, the only problem I experienced was in my driving position. Yesterday, I felt I was comfortable in the Minardi PS03, while today, when I spent much more time in the cockpit, I realised I was not quite so much at ease and that I need to adjust my seating position.

"Considering I have not driven an F1 car for almost five months, though, I think I did quite a good job, and I believe the team is satisfied with the feedback I provided to my race engineer."

Team principal Paul Stoddart said: "European Minardi has every reason to feel pleased with its first test session of 2004. Collectively, the team has got through a lot of work and collected a considerable amount of useful data, all of which will help with finalising our 2004 car.

"Both Gimmi (Bruni) and Zsolt settled in quickly and have done a really solid job. I'd particularly like to thank Zsolt for his efforts, as he was in a car he hadn't driven before, at an unfamiliar circuit, and with a new team, and yet he settled in quickly and did an extremely professional job. We now look forward to our next test at Misano."