The first two days were dominated by Massa, and in the final showdown, local boy Alonso clocked the fastest time. His time of 1m 11.470 is marginally better than Massa’s best time of 1m11.722s. Alonso put in a hard session, driving 127 laps. Alonso put the car through its paces figuring out the best fuel loads and set up.

Pedro de la Rosa clocked an impressive 1m12.094s, showcasing BMW Sauber’s awesome performance after a mundane 2009 season. The cars definitely look faster on track and it’ll be nice to see a good battle during the season. He completed 80 laps in the session trying to focusing on tyre and set up for the car.

The come-back-King, Schumacher was third fastest on the third day of testing, posting a good time, 1m12.438s, almost three-tenth of a second slower than Pedro de la Rosa. He put in 82 laps before hydraulics problem cut the Mercedes GP session short. Schumacher spent the morning working on balance and set up before taking the car out for a longer run in the afternoon. He also clarified that Mercedes GP wasn’t focusing on lap timings in the session, but rather paying attention to finding the right set-up and reliability.

Jamie Alguesuari was just over a tenth of a second slower than Michael Schumacher, and in a 97 lap session clocked a best time of 1m12.576s. The STR5 also looks very competitive and in tune with the sister company’s car. The Spaniard also beat Jenson Button on the unofficial time sheets! Reigning Champion Jenson Button stepped into the cockpit of the MP4-25 for the first time, pumping in a good 82 laps. Although more than 1.5 seconds slower than Alonso, he appeared to be focusing more on the setup and appeared to be trying to get used to the car rather than posting a quick time.

Vitaly Petrov, Formula One’s first Russian driver clocked 1m13.097s in his first attempt with the Renault R30. He completed 75 laps and at the end of the session looked visibly bushed after the experience. Speaking to the press he said, “I really enjoyed my first day in the car and everything went well. The car is very impressive compared with a GP2 car and I enjoyed experiencing the power and braking performance. After about 30 laps I was starting to feel comfortable and understanding the limits of the car. It was also my first chance to work with my engineers and so far everything is going really well so I'm happy with the day."

The day’s final runner was Nico Hulkenberg who completed 126 laps, one short of Alonso’s 127 laps. He managed to tick 1m13.669s. This was the first time that the new Cosworth engine was mated with the car.

The entourage now moves to Jerez, where in a few days’ time, a new multi-team test will be held. If the boys were clocking such impressive times, they will be quite a treat to watch once the season kicks off in Bahrain.

Unofficial timings from all the three days of Valencia Testing

1.Fernando Alonso, Ferrari, 1:11.470, 127 Laps

2. Felipe Massa, Ferrari, 1:11.722, 124 Laps

3. Kamui Kobayashi, BMW Sauber, 1:12.056, 96 Laps

4. Pedro de la Rosa, BMW Sauber, 1:12.094, 80 Laps

5. Lewis Hamilton, McLaren, 1:12.256, 108 Laps

6. Robert Kubica, Renault, 1:12.426, 119 Laps

7. Michael Schumacher, Mercedes GP, 1:12.438, 82 Laps

8. Jaime Alguersuari, Toro Rosso, 1:12.576, 97 Laps

9. Pedro de la Rosa, BMW Sauber, 1:12.784, 74 Laps

10. Nico Rosberg, Mercedes GP, 1:12.899, 119 Laps

11. Jenson Button, McLaren, 1:12.951, 82 Laps

13. Vitaly Petrov, Renault, 1:13.097, 75 Laps

14. Rubens Barrichello, Williams, 1:13.377, 102 Laps

15. Nico Hulkenberg, Williams, 1:13.669, 126 Laps

16. Sebastien Buemi, Toro Rosso, 1:13.823, 107 Laps

17. Gary Paffett, McLaren, 1:13.846, 86 Laps

18. Rubens Barrichello, Williams, 1:14.449, 75 Laps

19. Sebastien Buemi, Toro Rosso, 1:14.762, 18 Laps

20. Robert Kubica, Renault, 1:15.000, 69 Laps