Kobayashi  has  topped  the  first  day  of  GP2  Asia  Series  second  season  debut  in Shanghai today. Next weekend marks the opening of the second GP2 Asia Series Championship in Shanghai.

Prior to  this  event,  the  thirteen  teams  gathered  on  the  Chinese  track  this  week  for  a  two-day  test session. It  was  a  first  for  the  drivers  as  they  discovered  the  5.451km  splendid  track.  Kamui  Kobayashi topped both the morning and the afternoon session setting the pace in a 1:45.963. His countryman Sakon Yamamoto followed in a 1:46.255 at the wheel of his ART Grand Prix car ahead of Spaniard Roldan  Rodriguez  on  Piquet  GP. 

The  second  Dams  driver,  Belgian  Jérôme  d’Ambrosio,  set  the fourth fastest laptime. Giedo Van der Garde on GFH Team iSport was today’s quickest rookie in a 1:46.599 ahead of FMS Andreas Zuber, Durango’s Davide Valsecchi, rookie James Jakes at the wheel of Super Nova and sophomore Vitaly Petrov on Campos. Rookie Mika Maki completed the Top 10 on the second Super Nova Car. This morning’s session was interrupted by many red flags including one that lasted for almost 50 minutes after some oil was deposited on numerous parts of the track following a minor mechanical incident on Andreas Zuber’s Piquet car.

The session was then extended until 12:45pm. Tomorrow’s second testing day will start at 9am, local time. Shanghai – Test session Day 1 – Morning session Driver Team Time Laps 1. Kamui Kobayashi Dams 1 :47.361 11 2. Davide Valsecchi Durango 1 :47.389 20 3. Roldan Rodriguez Piquet GP 1 :47.397 21 4. Giedo Van der Garde GFH Team iSport 1 :47.660 14 5. Luca Filippi BCN Competicion 1 :48.032 12 6. Sakon Yamamoto ART Grand Prix 1 :48.085 13 7. Nelson Philippe ART Grand Prix 1 :48.091 27 8. Sergio Perez Barwa Int Campos Team 1 :48.214 32 9. Mika Maki Trust Team Arden 1 :48.218 26 10. Vital y Petrov Barwa Intl Campos Team 1 :48.229 13 11. Hamad AI Fardan GFH Team iSport 1 :48.385 24 12. Michael Herck DPR 1 :48.420 23 13. Yuhi Sekiguchi DPR 1 :48.697 16 14. Andreas Zuber Fisichella Motor Sport Int 1 :48.942 10 15. Jerome D'Ambrosio Dams 1 :49.508 5 16. Chris Van der Drift Trident Racing 1 :51.427 8 17. Kevin Nai Chia Chen Fisichella Motor Sport Intl 1 :52.646 24 18. Javier Villa Super Nova Racing 2:02.573 4 19. James Jakes Super Nova Racing 2:20.367