Sutil 7th fastest at rain-swept Jerez

Adrian Sutil clocked the seventh fastest time in a rain-truncated session as inclement weather disrupted Force India's testing at the Circuit de Jerez on Wednesday.

The first day of Force India's four-day programme saw new test and reserve driver Paul di Resta getting his first taste of the VJM03 in the morning before Sutil took over for the afternoon's running.

Sutil could complete just 28 laps and his best of 1:24.272 put him seventh on the 12-driver timesheet led by Red Bull's Sebastian Vettel (1:22.593).

"It was a short session for me. I only started my first run just before 4pm when the track was drying in places but there were still a few damp patches on the racing line," Sutil rued.

"We did two long runs on the slick tyres but in the mixed conditions it was hard to get a view on the car. But at this stage all running is good and we're ready to go out again to get some more mileage and data on the car," said the German after Wednesday's proceedings.

Like last week, the test run was punctuated by heavy rain storms and cloudy skies with high winds also being a disrupting factor.

However in a productive day working through set-up and control systems checks, de Resta completed over 300km while Sutil covered 120km, bringing the day's mileage to more than 450km.

"It was my first run in the new car and it felt pretty good," di Resta later said.

"The objective was to get as much running as possible and we managed over 300km, which was a great effort, particularly given the bad weather conditions we had over the morning.

"Even with this type of weather though I could get an impression of the car. It seems stable and good all round, a genuine improvement on the car I drove last year. I'll be back in the car in Barcelona and am looking forward to it already," said the youngster.