McLaren's Lewis Hamilton was the pace setter at Paul Ricard today, as all ten remaining teams began their preparations fro the forthcoming Monaco GP.

Despite completing less laps than any of the other drivers on duty, the Englishman was the only driver to dip into the 1:05s on the 2.232 mile 2D SC Short configuration.

Hamilton, who will be replaced by Heikki Kovalainen tomorrow, focused on set-up development, tyre testing and evaluation of the Monaco-specific aero package.

Second quickest, and almost 0.5s off Hamilton's pace, was Kimi Raikkonen, the Finn also working on finding the best set-up for next week's race and on the development of new aerodynamic components. At the closer of the session, the Italian team re-introduced the much talked about new nose, which is scheduled to be used next week after being dropped for Turkey.

BMW, who could well spring a surprise in Monaco, had Robert Kubica on duty, the Pole concentrating on setup work for Monaco. The team tried different solutions to fine tune the car's aerodynamics, suspension and engine electronics for the slow and bumpy track.

In the morning session Kubica suffered an oil leak, but after a precautionary engine change he continued the test as scheduled, completing 124 laps.

Mark Webber was on duty for Red Bull, who will have David Coulthard in action tomorrow and Sebastien Buemi on the final day.

The Australian had a trouble free day, running with high Monaco downforce levels, evaluating some new aero components, as well as working on mechanical set up. He also tried both types of tyre that Bridgestone will take to Monaco - the 'soft' and 'super-soft' even though Ricard normally demands a harder tyre.

The other difference between the 'real' Monaco track and the Ricard simulation is that the Ricard surface, unlike the city streets of Monte Carlo, is very smooth.

Tomorrow, when Coulthard continues with the Monaco programme, it is thought the session might be affected by rain showers.

Sebastian Vettel finally got his hands on the new Toro Rosso STR3 today, after it was badly damaged - on its debut - by Sebastien Bourdais.

There were a few teething problems that restricted running in the morning, including a faulty timing transponder, which is why the correct number of laps is 99 and not 91 as reported in other news sources.

Vettel ran through all the standard new car checks: set-up, functionality, car balance, performance as well as trying both types of tyre, that will be available in Monaco.

Despite the fact that these tyres are really a bit on the soft side for the smoother but more abrasive Ricard track, Vettel was happy with the balance of the car. Tomorrow, Bourdais takes over.

Williams debuted a 'dorsal fin' similar to that used by both Red Bull and Renault, as Nico Rosberg completed 154 laps - more than any other driver - on his way to posting the sixth best time of the day.

Alex Wurz was on duty for Honda, the Austrian's programme being to complete an aerodynamic evaluation in preparation for Monaco. He completed 142 laps as the team worked through various set-ups changes in preparation for tackling the unique demands of the legendary track.

At Toyota, Timo Glock was in action trying out different set-ups and aerodynamic configurations, as well as getting to grips with the Monaco-specification tyres.

"The morning session was reasonable and then in the afternoon the track conditions improved quite a lot," said the German. It was a normal test day making Monaco preparations with the only problem being some big changes we made over the lunch break which took a bit longer than expected and cost us some track time. It was the first time I have run the car in such high-downforce configuration. I was quite happy with it but we still need to work a little to improve the traction. Overall though, the car felt pretty good."

"It was straightforward Monaco work trying to establish a baseline," added Test Team Manager, Gerd Pfeiffer. "We did some comparison runs in different aerodynamic specifications, trying different wings. There was also background work to be done with such things as launch systems and, of course, running the softer specification Monaco tyres, which are quite different from the hard and medium compounds which have been raced in Barcelona and Istanbul. While you cannot simulate Monaco grip levels and wind direction, you can prepare for the tight chicanes and hairpins you find there."

Force India's test and reserve driver Vitantonio Liuzzi today opened the team's schedule, the Italian working through a programme to establish a baseline set-up for the remaining two days of the test and also testing the team's 'Monaco spec' aero developments, a high-downforce package designed for the challenges of the twisty street circuit race.