The future of open-wheel racing turned its first full-tilt testing laps today as the new DP01 Champ Car ran more than 100 trouble-free miles at Sebring International Raceway on a scorching Tuesday in Central Florida.

The new Panoz-built DP01, which will be the exclusive chassis to compete in the 2007 Champ Car World Series, completed its first full day of testing on the 1.67-mile Sebring course in the capable hands of former Champ Car and Formula 1 driver Roberto Moreno.

“I am extremely impressed with how quickly we got the testing program running and running well,” Moreno said. “All of the new systems showed great promise and should provide the teams and drivers with a car that they can really work with. The paddle shifters worked well and will really allow you to drive the car in the corners deeper since you don’t have to take your hands off the wheel. The brakes worked well, the cooling systems did a great job and I am excited about running even more testing tomorrow.”

The test program saw the car go through a number of short runs as the engineers were careful not to overheat the car on a 92-degree day in Sebring. The DP01 performed flawlessly, as did Moreno, who never put a wheel wrong through the seven-hour day.

“Everything is going according to plan,” said Champ Car Director of Technology Scot Elkins. “We are very happy with the results and we feel confident in our ability to complete our test plan. We are looking forward to increasing the length and the intensity of the testing as we go along.”

The testing program will continue through the remainder of the week in Sebring while the rest of the series heads to Montreal for round 11 of the 2006 Bridgestone Presents The Champ Car World Series Powered by Ford. This weekend’s Champ Car Grand Prix de Montreal will take place this weekend August 25-27, with Sunday’s race being shown live on NBC Sports beginning at 1:30 p.m. Eastern Time.

[Champ Car]