Ferrari Strong During Friday Practice


By Dale Calkins
March 31 2006

Both Michael Schumacher and Felipe Massa achieved very strong results during free practice for the Australian Grand Prix. Schumacher put in the 6th fastest time and Massa the 5th during the first session and both men were among the quickest non-test drivers during both sessions. Both Michael Schumacher and Felipe Massa achieved very strong results during free practice for the Australian Grand Prix. Schumacher put in the 6th fastest time and Massa the 5th during the first session and both men were among the quickest non-test drivers during both sessions.

Ferrari Strong During Friday Practice

Dale Calkins
Michael Schumacher
FP 1: 6th - 1'29.041
FP 2: 6th - 1'27.658

Michael Schumacher was on track today at Albert Park and was sixth in both practice sessions. Other than a few gusts of wind blowing him off the track, Schumacher had nothing to complain about and is very pleased with his results. Here is what the 7-Time World Champion had to say about his sessions:

"Things went pretty well, apart from a bit of traffic stopping us from getting through 100% of our planned programme. One variable was the wind, which occasionally made for unpredictable handling. On one lap, I ended up running a bit wide in a corner when a gust of wind pushed the car from behind, when I had no more room to brake. As for the tyres, it will be important to always ensure they are up to temperature.There are no other problems, partly because over the winter we ran in much colder conditions than this. Tomorrow, I hope to be a front runner and be able to start the race from as near to the lights as possible."

Felipe Massa
FP 1: 5th - 1'29.025
FP 2: 10th - 1'28.227

Felipe Massa also had little to complain about in Australia and was pleased with his running for the day. Massa was unfortunately held up by some blue flag incidents in the second session which hurt his time. This is what the young Brazilian had to say after his first day in Australia:

"It was a good day’s work. We concentrated mainly on finding the best setup. My final time does not reflect my real performance level, because on my last run I had a lot of yellow flags in the final sector of track and I had to keep lifting off the throttle. I am satisfied, because the car is well balanced and we improved constantly throughout the day. I am confident for tomorrow and Sunday."

Ross Brawn
Technical Director

Ferrari's Technical Director Ross Brawn was pleased with today's running and is positive for a good result in qualifying and the race. Here is what Ross had to say:

"It was a reasonably positive day. The cars seem well balanced and we had no problems at all. Air and track temperatures are a bit lower than expected and so it takes a bit longer to get the tyres working at their best. Once they reach operating temperature, their performance is good. Now we have to analyse the data we have gathered over these two hours to be as well prepared as possible for qualifying and the race."

March 31, 2006

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