Monaco Grand Prix – Monte Carlo, 25th May 2006
Free practice - First session
Michael Schumacher: 4th 1.16.973 8 laps chassis 254
Felipe Massa: 14th 1.18.695 15 laps chassis 250
Temperatures: air 18/20 °C, track 22/28 °C
Free practice – Second session
Felipe Massa: 10th 1.17.251 25 laps chassis 250
Michael Schumacher: 15th 1.17.603 25 laps chassis 254
Temperatures: air 23/24 °C, track 33/35 °C
Jean Todt: “It’s always exciting
to find oneself back in a Monaco for the Grand Prix on a weekend
when the city streets are given over to Formula 1 cars. The
usual litany of the first day’s press release offers
one change based on the special timetable for this event,
in that the first two free practice sessions take place on
Thursday. As usual we worked on the comparison of the two
Bridgestone tyres and on finding the best set-up for the car.
Now, our engineers have this afternoon and all of tomorrow
to make the best choices for qualifying and the race.”
Michael Schumacher: “Obviously, we
cannot be too happy with what we have seen so far, although
the results can be partly explained by the fact we used just
one set of tyres, unlike many of the other drivers. But I’m
not trying to hide the fact that the situation is not looking
that good. At the moment we are too slow and we have to study
the data to find out why. There is work to do, but we have
enough experience to get out of this situation. The new race
suit? It’s just for fun, an idea that came to me at
the Madonna di Campiglio event this winter. It brings a bit
more colour!”
Felipe Massa: “It was not an easy
day for us. We have a lot of work to do to be competitive
in qualifying and the race. In the two hours of free practice
we worked mainly on finding the right balance on the car,
as well as assessing the two types of tyre available. We need
a tyre that gives us speed in qualifying, but also consistency
for the race. Now we will study the data to find the right
compromise and this time, we have a whole extra day to look
at it.”
Ross Brawn: “Track conditions evolved
rapidly during these free practice sessions and the various
red flags made the situation a bit more complicated. Honestly,
today we did not get the performance we were expecting from
the tyres, which suffered from a slight lack of grip. However,
the aim is for the tyres to be at their best on Saturday and
Sunday, not in free practice! Actually, I’m confident
the situation will improve as the track gradually offers more
grip and when there will be more rubber on the racing line.
In these conditions, I think we will be stronger than we seemed
to be today. The cars worked well and their balance is pretty
good. I am optimistic about the rest of the weekend.”
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