F1 Round 10 : Magny Cours - France

[Ferrari Tifosi]

Da Matta fastest in the first day of practice, it doesn't make any sense!!! But it is nice to see him going fast. Here's today results from practice:

1 Cristiano da Matta - Toyota 1:15.518
2 Jarno Trulli - Renault 1:16.206
3 Anthony Davidson - BAR-Honda 1:16.231
4 Jenson Button - BAR-Honda 1:16.397
5 Michael Schumacher - Ferrari 1:16.397
6 Fernando Alonso - Renault 1:16.454
7 David Coulthard - McLaren-Mercedes 1:16.464
8 Mark Webber - Jaguar-Cosworth 1:16.745
9 Kimi Räikkönen - McLaren-Mercedes 1:16.794
10 Rubens Barrichello - Ferrari 1:17.094
11 Olivier Panis - Toyota 1:17.303
12 Giancarlo Fisichella - Sauber-Petronas 1:17.324
13 Juan Pablo Montoya - Williams-BMW 1:17.556
14 Marc Gene - Williams-BMW 1:17.688
15 Ricardo Zonta - Toyota 1:17.735
16 Christian Klien - Jaguar-Cosworth 1:17.936
17 Takuma Sato - BAR-Honda 1:17.967
18 Felipe Massa - Sauber-Petronas 1:18.614
19 Giorgio Pantano - Jordan-Ford 1:18.711
20 Bjorn Wirdheim - Jaguar-Cosworth 1:19.179
21 Nick Heidfeld - Jordan-Ford 1:19.270
22 Gianmaria Bruni - Minardi-Cosworth 1:19.349
23 Timo Glock - Jordan-Ford 1:19.490
24 Zsolt Baumgartner - Minardi-Cosworth 1:19.636
25 Bas Leinders - Minardi-Cosworth 1:19.914

Not only was Da Matta quickest, he did it by more than a half a second!

[Coventrysucks]

Its only testing, it doesn't mean anything.
All that matters is race day.

[Ferrari Tifosi]

Its only testing, it doesn't mean anything.
All that matters is race day.

I wouldn't go as far as to say it doesn't mean anything, practice sets the pace for the weekend. If someone's going fast right off the bat, it's most likely that they are going to get faster.

[DarkPhenix]

The opening day of the French Grand Prix meeting at Magny Cours produced a mix of changeable conditions in which Cristiano da Matta topped the second session of free practice and ended up second quickest overall on the day. Da Matta's best lap, 1m15.518s, was just 0.03s slower than the fastest time of the first session set by Scuderia Ferrari Marlboro's Rubens Barrichello in the narrow window before heavy rain fell. Da Matta said: "Obviously it's great to finish a session on top of the time sheets but today was a bit of a lottery and it all depended on when you managed to get your lap in and how the conditions changed. The worst thing about it, of course, is that Friday is our chance to work on set-up and tyre comparison and the variable weather makes that very difficult."

The F1 rules demand that teams must make their final tyre selections for qualifying and race by 9am on Saturday morning, but because both of today's sessions were rain-afflicted, the FIA has announced that this decision can be deferred until 12.00 noon on Saturday. In other words, the teams will now have the benefit of Saturday's free practice before they have to make up their minds.

Olivier Panis finished the session in 11th place with a lap in 1m17.303 and the Frenchman explained: "The changing conditions make it very difficult to make conclusive judgements and that's the principal reason why I did not go out with a new set of tyres to set quick times. Overall though, the car feels good and I hope that we can have a competitive weekend."

Panasonic Toyota Racing's third driver, Ricardo Zonta (1m17.735s) was 15th quickest and said: "The last time I was here was back in 2000, since when the final sector of the lap has changed. I spent some of the first session relearning that and then had a bit of a moment at Turn 3 in the second session. I was pushing a bit too hard, hit a patch of standing water that I didn't see and went straight on into the gravel trap, thankfully without any damage."

Behind Barrichello and Da Matta, Michael Schumacher set the third quickest time of the day (1m15.713s) in the second Ferrari. Mild Seven Renault F1 Team driver Jarno Trulli was fourth quickest (1m16.206s), followed by Lucky Strike BAR Honda drivers Anthony Davidson (1m16.231s) and Jenson Button (1m16.397s).

Cristiano da Matta (Car 16, Chassis TF104/04)

First Session Classification: 10th, 5 laps completed
Lap Time: 1m26.757s (+11.270s)
Second Session Classification: 1st, 12 laps completed
Lap Time: 1m15.518 (Fastest)

"Obviously it is nice to finish top of the timesheets in the second session today, but that does not necessarily mean anything. We timed our last run to perfection and went out on a new set of tyres when the track was at its best. Our main objective for today was to carry out the tyre evaluation, which was pretty impossible in the ever-changing wet-dry track conditions. At least we have the two practice sessions tomorrow morning in order to do our back-to-back comparison before we have to make our final decision by noon. A very inconclusive day, really."

Olivier Panis (Car 17, Chassis TF104/03)

First Session Classification: 11th, 4 laps completed
Lap Time: 1m27.449s (+11.962s)
Second Session Classification: 11th, 10 laps completed
Lap Time: 1m17.303s (+1.785s)

"Due to the constantly changing weather conditions it was a quite difficult day for us. However, we tried to concentrate on our programme and hopefully we can find some valuable information from the data in preparation for tomorrow. At the end of the session we decided not to go out any more with a new set of tyres and to set some faster times. Nevertheless I am really happy with the car as it looks quite competitive. It is nice to be back racing in France in front of my home fans and I hope we can give them a good result to celebrate on Sunday. We will get a clearer indication in tomorrow's practice sessions."

Ricardo Zonta (Car 38, Chassis TF104/07)

First Session Classification: 13th, 18 laps completed
Lap Time: 1m29.085s (+13.598s)
Second Session Classification: 15th, 15 laps completed
Lap Time: 1m17.735s (+2.217s)

"We didn't obtain any meaningful results from either of today's practice sessions because the weather conditions were so changeable. My last time of running at Magny-Cours was back in 2000, so I took a few laps in the first session to learn the modifications to the final sector, which are new to me. In the second session, I made a mistake on a dry tyre run. I was carrying too much speed into the third corner and I drove through a large patch of standing water, which appeared to be dry as I was approaching it. This sent me into the gravel trap, but it was easy to get back on track and fortunately we did not lose too much time. Like everyone, the inconsistent track conditions affected our programme a lot today."

Grand Prix de France - Practice Session 1

Pos. Driver Team Time Gap Laps kph
1 R. Barrichello Scuderia Ferrari Marlboro 1:15.487 4 210.362
2 M. Schumacher Scuderia Ferrari Marlboro 1:15.713 0.226 4 209.734
3 M. Gene BMW WilliamsF1 Team 1:19.348 3.861 14 200.126
4 T. Glock Jordan Ford 1:19.428 3.941 17 199.924
5 G. Pantano Jordan Ford 1:19.466 3.979 12 199.828
6 N. Heidfeld Jordan Ford 1:20.531 5.044 12 197.186
7 G. Bruni Wilux Minardi Cosworth 1:21.203 5.716 13 195.554
8 B. Leinders Wilux Minardi Cosworth 1:22.267 6.780 11 193.025
9 A. Davidson Lucky Strike BAR Honda 1:26.552 11.065 17 183.468
10 C. da Matta Panasonic Toyota Racing 1:26.757 11.270 5 183.035
11 O. Panis Panasonic Toyota Racing 1:27.449 11.962 4 181.586
12 J. Button Lucky Strike BAR Honda 1:28.317 12.830 5 179.802
13 R. Zonta Panasonic Toyota Racing 1:29.085 13.598 18 178.252
14 C. Klien Jaguar Racing 1:29.626 14.139 8 177.176
15 Z. Baumgartner Wilux Minardi Cosworth 1:29.877 14.390 12 176.681
16 T. Sato Lucky Strike BAR Honda 1:30.092 14.605 10 176.259
17 B. Wirdheim Jaguar Racing 1:30.204 14.717 17 176.040
18 J. Trulli Mild Seven Renault F1 Team 1:39.392 23.905 4 159.767
19 F. Massa Sauber Petronas 3
20 F. Alonso Mild Seven Renault F1 Team 3
21 G. Fisichella Sauber Petronas 1
22 D. Coulthard West McLaren Mercedes 1
23 J. Montoya BMW WilliamsF1 Team 3
24 K. Raikkonen West McLaren Mercedes 1
25 M. Webber Jaguar Racing 1

Grand Prix de France - Practice Session 2

Pos. Driver Team Time Gap Lap kph
1 C. da Matta Panasonic Toyota Racing 1:15.518 12 210.275
2 J. Trulli Mild Seven Renault F1 Team 1:16.206 0.688 9 208.377
3 A. Davidson Lucky Strike BAR Honda 1:16.231 0.713 17 208.308
4 J. Button Lucky Strike BAR Honda 1:16.397 0.879 8 207.856
5 M. Schumacher Scuderia Ferrari Marlboro 1:16.397 0.879 7 207.856
6 F. Alonso Mild Seven Renault F1 Team 1:16.454 0.936 10 207.701
7 D. Coulthard West McLaren Mercedes 1:16.464 0.946 8 207.674
8 M. Webber Jaguar Racing 1:16.745 1.227 14 206.913
9 K. Raikkonen West McLaren Mercedes 1:16.794 1.276 10 206.781
10 R. Barrichello Scuderia Ferrari Marlboro 1:17.094 1.576 5 205.977
11 O. Panis Panasonic Toyota Racing 1:17.303 1.785 10 205.420
12 G. Fisichella Sauber Petronas 1:17.324 1.806 13 205.364
13 J. Montoya BMW WilliamsF1 Team 1:17.556 2.038 5 204.750
14 M. Gene BMW WilliamsF1 Team 1:17.688 2.170 17 204.402
15 R. Zonta Panasonic Toyota Racing 1:17.735 2.217 15 204.278
16 C. Klien Jaguar Racing 1:17.936 2.418 10 203.751
17 T. Sato Lucky Strike BAR Honda 1:17.967 2.449 11 203.670
18 F. Massa Sauber Petronas 1:18.614 3.096 7 201.994
19 G. Pantano Jordan Ford 1:18.711 3.193 10 201.745
20 B. Wirdheim Jaguar Racing 1:19.179 3.661 16 200.553
21 N. Heidfeld Jordan Ford 1:19.270 3.752 12 200.322
22 G. Bruni Wilux Minardi Cosworth 1:19.349 3.831 10 200.123
23 T. Glock Jordan Ford 1:19.490 3.972 25 199.768
24 Z. Baumgartner Wilux Minardi Cosworth 1:19.636 4.118 13 199.402
25 B. Leinders Wilux Minardi Cosworth 1:19.914 4.396 16 198.708

[Matra et Alpine]

Wow, DC in 3rd on the grid

Save me cut-and-paste, all the news is over at http://www.formula1.com/race/news/1841/723.html

except for one .....
David Coulthard, McLaren (3rd, 1m 13.987s):
"I am pleased with the result; it shows that we have made progress with the car and I am happy that the hard work of the whole team is leading us in the right direction. We still have to wait for the race tomorrow to see how we compare with the fuel strategies of the opposition, but we have improved significantly."

"fuel strategies" - oh-ho running light ??????

[Matra et Alpine]

and for Renault fans, try this one .... http://experience.renaultf1.com/default.asp?idnav=2
for live telemetry from both cars.

Check out the driver view - lateral g-force display looks like it could be fun

Unfortunately, Alpine board only just posted it up, so I missed it for the qualifying

[Ferrari Tifosi]

Wow, DC in 3rd on the grid

Save me cut-and-paste, all the news is over at http://www.formula1.com/race/news/1841/723.html

except for one .....
David Coulthard, McLaren (3rd, 1m 13.987s):
"I am pleased with the result; it shows that we have made progress with the car and I am happy that the hard work of the whole team is leading us in the right direction. We still have to wait for the race tomorrow to see how we compare with the fuel strategies of the opposition, but we have improved significantly."

"fuel strategies" - oh-ho running light ??????

I'd imagine that Coulthard is probably running a little light on fuel. But Raikkonen's fastest time this morning in practice, I believe, shows that the MP4/19B is competitive. We'll see tomorrow if its going to be more reliable. Also I wonder if Ilmor has found more power in that engine. France isn't really a power track, but more of a technical one. I guess we'll have to wait for Monza and such to judge that.

[Coventrysucks]

Genuine pace from the McLarens then, Raikkonen stopping before Coulthard, and pretty much in line with everyone else.

A bad start from Coulthard set him back though.

They are just behind the pace of BAR and Renault, and from this weekend's performance, they might be ahead of Williams. If they can get more from the car, they could start challenging the top three teams hard.

It was almost an exciting race, its a shame that Trulli, Barrichello and Button were content to just follow each other round for the last ten laps.
It would have been much more fun if they were swapping places all the way round the track.

Lets hope that Silverstone will be as good, and not as processional as some of the races of late.

[Matra et Alpine]

A bad start from Coulthard set him back though.

Anyone, one row in front of a Renault is going to look bad

Why no other team has worked out what Renault are doing has surprised me.

best story of the weekend reported on ITV was that during practise. MS stopped to do a launch test and Trulli came long side him, stopped, waved and waited for MS to launch. THEN Trulli gunned it and shot past him.

Takes balls to be THAT cheeky Like it

[henk4]

Whatever the competition seems to come up with, MS (and team) always seem to be able to do a little better. A very clever piece of driving and stopping today. Where was the Renault pace when it was needed?

[stratos]

I'm mad with tv chanels !!

thoes F****G BA*****S this afternoon just transmited soccer and soccer and soccer and didn't transmited the f1 !!!! .... 6 chanels giving euro 2004 reports and don't even 1 chanel could tranmisted the f1 !!!

i'm really F***D up !!

[henk4]

I'm mad with tv chanels !!

thoes F****G BA*****S this afternoon just transmited soccer and soccer and soccer and didn't transmited the f1 !!!! .... 6 chanels giving euro 2004 reports and don't even 1 chanel could tranmisted the f1 !!!

i'm really F***D up !!

Does it give you some consolation that Portugal lost?

[Ferrari Tifosi]

After Michael came in before Alonso at the beginning of the race, and then Alonso pitting and coming out in front of Michael, I seriously thought Alonso was going to win. However, Michael drove brilliantly and the Ferrari team's strategy turned out to be the best.

Good news is that McLaren should soon become a serious competitor. They were on the pace for the most part, and this is in only there first race. With some further development and maintained reliability, McLaren should be a threat to Renault, BAR, and maybe even Ferrari when they're on their A game.

[Coventrysucks]

Anyone, one row in front of a Renault is going to look bad

I know, but DC sounded pretty pissed off about it all the same.
He went from 3rd to 5th before the first corner.
Kimi went from 9th to 7th - perhaps McLaren have a new launch control that worked for Kimi, but didn't work as well for DC.

I was surprised at ITV not mentioning the footy.
Their US GP coverage before the England/ Portugal game seemed more like their football coverage was inconsiderately interrupted by some sort of motor race.

[henk4]

I was surprised at ITV not mentioning the footy.
Their US GP coverage before the England/ Portugal game seemed more like their football coverage was inconsiderately interrupted by some sort of motor race.

I watched TSN in Canada, which took over the ITV coverage (with Brundle partly commentating). I actually found it very good, compared to what I am used to, and there was no trace of soccer at all, not before and not after the race.