Belgium: An excellent foundation

By Michelin Sport (27/08/2004)
August 27 2004

Kimi Raikkonen set fastest time during the opening day of free practice at the Belgian Grand Prix, which is returning to the Formula One calendar for the first time since 2002.

The Finn lapped the revised, 6.973km circuit – a favourite with drivers and fans alike – in 1:44.701 during the second of two sessions, 0.314 clear of fellow Michelin runner Jenson Button. BAR reserve driver Anthony Davidson's table-topping time from the morning gave Michelin a top-three clean sweep on aggregate. With less than one second covering the top ten, Michelin drivers Takuma Sato, David Coulthard, Antonio Pizzonia, Fernando Alonso and Juan Pablo Montoya were also in touch.

"We have gleaned lots of valuable data about all three of the dry-weather compounds we have available and that has given us an excellent foundation on which to build for the balance of the weekend," explained Pierre Dupasquier, Michelin Motorsport Director.

"When preparing for this race, we incorporated lots of the lessons learned during our recent victory in the Spa 24 Hours at this same circuit. This weekend, as far as Formula One is concerned, the challenge for our six partner teams' engineers is to strike the right balance between downforce for the second sector and top-end speed."