Ferrari Very Slow During Practice

By Dale Calkins
June 24 2006

Ferrari was very slow today during free practice for the Canadian Grand Prix at the Circuit Gilles Villeneuve. The second session saw Schumacher only go 15th quickest, with Massa all the way back in 22nd.

Ferrari Very Slow During Practice

Dale Calkins

Michael Schumacher
FP 1: 4th - 1'18.994
FP 2: 15th - 1:18.549

4th seems like a good time Schumacher in the first session, having only been behind test drivers, however none of the competitive Renault, McLaren, Williams or BMW drivers set a time. The second session, while faster showed where Ferrari is in comparrison to the real field, slow. Here is what the 7-Time World Champion had to say about his sessions:

"As usual on the first day here in Montreal, the track is very slippery and we in particular suffered with quite a significant loss of grip. We were not quick enough and we have to study the data to see how to improve. Obviously the gap separating us from our rivals today is a big one, but we know the situation can change rapidly. It’s down to us to work hard as all the changes will be working in our favour."

Felipe Massa
FP 1: 16th - 1'23.179
FP 2: 22nd - 1'19.099

Felipe Massa was certainly not very impressive today during practice as he set the 16th and 22nd fastest times during the two sessions respectively. This is what the young Brazilian had to say after his first day in Canada:

"It was quite a difficult day. Today I concentrated mainly on studying the behaviour of one of the two types of tyre Bridgestone has brought here for us. Track conditions and temperatures made life difficult, a bit similar to what happened in Monaco a month ago. Now we have to work out how to improve the situation, taking into account that the grip which was lacking today, should come good tomorrow bit by bit as the cars run on the track. But I am still confident for the rest of the weekend."

Ross Brawn
Technical Director

Ferrari's Technical Director Ross Brawn is uncertain about the team's weekend but is hoping for a better qualifying and race. Here is what Ross had to say:

"It’s a pleasure to be back here racing at the Gilles Villeneuve circuit in Montreal, where we can always count on very enthusiastic support from our fans. Today, we completed the usual Friday programme, revolving around finalising the car set-up for Sunday’s race and comparing the two types of Bridgestone tyre at our disposal. Michael and Felipe used one set of tyres each, accumulating a lot of valuable data which will now be studied by the engineers. I would say it’s too early for a completely clear picture to have emerged and we will know more tomorrow."

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