Competitive showing from Ferrari

Felipe Massa, Michael Schumacher and the whole Ferrari team can be happy after the first day of free practice session at the Istanbul Speed park. With their competitive 248F1 Massa clocked the 2nd time after newcomer Vettel. Team mate Schumacher was 6th.

Jean Todt "After a three week gap without racing, the final rush of the championship gets underway here in Turkey. Last year, we were in serious difficulties at this circuit but today the situation seems to have improved. With the usual provisos one has to take into account on Fridays, we can say that with the car-engine-Bridgestone tyre package we have at our disposal, we seem to be quite competitive. Today, as usual we have worked on tyre choice and on fine tuning the car set-up. We are well aware how important is this Turkish weekend in terms of the fight for the two titles."

Felipe Massa "All in all a positive day. We have worked a lot on tyre choice for the race and we have ended up with a pretty clear picture of the situation. First impressions are that the car is well balanced. I am happy about that and I am confident that we can be competitive. Yes, it's only Friday but at least everything is in place for me to feel this way."

Michael Schumacher "Today, I have at last been able to find out how demanding this track is. Last year we were here with a package that was absolutely not competitive, while today the situation is completely different and driving the 248 F1 on this track is really good fun. I am quite satisfied with the way things went: the fact that I set my fastest time at the end of the session and therefore on used tyres is certainly a good sign. I am confident and hope to continue on this path tomorrow and Sunday. Clearly the heat seems to suit us and our tyres."

Ross Brawn "It was a good day. We got through some useful work with both drivers and we have a reasonably clear picture as far as the tyres are concerned. Obviously, we have to take into account how the track conditions will have changed by Sunday. The cars, fitted with new turning vanes and air intakes on the rear brakes, ran trouble-free and seemed to be well balanced. All things considered, we can be satisfied and can be reasonably confident about the outcome of the rest of the weekend."