WilliamsF1 struggles in 1st Saturday practice

After the first Saturday practice the BMW WilliamsF1 pair of Montoya and Ralf Schumacher could only manage twelfth and seventeenth fastest times, with Juan Pablo the faster of the two. Based on these times the WilliamsF1 team has a lot of work to do but making judgements without knowing the configuration that the cars were running under.

Once again it would be Ferrari's Michael Schumacher who would show his domination by setting a time of showed that he would be the one to beat with a scorching 1m:09.001 in the forty five minute stint.

Team-mate Rubens Barrichello finished second, sixth tenths slower but the only other man to finish in the one minute nine time bracket. Ferrari, it is clear, is already stamping its authority.

McLaren's Kimi Raikkonen continued to show that he was making improvements with his car by setting the third fastest time. Arrows’ Heinz-Harald Frentzen also showed that his form in the last race in Spain was no fluke came home in fourth, followed by Sauber’s Felipe Massa, and David Coulthard.

Sauber’s Nick Heidfeld was seventh fastest, ahead of BAR’s Olivier Panis, Jenson Button, and Enrique Bernoldi. The Jordan driver Giancarlo Fisichella was tenth. His team-mate Sato was three places further back in thirteenth.