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With AT&T
Williams drivers Kazuki Nakajima and Nico Rosberg finishing Friday's
practice in seventh and thirteenth positions the team would be looking to
improve on their performance in the lead up to qualifying. With the session
been declared wet with the track was wet but rain had stopped. Saturday's
final practice session would get underway with a flood of drivers coming out
to complete their installation lap and look at the circuit. This would include both Nico and
Kazuki. As usual both Ferrari's remained in their pits. With their race
engines now fitted Button would return to the track while team-mate
Barrichello was out for the first time. Button would set the first time of
the session with a 1m:28.661. Barrichello had pitted while Both Force India
cars and Glock returned to the track.
Glock was now fastest with a time of 1m:28.146. This was ten seconds slower
than Friday's times in the dry. Several other drivers had now left the pit
lane including Kubica< Vettel, Kovalainen, and Heidfeld. Fisichella was
third with a 1m:31.738. Bourdais joined team-mate Vettel out on the track.
Button would pit. The first of the Ferrari's, Raikkonen, was out on the
circuit. Kubica was now third with a 1m:29.630 as Glock pitted. Hamilton had
also left the pits with forty five minutes of the session remaining.
Kovalainen was now fastest, 1m:27.787, and Vettel second, 1m:28.038. Glock
was back out on the circuit after pitting briefly.
Both Nico and Kazuki were still in their pits as more drivers left the pit
lane. Heidfeld was fifth followed by Raikkonen, Bourdais, and Kubica. It was
all changing rapidly as Bourdais moved into third, 1m:28.106, and Hamilton
then went fastest with a 1m:27.410. Nico and Kazuki were now on the track as
Vettel moved into second, 1m:27.525. Kovalainen would pit. Hamilton was on a
quick lap improving his time with a 1m:26.453. With forty minutes left the
order was Hamilton from Clock, Vettel, Kovalainen, Bourdais, Piquet,
Raikkonen, Trulli, Kazuki, and Button. But just as quickly the order would
change with Nico moving into third with a 1m:27.285. Webber was in eighth,
1m:28.193.
Kazuki was now in eleventh, 1m:28.485, but he would improve to take third
from Nico with a time of 1m:27.229. But Nico would respond with a 1m:26.786
to move into second. Glock was then fastest with a 1m:26.259. Nico and
Kazuki were now in third and fourth. Vettel was in fifth followed by Webber
and Massa. But Massa would also improve to move into fifth, 1m:27.281.
Hamilton would again move to the top of the times with a 1m:25.901.
Raikkonen was down in thirteenth. Team-mate Massa would improve to be third
with a 1m:26.503. Hamilton and Glock had both pitted. Alonso would move up
to sixth, 1m:27.282, but Button would take this spot with a 1m:27.106. Nico would pit
while Raikkonen had returned to the track.
Both Nico and Kazuki had improved their times with a 1m:26.541 and a
1m:26.845 respectively. Kazuki would pit. With thirty minutes remaining the
order was Hamilton from Glock, Massa, Nico, Kazuki, Bourdais, Button,
Alonso, Kubica, and Trulli in tenth. Trulli would improve to now be fifth
with a time of 1m:26.630. Massa was now second, 1m:26.172, and Piquet
fourth, 1m:26.510. This would see Nico and Kazuki drop to fifth and eighth.
Sutil had yet to set a time. Trulli was sixth and Vettel seventh. Bourdais
would again show pace moving into second with a 1m:26.039. Only a small
number of drivers were on the track, including both Ferrari's and Renault's. Webber would improve
to be ninth, 1m:26.813.
At the top it was changing rapidly with Piquet moving into third, 1m:26.094,
and Vettel fifth, 1m:26.192. Glock was sixth and Nico seventh. The Williams
driver was back out on the track. It was now Massa's turn to move to the top
of the times with a 1m:25.709. Kovalainen would improve to move into
seventh, 1m:26.518. Kazuki was also back out on the track. Massa and
Raikkonen had both pitted. Kovalainen was now sixth, 1m:26.239. Nico and
Kazuki were now eighth and twelfth. Twenty minutes remaining and Trulli
would improve to be fifth, 1m:26.178. Barrichello moved into tenth and Glock
showed his pace again by moving into second, 1m:25.857. Kazuki had improved
to be in tenth with a 1m:26.541, to be one place behind Nico.
Coulthard was now sixth and Trulli seventh. Red Bull team-mate Webber would
improve to be in fourth, 1m:25.974. Nico and Kazuki were now in eleventh and
twelfth. Raikkonen was down in eighteenth. With under fifteen minutes
remaining Nico would pit leaving just a handful of drivers on the track as
the teams and drivers got ready for their practice qualifying runs. Kazuki
would improve to move ahead of Nico with a 1m:26.293. Kazuki and Nico were
now in eleventh and twelfth, having changed order. Raikkonen would improve
slightly to now be in fifteenth. Kazuki would improve a lot to see himself
in sixth with a time of 1m:26.073. Kazuki would pit leaving just Raikkonen
and Fisichella on the track.
With just over ten minutes left Vettel would return to the track. Raikkonen
was now thirteenth. Heidfeld was next out. He was joined by several other
drivers as Sutil finally was able to return to the track. Raikkonen would
pit from twelfth. Heidfeld would improve to be in eighth, 1m:26.120, as
Vettel jumped up the order to be in third, 1m:25.880. Kubica would move up
the order to be third with a 1m:25.852. These drivers were the first on their practice qualifying runs.
Nico was back out and was joined by Kazuki. Both Ferrari's and McLaren's
were still in their pits, joined by Webber. Everyone else was out for their
final runs. Kubica would improve with a 1m:25.697 to move to the top of the
times.
It was changing rapidly as drivers et their times. Piquet was now fastest
with a 1m:25.580. Alonso was in fifth, 1m:25.799. With only a minute
remaining Coulthard moved into second, 1m:25.661. Kubica was now third.
Massa was out on the track as Heidfeld went fastest with a 1m:25.474 but
team-mate Kubica went faster with a 1m:25.087. Glock was now second with a 1m:25.171. Neither
Hamilton, Kovalainen, or Raikkonen had returned to the track as the session
came to a close. Kazuki was able to improve moving up to fifth, 1m:25.563.
Nico was down in fourteenth, 1m:26.213. With the end of the session the
order was Kubica from Glock, Piquet, Heidfeld, Kazuki, Coulthard, Massa, Webber,
Alonso, and Vettel in tenth. Hamilton was down in eleventh and Nico
fourteenth.
With the wet conditions the results of the session makes it difficult to comment on the
form of various drivers making the prospects for qualifying somewhat
unpredictable. |