Ferrari teammates Rubens Barrichello and Michael Schumacher led rivals Kimi Raikkonen and Juan Pablo Montoya in Friday’s practice for the Italian Grand Prix as the Italian team aims for its first win in three months.
Barrichello, last year’s winner in Monza, turned his fastest lap at the 5,793km circuit in one minute, 21,001 seconds to edge Schumacher by 0,15 seconds.
Schumacher, the reigning world champion whose last victory dates back to the Canadian GP at mid-June, spun off and went into the gravel at the Parabolica corner in the initial minutes of the one-hour session.
After a quick pit stop the German driver charged back and produced a streak of quick laps.
Raikkonen, in a McLaren-Mercedes, was 0,31 seconds back.
Montoya’s BMW-Williams had a gap of 0,55 seconds.
David Coulthard, Raikkonen’s teammate, came next in fifth place.
Friday’s practice was held ahead of the pre-qualifying session that will determine the starting order of drivers in Saturday’s qualifying session.
The qualifying session decides the pole position and the starting grid for Sunday’s race at the fastest formula one circuit.
Despite a slump of pace and results of his Ferrari after Canada, Schumacher still leads the championship standings with 72 points, one ahead of Montoya and two ahead of Raikkonen.
Ralf Schumacher, returning to action following a high-speed crash suffered during last week’s tests at this circuit, was a distant ninth in his BMW-Williams, 1,31 seconds slower than Barrichello.
Barrichello and Schumacher finished 1-2 in last year’s Italian GP when the world champion already had the fifth title in his pocket following a sensational season start.
This year’s battle for victory in Monza and for the world title was tighter, with the top contenders suggesting a last-race
decision in the Japanese GP at Suzuka on October 12.
Other fast drivers in practice included Brazilian Cristiano da Matta, sixth in a Toyota, and Britain’s Jenson Button, seventh in a BAR Honda.
Fernando Alonso, winner of the previous GP in Hungary, was eighth. — Sapa-AP