During the 2018 Formula 1 season, Ferrari has often converted a difficult Friday into a much stronger Saturday and Sunday. It's therefore logical to expect a significant step even after an ostensibly uninspired Friday showing at Paul Ricard - but there is one big asterisk.
At last month's Spanish Grand Prix, the usual pattern would have resulted in Ferrari and Sebastian Vettel turning a low-key Friday into a better Saturday - so much so that it seemed the combination was still Barcelona favourite even after Lewis Hamilton and Mercedes set the practice pace. But it didn't happen.
Earlier this month, in Canada, Mercedes and Hamilton looked mighty on Friday, but Ferrari turned what Vettel called "disaster" into triumph and he went on to win.