Doornbos Feels at Home at Minardi

The Dutchman, who has taken the seat vacated by Patrick Friesacher, ended practice just one tenth slower than teammate Christijan Albers.

Both drivers were using a new rear-wing configuration on their PS05 cars. 

"It's been a good first day at the office of Minardi," said Doornbos. "I've been made to feel very welcome, from the time I arrived at the factory for the seat fitting, and I want to thank all the guys for their support. 

"This morning, we tried various things with the set-up.  I already had an idea about the direction in which I wanted to go, and between my Race Engineer, Riccardo Adami, and me, we found a good way of working. 

"We made some big changes for the second session, and they worked out very well.  Already, I feel very confident in the car, and I ended the session with a long stint.  I'm looking forward to the weekend, and it can only get better." 

Albers, meanwhile, had his programme interrupted by a minor collision with Renault's Giancarlo Fisichella.

"The morning session was fine, and we made good progress," he said. "This afternoon was not so good, since we lost track time as the result of an incident with Fisichella's Renault.  We both went off the track and his car hit the right front of mine. 

"There's no doubt the mechanics did a great job to repair the car so I could go out again to complete my tyre comparison runs.  Unfortunately, though, the chassis balance wasn't quite as good as it had been previously. 

"I had hoped for a little more today, but it's still a good solid start to the weekend."