Ralf Schumacher pipped by Button

'It's not so bad but I expected more,' Ralf said afterwards. 'I always feel quite comfortable in changing track conditions like today but I couldn't quite manage to optimise the last lap to achieve the times I knew was possible.'

Patrick Head had a more straightforward explanation of his driver's final run.

'He gave up the first of his last two laps in order to get a clear run for the second but then he overcooked it,' said Head.

Frank Williams was delighted by the way that the team's tactics had worked during the session. While many teams rued missed opportunities to upset the established order, both Williams driver made it into the top seven, split by less than 0.1s.

'This result reflects on the excellence of all members of the team from the Williams and BMW sides and quite well on the drivers,' he said.

'It's better than we'd hoped and one always hopes for miracles at your home grand prix. I'm looking forward to tomorrow, wet or dry.'