Albers not getting carried away

The Midland driver was 11th quickest in the afternoon, but with Friday's times rarely proving significant, the Dutchman is not getting carried away.

"I don't know how realistic the times were today, because in practice, you can never be sure what the other teams are doing," said Albers. "We just ran through our normal Friday programme and we'll see where we stand tomorrow. But at least everything is working well: the engine feels strong and there were no mechanical issues to speak of.

"So, in that respect, it was OK, but we still have a lot of work to do. We have some set-up issues to sort out, and the car is still quite difficult to drive. But, as usual, we will find a way to improve from today to tomorrow, so I'm not overly concerned."

Teammate Tiago Monteiro was also happy with his day's work after finishing in 16th position.

"I'd have to say it was a pretty productive day from my point of view, and I think we're going in the right direction," said Monteiro. "We didn't look out of place all day, and I think we'll be even better as the weekend progresses.

"I was blocked on my last lap of the afternoon on new tyres, so we couldn't get a proper reference time. But considering the split times, it would have been a pretty nice lap, so that gives us a good measure of confidence heading into tomorrow."