Ralf Hoping to Close the Gap on Saturday

Williams driver Ralf Schumacher is hoping his team can close the gap to the leaders in tomorrow's qualifying after finishing in fourth place in Friday's practice for the Hungarian Grand Prix at the Hungaroring circuit.

Schumacher, aiming to ger closer to McLaren's David Coulthard in order to take second place in the Championship, had predicted a tough weekend for the BMW-powered team and his predictions were proved right today after he finished more than six tenths behind his brother Michael in the Ferrari.

The young German was happy with his day's work but admitted he hoped Williams are capable of closing the gap to his rivals tomorrow.

"I am quite satisfied with the way our day went as we completed our planned programme," said Ralf. "It was a difficult day as the track was so slippery and I went off a couple of times, but in the end we found a proper balance for the car.

"All in all the situation here is more less as we expected. I just hope we can close the gap on the top times in qualifying."

Juan Pablo Montoya, in his first visit to the Hungaroring in a Formula One car, endured a tough session, spinning and going off the track several times. The Colombian, who finished in a disappointing 13th place, admitted he struggled with his car's set-up.

"It was a difficult day, especially finding the right direction for the set-up," admitted Montoya. "We struggled in the morning, but improved in the afternoon. However, we have fallen back a little bit as it has been difficult to get the car working and mine seems to have struggled a lot."