Ralf Praises Hockenheim Changes

German Ralf Schumacher was one of the many drivers to praise the changes carried out to the Hockenheim circuit ahead of this weekend's German Grand Prix.

The track has been heavily revised in its layout and it's now much shorter than last year, with the lap times being more than 20 seconds quicker than on the previous track. Williams driver Schumacher, who in Friday's practice posted the fifth quickest time, was delighted with the changes.

"For us the practice went according to plan, we were able to test and check everything we wanted to," said Schumacher. "I am really enthusiastic about the new circuit. It is a lot of fun. The area before the hairpin offers a good opportunity for overtaking.

"The circuit is one of the best I have ever raced on, my compliments to the designer."

Williams teammate Juan Pablo Montoya, the man who has started from pole position in the last five races, was seventh fastest and claimed the team still have work to do ahead of tomorrow's qualifying.

"There's still some job to do on the balance of my car," said Montoya. "We spent the session learning the track and adjusting it to the new course but still I am not very comfortable here. During the sessions we concentrated also on tyre evaluation, which we need to be very careful about.

"At the end of the session I was doing a long run but I had a problem with the visor of my helmet which wasn't sealing perfectly and I had to abort the run and come back into the pits to have the helmet replaced."