De la Rosa Hoping Tyre Gamble Pays Off

Spaniard Pedro de la Rosa is hoping the tyre gamble that made him struggle in today's qualifying will pay off at Sunday's German Grand Prix.

De la Rosa opted for a different Michelin compound than his teammate Eddie Irvine, and the Catalan driver could only manage to set the 20th quickest time of the day, beating only Minardi's Mark Webber on a disappointing day for the Milton Keynes squad.

"I chose a different tyre compound to Eddie and knew it was a risky decision to take," admitted de la Rosa. "The gamble didn't pay off in the end, but I think we'll make up for it in the race tomorrow.

"It's a shame because my lap times were better on both runs and without any errors, I should have been at least three tenths further up the order. This is quite a challenging track and combined with the slippery surface, I think tomorrow's race will throw up a few surprises which we will be looking to capitalise on."

Irvine completed a poor day for Jaguar, the Irishman posting the 16th quickest time despite a promising performance in Friday's practice.