Coulthard Positive after Promising Start

David Coulthard was encouraged after topping the timesheets on the first day of practice for the French Grand Prix at the Magny-Cours circuit.

The Scot driver, hoping to recover from a very disappointing British Grand Prix two weeks ago, posted a quickest time of 1:14.025 on a sweltering day in France, where the McLaren team managed to outpace all their rivals.

Coulthard's teammate Kimi Raikkonen completed a promising start for the Working-based outfit by setting the second fastest time only 72 hundreds of a second behind the first of the McLarens.

"We had a good day working with the tyres and everything is looking well," said Coulthard after the session. "The balance is OK, but I still have a little oversteer. The last part of the track with the tight chicanes is where we made most of our progress, which is encouraging, as this is where you can really make a difference.

"The Michelin tyres have proved strong in hot weather conditions and I hope that this will help us to achieve a good result this weekend."

Raikkonen was also pleased with his day's work, and the young Finn was hoping for similar weather conditions at the French circuit on Saturday.

"We evaluated our tyre options and worked on different set-ups and I think we have found a good overall package," Raikkonen said. "The track was slippery in the first session but the conditions improved in the second practice.

"If the hot and dry conditions continue I think we can do well, but it really is too early to say, so let's wait and see what happens tomorrow."