Fisichella feeling optimistic

"We are still struggling a little bit with set-up and grip, but it doesn't look too bad," said Fisichella, who has never finished in the top six in the French GP. "We have a few new things on the car and will have more power for qualifying so I'm a bit more optimistic than normal. If we do well, a top 10 grid result is possible."

Sato banged wheels with Mika Salo during the first session and then filled the sidepods of his Jordan with gravel after taking to the run off on the outside of the long right-hand Estoril corner. He was 10th after the first session, but although he improved by three tenths he slipped back to 15th; Fisichella was 12th.

"We're in quite good shape today with no mechanical troubles at all," said Sato. "It was my first outing here in an F1 car and I found the circuit very smooth and good fun to drive, although on the approach to a couple of chicanes, visibility is a bit tricky. We had a good pace straight away and our tyres look quite competitive. I'm optimistic for tomorrow."