Hamilton confident of competitive car

The Briton was fourth fastest in the afternoon session, having posted the second quickest time in the morning.

Hamilton was pleased with his team's performance during the day and reckons McLaren will be competitive all weekend.

"We made a great deal of progress this morning and seemed to get the car dialled in nicely to the circuit," said Hamilton, who will lose ten places on the starting grid after his penalty in Canada.

"This afternoon, I unfortunately had a twitchy moment at the exit of Turn Three and ran wide into the gravel. It cut short my run with no major damage and slightly disturbed our run programme.

"At the end of the session, we tried out a new Safety Car timing system, which still needs a little more work at the moment. But today has shown we're looking quick this weekend."

Teammate Heikki Kovalainen was also happy with his work during the day after two trouble-free sessions. The Finn was seventh quickest.

"This is a circuit I've always enjoyed - the sweeping corners and fast chicanes really suit my style and I quickly felt at home," he said.

"It's been a pretty straightforward day: during the afternoon, we worked on the set-up and tyre comparison runs without any problems. I'm happy with the balance of the car in both the slow and fast corners and I'm looking forward to tomorrow."