Heidfeld Laments Engine Problems

German Nick Heidfeld was disappointed after his progress in practice for the Italian Grand Prix was hindered by an oil leak in his Ford engine.

The Jordan driver suffered early disaster in second practice as he was forced to stop on track at the Curva Grande just a few minutes into the session. Heidfeld failed to set a time and was unable to complete his day's programme.

"The first session worked out quite well because, encouragingly, the car was balanced a lot better than it was at the test," said Heidfeld. "Unfortunately before I could do a timed lap in the second session, I had a technical problem which stopped the car on track.

"That's a bit disappointing obviously but so far this season we have had a reliable engine and this can happen every once in a while. It's not nice though to lose a whole practice session because it meant there were a few things we were not able to test."

Heidfeld's teammate Giorgio Pantano was luckier and despite some balance problems the Italian had a productive day, finishing as 21st fastest.

"Apart from some problems I experienced with the rear of the car, we are relatively happy," said Pantano.