Horner Happy with Liuzzi's Performance

Formula One rookie Vitantonio Liuzzi may not have scored any points on his debut for Red Bull Racing in the San Marino Grand Prix, but he did more than enough to leave his bosses impressed by what they had seen

After previous driver Christian Klien earned plaudits for two points-scoring finishes and then a strong qualifying performance in Bahrain, Liuzzi is under pressure to prove his worth with only a three-race guarantee before Red Bull decide whether or not to change drivers again.

Although Liuzzi was not able to grab the headlines, thanks to Red Bull's slight slip down the order, sporting director Christian Horner claims he was still impressed with his Italian driver's run to 10th.

"I thought Tonio drove an excellent debut race," said Horner. "He made a solid start, his pace was strong and he was aggressive with Villeneuve, after Villeneuve rejoined following his first pit-stop, and passed him.

"He had a go at Webber at the end but didn't manage to hold off the manoeuvre, but I think it was a very positive debut."

Liuzzi himself knows that the best way for him to show how good he is will be to get in the points - although he was pretty satisfied with his Imola performance.

"Unfortunately we didn't score a point in this race and it was very important to do it," said the Italian. "But we had trouble from the beginning of the weekend.

"We cannot complain though. We knew the car was not so good on this track and now we have to work for Barcelona and Monte Carlo. It won't be that easy, but we have to try and catch our competitors."

When asked whether he believed Klien would be back in the car after the Monaco Grand Prix, Liuzzi's third race, he said: "I hope not, but we have to see. At the moment nothing is fixed and I have to do my best to show that I can stay in the team."