Kiesa Hindered by Fitness Problems

The Dane had not driven a Formula One car since his appearances with Minardi in 2003 and revealed after the session that his neck had taken a battering as a result.
He ended the session two seconds slower than Narain Karthikeyan and 1.2 seconds off Tiago Monteiro.

"It was quite difficult to get back to Formula One after being away for one year and a half," said Kiesa. "I have not had any testing for a long time; therefore to do ten-lap runs was quite hard on my neck. My physical condition was okay but at the end, my face was pointing in the other direction of the corners.

"I have lost a little bit of time near the end but I think I could give valuable information. I was able to pick up very quickly and match up with my teammates.  I am very satisfied after today's two sessions."

Kiesa's appearance with Jordan was only a one-off for the time being, but sporting director Adrian Burgess said he hoped the Dane would be able to continue with the outfit.

"Nicolas acclimatised himself very quickly to the car, which was good to see," he said. "We would like to thank him for what he has done today and maybe we will get to see him again in the future."

Jordan's race drivers worked through their race preparations on Friday - with the team well aware that predicted rain could help boost their chances of a good result.

Monteiro said: "We have been through our entire tyre test programme and some set-up changes as well. Overall, I am pretty satisfied with the balance of the car. We will have to keep on working on it tomorrow during the last two Free Practice sessions.

"Besides, the weather forecast for the rest of the weekend could maybe play in our favour so it will be interesting."