Massa downplays gap to rivals

Massa posted a best time of 1:21.778, finishing 1.319 seconds quicker than Renault's world champion Fernando Alonso, second quickest.

The Ferrari driver's time, however, was not the fastest of the day, with McLaren's Kimi Raikkonen having gone quickest in the morning.

Massa said the gap to his rivals was not significant.

"No, because I didn't drive in the first session," said Massa when asked if the gap to Alonso was representative of the situation. "I just drove in the second session so I had new tyres, so the gap will be not so big as it was today, but hopefully we can keep a gap."

Massa added: "It was a good day. I would say very good straight away going out of the box. We were already doing very good lap times,  but it was a little bit difficult to make the balance right for old tyres.

"But today the track was very, very dirty and in very bad conditions, especially after the rain and everything, so there is a lot to improve the track for tomorrow and Sunday."

Ferrari are looking to score their fourth consecutive win of the season and, after practice, Massa felt confident of staying ahead.

"I hope so. We have a good car, competitive and the pace is important to keep - especially not just being quick in the first lap but consistent for the long runs."

Seven-time world champion Michael Schumacher was only eighth in the afternoon session, but third in the morning.