McLaren Duo Upbeat on Chances
Juan Pablo Montoya is confident that McLaren are on target in their plans to take a much-needed 1-2 finish in the Brazilian Grand Prix after leading the way in practice on Friday
Third driver Alexander Wurz was quickest in both sessions as McLaren made the most of the use of the extra car.
And with Montoya setting the second best time in the second session, having limited his running earlier in the day because of the dusty track conditions, the Colombian is quietly confident.
"I didn't do an awful lot of running in the first session as the track was rather dusty but we were able to set quite good lap times, I think," said Montoya. "However today is not really about laptimes but about finding a strong balance and set-up, and I believe we are going in the right direction.
"We still have some improvements to make particularly as the balance of the car is still not 100% but our Michelin tyres seem to be working well, and we have a pretty clear indication of our tyre choice already."
Teammate Kimi Raikkonen, who is in desperate need of a victory this weekend to try and keep his slim title hopes alive, believed there was still room for improvement after setting the fifth and sixth fastest times in the two sessions.
"We still have some work to do to find the perfect set-up, but I'm confident that we will improve further during tomorrow's two practice sessions," he said. "Everybody in the team wants to leave Brazil with important points, and we are working hard to achieve this."
McLaren: Red Bull “still a step too far” despite Norris F1 rallying call
McLaren: Red Bull “still a step too far” despite Norris F1 rallying call McLaren: Red Bull “still a step too far” despite Norris F1 rallying call
Verstappen explains "tight" McLaren battle into F1 Japanese GP first corner
Verstappen explains "tight" McLaren battle into F1 Japanese GP first corner Verstappen explains "tight" McLaren battle into F1 Japanese GP first corner
How McLaren has revamped its F1 team to become a contender again
How McLaren has revamped its F1 team to become a contender again How McLaren has revamped its F1 team to become a contender again
Why Honda MotoGP team wouldn't block Marc Marquez's exit
Why Honda MotoGP team wouldn't block Marc Marquez's exit Why Honda MotoGP team wouldn't block Marc Marquez's exit
Has IndyCar's Texas loss come at the right time?
Has IndyCar's Texas loss come at the right time? Has IndyCar's Texas loss come at the right time?
Di Grassi leaves Mahindra Formula E team
Di Grassi leaves Mahindra Formula E team Di Grassi leaves Mahindra Formula E team
Williams: Costly F1 crashes masking Sargeant's "steady improvement"
Williams: Costly F1 crashes masking Sargeant's "steady improvement" Williams: Costly F1 crashes masking Sargeant's "steady improvement"
How football has posed difficult questions for F1
How football has posed difficult questions for F1 How football has posed difficult questions for F1
The fans that offer a ray of light in an increasingly partisan F1
The fans that offer a ray of light in an increasingly partisan F1 The fans that offer a ray of light in an increasingly partisan F1
Japanese Grand Prix Driver Ratings 2023
Japanese Grand Prix Driver Ratings 2023 Japanese Grand Prix Driver Ratings 2023
How Verstappen’s crushing Japanese GP win showed Singapore was a blip
How Verstappen’s crushing Japanese GP win showed Singapore was a blip How Verstappen’s crushing Japanese GP win showed Singapore was a blip
Why the reality of F1 engineering debriefs isn't what Drive to Survive makes out
Why the reality of F1 engineering debriefs isn't what Drive to Survive makes out Why the reality of F1 engineering debriefs isn't what Drive to Survive makes out
How Tsunoda has eliminated a crucial F1 limitation
How Tsunoda has eliminated a crucial F1 limitation How Tsunoda has eliminated a crucial F1 limitation
How McLaren has revamped its F1 team to become a contender again
How McLaren has revamped its F1 team to become a contender again How McLaren has revamped its F1 team to become a contender again
Why precedent doesn’t favour Massa’s F1 legal challenge
Why precedent doesn’t favour Massa’s F1 legal challenge Why precedent doesn’t favour Massa’s F1 legal challenge
Subscribe and access Autosport.com with your ad-blocker.
From Formula 1 to MotoGP we report straight from the paddock because we love our sport, just like you. In order to keep delivering our expert journalism, our website uses advertising. Still, we want to give you the opportunity to enjoy an ad-free and tracker-free website and to continue using your adblocker.