Michael Schumacher sure Mercedes quicker in Montreal than practice results suggest

Both Schumacher and team-mate Nico Rosberg ran the super soft tyres in the first session of the day, as they were anticipating rain disrupting the afternoon running.

That left them seventh and 10th quickest in free practice two, as the rain held off until a few minutes after the session.

"It was a bit of a compromised approach because this rain we have right now was supposed to be all day long," Schumacher told reporters after the session.

"We took the opportunity - thinking it was going to be wet in the afternoon - to compromise the way we use the tyres. We didn't have the option tyres available in the afternoon because we had used them in the morning.

"So it doesn't represent the quickest times in the end. What does it mean tomorrow? We'll find out. We are certainly not far off."

Rosberg expects rear tyre degradation to be the key issue of the weekend, with hotter conditions expected over the next couple of days.

"Tyre degradation on the rear is going to be the main issue," Rosberg told AUTOSPORT. "Today it wasn't so much of a problem, but that was probably because of the conditions.

"It was quite cold, and it should get warmer the next few days so it will be quite different. But we have definitely learned a lot today."