Mika’s Montreal misery continues

Mika Hakkinen's Montreal misery continued as he wound up seventh after the

first day's practice for the Canadian Grand Prix.
The world champion has only finished the race once in seven years and that
was with fifth place in 1996.

'I don't know what it is but I just don't seem to be able to get to grips
with this place,' he said after watching teammate David Coulthard set the
second-fastest time of the day to Eddie Irvine.

'Fortunately it is only Friday and there is still time to get everything
right.'

Hakkinen spins were as rare as hens' teeth before this season now they are
now a weekly occurrence.

'I don't want to say too much about it but the car is a difficult one to
drive and unpredictable. In qualifying you can overcome it but it is
difficult to be consistent in the race.'

In Montreal practice Hakkinen had another spin. 'Mika's day was
frustrating. He had a spin in the morning which was the result of poor
chassis balance,' said team boss Ron Dennis.

'I didn't get enough laps today,' admitted Hakkinen. 'And finding the limit
has been difficult: I have been struggling with the set-up of the car and I
wasn't able to get the balance right under braking.'