No Back Problems for Heidfeld

The German driver was forced to pull out of testing with back pains last week, returning home for physiotherapy. But after today's practice sessions, Heidfeld said he had no problems driving his Williams.

That, however, did not mean the team proved competitive, with the German finishing down in 14th position nearly three seconds off the pace.

"The most important matter for me today is confirming that my back is 100% okay after hurting it during last week's test," said Heidfeld. "On the track, we had two reasonable free practice sessions today, and, as usual for Fridays, we worked mainly on tyre comparisons.

"We didn't experience any technical problems, which allowed us to run to our intended distance without hindrance."

His teammate Mark Webber also failed to shine today, the Australian winding up 18th fastest.

"We completed our proposed programme today and we have collected a useful amount of data, which in turn means we have plenty of information to sift later on today in preparation for tomorrow's running," said Webber. "

"All in all we had a pretty reasonable day, with our main focus on tyres.