Renault downplay Friday performance

"It is always nice to see our drivers at the correct end of the timesheets, but it is relatively obvious that we were running lower fuel and new tyres at the right time of the session," said director of engineering Pat Symonds.

"There are no miracles in racing, and we will only be able to assess our true competitiveness after qualifying and the race."

Giancarlo Fisichella was the fastest of the Renault duo in second place, while teammate Heikki Kovalainen finished right behind him.

Despite their pace, Fisichella admitted his car was still lacking grip.

"It was a pretty normal Friday for me, and we managed to do a lot more running than in Australia, which is a good start," said Fisichella. "The balance of the car is not too bad, but we are lacking grip, and that marks the car nervous and inconsistent to drive.

"Of course, the hot conditions always mean grip levels are lower, but we made some decent progress today - and hopefully that can continue tomorrow.

"Physically, it was tough out there today, especially as I have been suffering from the flu in the past couple of day. But by Sunday, I am confident everything will be OK."

Kovalainen, who endured a dismal debut weekend in Australia, was happy with the start to his weekend, but admitted he was still unsure about the team's competitiveness.

"It was a really good Friday for me, especially compared to the first day of practice in Australia," he said. "After the test last week, it was good to complete another 60 laps today and get in tune with the circuit again.

"In terms of the car's handling, it was quite like the final day of the test: the balance wasn't too bad, and improved in line with the circuit conditions, just as it will have done for all the drivers. The heat makes life tough here, and it is going to be a long, hard race but I feel well prepared after the test.

"In terms of competitiveness, we don't really know where we stand at the moment, as we can't know what the other teams were doing. But the picture will become clearer tomorrow."