Senna: Speed differences not a problem

The Brazilian rookie was responding to questions about whether the potential lack of speed of his HRT car, and the other new teams, could be dangerous - an idea put forward in recent days by Felipe Massa and Ferrari.

But Senna pointed out that bigger gaps in car performance existed in other forms of motorsport and could be solved by respect.

"I've been racing in the Le Mans Series with cars that are two to 20 seconds a lap slower," he said. "It's perfectly possible to be with traffic if you are in a faster car. The only thing you need is for the drivers all to respect each other. It's not a problem."

Senna accepts that drivers on a quick qualifying run would be annoyed about coming up behind a slower car, but believes it is part of the sport.

"I'm pretty sure the drivers in the faster cars are going to be pissed off when they see a driver with a slower time in front of them," he said. "People have to remember that they might not always be in the position they are now. They might sometimes not be overtaking, they might be being overtaken, it's a question of respect and of people giving way to each other."

He added that the drivers will talk the issue over in Bahrain ahead of qualifying: "For sure this will come up in the drivers' briefing tomorrow and we will have to just discuss it."