Test progress boosts Kovalainen's hopes

Although Renault appeared to be a little behind Ferrari and McLaren in much of winter testing, their confidence was boosted when their long-run and single-lap pace showed signs of improvement in last week's final pre-Australia test in Sakhir.

And that progress has left Kovalainen more bullish about Renault's chances for Melbourne - even though he admits that Ferrari still seem to have to edge at the head of the field.

"I think we have done a good job this winter," said Kovalainen. "We were a little bit off the pace at the start, but we have worked hard and during the final week in Bahrain, I think we made some good progress with the set-ups.

"The long run pace has been pretty good all the way through, but we look better on a single lap now too. Ferrari are out in front, but I think we closed the gap to McLaren a bit so perhaps we can fight with them in Melbourne. BMW will be up there too."

Kovalainen is currently on a training camp in Australia with his teammate Giancarlo Fisichella, and is not scheduled to arrive in Melbourne until Wednesday afternoon.

And although many people are expecting Kovalainen to shine alongside Fisichella, he actually believes it is wrong of people to write off his teammate on the back of his disappointing showings against Fernando Alonso.

"Giancarlo is a very strong teammate," he said. "I think some people underestimate him at the start of this season, but he is a very competitive driver - and a good guy.

"For me, it will be a tough challenge to try and be more consistent than him over the entire season."