Toyota Drivers Happy after Trouble-Free Day

Toyota drivers Olivier Panis and Cristiano da Matta were pleased after a trouble-free day in practice for the Monaco Grand Prix.

"We have had a trouble-free and solid first day with a lot of hard work from the team," Panis said. "It is not easy to carry out a series of consistent laps in Monaco free practice because the tight nature of the track means that you often come across traffic, especially with 24 cars participating in the Friday session.

"I experienced this again today when doing my new tyre runs, but the results from all three cars were generally positive. We will use tomorrow's free day to look more closely into the areas we need to improve when we resume on Saturday morning."

The Frenchman, a one-time winner of the race in the principality, posted the 15th quickest time of the session, with Brazilian da Matta two positions ahead. The fastest of the Toyota drivers today, however, was Ricardo Zonta, who managed the eighth quickest time.

"I think we can be quite content by what we have seen from today's practice sessions," said da Matta. "The car balance is reasonable and our areas of weakness are pretty much the same that we have faced at other tracks this year.

"The car is bouncing a little bit too much over the bumps and we also have a lack of overall grip. We completed a good number of laps and been able to conduct a productive tyre evaluation. For me, the tyre choice for the weekend is clear."