Villeneuve Encouraged after Practice

Villeneuve posted the 11th quickest time in the fastest of the Saubers after he claimed his car was strong over a single lap with new tyres.

The Canadian, however, said he would have to improve its performance over long runs, but was still pleased with his pace so far.

"My new tyre lap was pretty good, but for the long runs the set-up was not so good so we have a bit more work to do," said Villeneuve.

"But overall I'd say this was a promising start to the weekend."

Teammate Felipe Massa, on the other hard, was very happy with the handling of his car on long runs and was left confident of a strong weekend after setting the 13th quickest time of the day.

"On new tyres I made a mistake and also had some traffic, but on the long runs my car was really, really good, quick and consistent," said Massa. "We have a strong car so I am very much looking forward both to qualifying and the race."