27.08.2004 "It is good to be racing at Spa once again, as it is such a challenging track which is really enjoyable to drive" Ferrari Friday F1 practice report from Spa

Jean Todt: 'It is a pleasure to be back at this circuit, which is probably the most interesting on the current Formula 1 calendar.

'It is even better being here having already won a sixth consecutive Constructors’ title, along with knowing that one of our drivers will win the Drivers’ Championship for Ferrari for a fifth time in a row.

'As usual on a Friday, our work was aimed at the race, as we tried to fine tune the car settings as well as evaluating the two types of tyre at our disposal.

'At the moment, it is hard to work out the relative strengths of the teams because of the unknown regarding fuel loads and tyre choice of the other teams. I think we will see a very closely contested weekend.'

Michael Schumacher: 'It was a productive Friday practice session and we seemed to have plenty of time to work through our planned programme without having to hurry. In fact, the red flag in this afternoon’s session actually gave us more time to work on our programme.

'I am quite happy with the balance of the car. Now we must finalise our decision regarding tyre choice and I am looking forward to the rest of the weekend with confidence.'

Rubens Barrichello: 'It is good to be racing at Spa once again, as it is such a challenging track which is really enjoyable to drive. This circuit always requires a great deal of work to get the set-up compromise right to suit the mix of different types of corner.

'To be honest, I feel we still have some work to do in this respect and now we will be studying all the data, prior to making progress tomorrow morning.'

Ross Brawn: 'The circuit has changed a bit since we last had a Belgian Grand Prix. The “Bus Stop” has become a chicane like any other on the championship trail and much of the track has been resurfaced. We still have to find the ideal balance for our car, but I feel that in the second session we put together a pretty encouraging string of laps with performance that was quite good, but above all consistent.

'The choice of which Bridgestone tyre to use looks pretty clear. Now we have to find the best set-up for the cars and then we should be okay. The weather forecast for tomorrow is not good, but I think the car-engine-Bridgestone tyre package can also be competitive in the wet.'

Free practice - First session; Michael Schumacher: 2nd 1.45.408 10 laps chassis 239; Rubens Barrichello: 3rd 1.45.605 8 laps chassis 240; Temperatures: air 16/17 °C, track 18/19 °C

Free practice – Second session; Michael Schumacher: 3rd 1.45.137 16 laps chassis 239; Rubens Barrichello: 8th 1.45.625 20 laps chassis 240; Temperatures: air 18 °C, track 22/23 °C