Toro Rosso is looking forward to a more promising weekend at Spa-Francorchamps after both its drivers were on the pace in both the wet and dry sessions on a track that its two young rookie drivers, Sebastien Buemi and Jaime Alguersuari, are familiar with and profess to enjoy. In the rain-hit opening session both drivers were in the top-5 in the Ferrari-powered STR4 cars although times posted were generally meaningless, however in the dry second session Buemi went ninth quickest and Alguersuari, who will be starting just his third grand prix on Sunday, was eleventh fastest.

Jaime Alguersuari (STR4-02): “In the past I’ve been competitive here in Formula 3 and other series and I think today went quite well. It’s nice to drive a Formula 1 car on a track where you feel at ease. I’m getting a better feeling for the car now and we made some good improvements to it during the two sessions, even if there is a little bit more still to come. My pace is improving, as I get more confident with the car in the fast corners.”

First Practice Session: Best lap 1.51.529, pos. 5th, 24 laps; Second Practice Session: Best lap 1.47.579, pos. 9th, 36 laps

Sebastien Buemi: (STR4-03): “This is a beautiful circuit and we had a very good car, so I am happy with the way things went today. We managed to improve the car lap after lap and we are working in the right direction. I think we have good speed, although we won’t get the full picture until qualifying tomorrow. There is not that much difference between the two types of tyre, but as always we are a little bit faster on the Option.”