F1 Monte Carlo - THU - Free Practice (VMM)

OFFICIAL PRESS RELEASE

Monte Carlo, Principality of Monaco, May 13, 2010

A steady day in the Principality - and looking positive for the race

LEWIS HAMILTON
- MP4-25A-01
- P1 programme: 32 laps, 1m16.647s (+.720s), 7th
- P2 programme: 32 laps, 1m15.249s (+.345s), 7th

�Obviously, we weren�t at the top of the timesheets, but I�ve really been enjoying driving around here today. When you�re at Monaco, things just seem to happen so much faster than normal � it feels two or three times quicker than at other circuits. You�re always on the edge, and if you brake just a little bit too late, then you�ll be in the barrier. It�s an incredible feeling.


�More importantly, this year�s car just feels fantastic � it�s light years ahead of last year�s car. And we made some good steps forward with the set-up. Of course, everyone at the front of the grid is looking pretty competitive, but I think we should be okay.

�We�ll do our homework tonight. Qualifying�s going to be tough, I hope the weather stays okay for us and that we can fight for a spot in the top three.�

JENSON BUTTON
- MP4-25A-03
- P1 programme: 30 laps, 1m16.692s (+.765s), 8th
- P2 programme: 38 laps, 1m15.619s (+.715s), 9th

�This morning felt good, we went through some positive set-up changes and I felt pretty happy with the car. For P2, we made some further changes, but I don�t think all of them were an improvement. So we went back in a few areas, and our long-run pace was good, so I�m feeling very happy about that.

�Tomorrow, we�ve still got a little bit of work to do to understand what�s best for low fuel and new tyres. But I think we understand where we�ve got to be, because we were on the pace this morning.

�Overall, the Ferrari looks very quick, and I�m pretty sure Red Bull are hiding their pace. But it�s the normal cars up at the front, and I�m sure we�ll get a better idea on Saturday morning.

�McLaren always produces a good car around Monaco, they�ve won 15 times around here � more than anyone else � so hopefully we can do well on Saturday.�

MARTIN WHITMARSH
Team principal, Vodafone McLaren Mercedes

�A very productive pair of sessions for us � even if we know we still have much to do to reach our ultimate potential around this most demanding of circuits.

�Jenson and Lewis got themselves dialled in extremely quickly this morning and were both happy with the car. This afternoon, it seems like some of the changes we made between the sessions weren�t as positive as we�d hoped, so we had to dial back on some of those. We�ve still got a few issues to resolve � but the engineers have the whole of tomorrow to rectify them, so I�m sure we�ll be competitive for the rest of the weekend�

�A quick look at today�s times would suggest that Saturday�s qualifying session will be extremely tense and incredibly closely fought � which is fantastic for Formula 1.�






* Official photos and info courtesy of VODAFONE MCLAREN MERCEDES *

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