Practice session 2 saw the McLaren of Lewis Hamilton topping the timesheets, although the quickest lap of the day came courtesy of Kimi Raikkonen s Ferrari in practice session 1.
Using the softer tyre option, Hamilton put in a best time of 1:26.559, over nine tenths of a second faster than second placed man, local hero Mark Webber. Third was Felipe Massa in the F2008, closely followed by the second McLaren of Heikki Kovalainen and David Coulthard. Kimi Raikkonen finished the second session in sixth place, however this was due to the fact he concentrated on longer rune and not outright quick times.
Toyota are starting to look promising with Jarno Trulli claiming seventh spot, and team-mate Timo Glock finishing in tenth, although both had their fair-share of drama during the day Trulli taking a trip into the gravel after getting a wheel off the tarmac, and Glock experiencing gremlins during the morning session.
Williams are also experiencing some pre-race gremlins with both cars being struck down by gearbox problems. Having had his car fixed, Rosberg was eventually able to finish the session in eighth place despite being forced to run with a malfunctioning differential for the entire session.
Honda will be headlining into qualifying with a fairly positive outlook both drivers practice performances suggest that they will be midfield runners rather than languishing at the back.
Super Aguri look to be the weakest team this weekend Sato and Davidson both continued to put miles on the SA08A but both struggled with minor niggles with the car, and there is a worry that the car is prone to overheating.
Unofficial Times:
Pos Driver Team Time Laps 1. Hamilton McLaren-Mercedes 1:26.559 33 2. Webber Red Bull-Renault 1:27.473 + 0.914 27 3. Massa Ferrari 1:27.640 + 1.081 29 4. Kovalainen McLaren-Mercedes 1:27.683 + 1.124 28 5. Coulthard Red Bull-Renault 1:28.037 + 1.478 26 6. Raikkonen Ferrari 1:28.208 + 1.649 28 7. Trulli Toyota 1:28.292 + 1.733 22 8. Rosberg Williams-Toyota 1:28.352 + 1.793 31 9. Fisichella Force India-Ferrari 1:28.469 + 1.910 32 10. Glock Toyota 1:28.582 + 2.023 28 11. Button Honda 1:28.632 + 2.073 30 12. Heidfeld BMW Sauber 1:28.731 + 2.172 32 13. Alonso Renault 1:28.779 + 2.220 37 14. Barrichello Honda 1:28.849 + 2.290 28 15. Kubica BMW Sauber 1:28.860 + 2.301 35 16. Nakajima Williams-Toyota 1:29.077 + 2.518 33 17. Sutil Force India-Ferrari 1:29.161 + 2.602 32 18. Vettel Toro Rosso-Ferrari 1:29.193 + 2.634 40 19. Piquet Renault 1:29.518 + 2.959 14 20. Bourdais Toro Rosso-Ferrari 1:29.605 + 3.046 11 21. Sato Super Aguri-Honda 1:30.663 + 4.104 16 22. Davidson Super Aguri-Honda 1:31.527 + 4.968 8
