Belgian GP Stewart Friday Notes

Spa-Francorchamps, Friday 27th August, 1999

STEWART-FORD NOTES & QUOTES Belgian Grand Prix: Free Practice

Weather: Cloudy, sunny spells (Ambient temperature 18 deg C, track temperature 21 deg C)

Johnny Herbert set the seventh fastest time in today's Free Practice for the Belgian Grand Prix. Rubens Barrichello finished the day 11th.

RUBENS BARRICHELLO Car No.16 (SF3-04) Time: 1:55.484 Position: 11th 26 laps You appeared to be struggling a bit today - what was the reason? 'The car feels very strange at the moment. I was battling with instability at the rear and a lot of the set-up changes I made didn't work out. The car is good in the high speed corners but I'm losing time in the low speed corners through lack of traction. I'll be spending a lot of time with my engineer to find a better balance for tomorrow.'

JOHNNY HERBERT Car No.17 (SF3-05) Time: 1:54.975 Position: 7th 26 laps You seem to be in good shape for qualifying tomorrow? 'I'm happy with the balance of the car and managed to put in a good time towards the end of the second session. We are still missing a bit of mechanical grip but I'm sure we can find that in time for qualifying. I must say I really like Spa and I'm confident that I can qualify in the top six.'

PAUL STEWART, SGP Chief Operating Officer 'We struggled a little in the first session for pace but by making several set-up changes we were able to improve the balance. We also carried out some tyre evaluation to find a direction for tomorrow. It's nice to see Johnny reasonably well placed at this stage of the weekend. Rubens feels he has some work ahead of him to improve the balance of his car.' MARTIN WHITAKER, Director, Ford Racing, Europe 'An uneventful day from an engine point of view where we experienced no problems. Both cars will be fitted with new engines overnight.'