A grim start for Lewis Hamilton in his make-or-break weekend
A need for speed: Lewis Hamilton’s first practice at the Circuit de Catalunya, near Bareclona, saw him again struggle to keep up with his more aerodynamic rivals on the grid
That is what Jenson Button's team did last season. Then, as Honda, they stopped trying to improve a clearly uncompetitive car before the midway point of the year and instead concentrated on producing a car that, with Button at the wheel, has won three of the four races this year.
Although the Briton was seventh in second practice the Brawn GP man was the only driver to break the 1min 22sec barrier in the morning with his time being the third best overall.
Williams had the best of the day, though, with Kazuki Nakajima second fastest, just 0.152secs adrift of team-mate Robserg.
It is the eighth time in 14 sessions Williams has topped the timesheets but he has failed to transfer that practice pace into significant points, his best display being sixth in Australia.
Meanwhile, 1997 world champion and Indy 500 winner Jacques Villeneuve has revealed he may be lured into a Formula One comeback.
The 38-year-old Canadian, son of motor racing legend the late Gilles Villeneuve, left BMW-Sauber in 2006 but the new rules that have placed greater emphasis on driving talent rather than technical advances have rekindled his interest in the sport.
Villeneuve said: "The older drivers, those with greater experience and judgement, can better adapt to these sensitive cars. They seem fun to drive."
A vacancy may be open with the new USGPE team, based in the United States, that is planning to join the grid next season with at least one North American driver.
