Kovalainen: “We are in a good position for Sunday's race”

All three Team Lotus drivers lapped in free practice for the Japanese Grand Prix. Jarno Trulli he had a few more problems than his teammates.

Karun Chankhok, 20th: “It was nice to be back on track, especially in Suzuka, also because I've never driven there before and I couldn't wait to try it. It took a while to get the lines right, and as the tires started to warm up, I wasn't able to improve my overall time, even though I was improving in some sections of the track. I did a few laps and I think I did what was required. The car is definitely faster than the last time I tested it in Germany – the Singapore update has brought us forward and we are quite close to the Williams, we could fight during the race and be able to put in a good performance like last year ”.

Heikki Kovalainen, 17th: “I'm pretty happy with my afternoon. You are more cautious when you don't do the morning tests, as for this fast circuit you need a little more time to adapt, but the balance of the car was good straight away and we completed our programme, it was a good session. The tires seem to perform well here – over the long distance the soft tires hold up until the last lap, so we think we've found a good setup. As the track rubbers up it will improve further, so I think we could be in a good position in the race if we take into account our race pace and if we can manage tire degradation. We'll see on Sunday!".

Jarno Trulli, 23rd: “It's one of those slightly up-and-down days for me. This morning I was adapting to the steering used here, and it was fine, but the laps were interrupted by a mechanical problem, before I could start pushing. This afternoon the changes significantly improved the situation, but when I was running on the soft tires I had an electrical problem, without being able to obtain any relevant times. The car was improving anyway and looking at Heikki's times I think it will be good tomorrow."

Alessandra Leoni