At one stage Juan Pablo was second fastest, with a lap of 1m:30.937, but the rain would become even heavier late in the session seeing many drivers return to their garages, not prepared to risk an accident in the difficult conditions.

So difficult were the early conditions that when the first cars were to take to the track, including McLaren's Kimi Raikkonen he would spin after just a few yards due to aqua-planing just missing the barrier. Raikkonen would be joined Sauber's Heinz Harald Frentzen who would spin after crossing the finish line.

As the session progressed we would see the times constantly improve, with the BMW WilliamsF1 Team and tyre partner Michelin showing a strong performance so far. One such driver would be Ferrari's Michael Schumacher who would seta  time of 1m:28.060, taking over first place from McLaren's David Coulthard.

The session would be red flagged after Jaguar's Antonio Pizzonia was to crash in sector two when he lost control of his Jaguar and crashed the R4 into the barrier. The session would restart with fifteen minutes remaining. After the restart we would have Renault's Fernando Alonso crash into the barriers, so it was very much a case of the drivers not been prepared to take any risks.

This would include the BMW WilliamsF1 drivers, who despite taking to the track after the restart would return to the pits preferring not to have an accident and damage their cars prior to Friday's qualifying.

Friday qualifying is certainly going to be a demanding time in light of the wet track conditions, but both BMW WilliamsF1 team drivers should be helped by their Michelin tyres.