Ralf Schumacher was the first driver to venture out onto the track closely followed by team mate Juan Pablo Montoya. Ralf's only drama came when he was blocked by Toyota's Allan McNish at the 180 corner, with Ralf forced to take to the grass to avoid the Toyota. During the session Juan Pablo's mechanics changed the springs and Juan Pablo reported that that the car was better.

Again it would be Ferrari's Michael Schumacher who stayed at the top of the times but it was the McLaren drivers who were to improve, with Kimi Raikkonen second  and David Coulthard third. The only drama for Michael was Michael a spin at the hairpin but he would keep his engine running and managed to recover to continue lapping. Rubens Barrichello slipped down to fourth ahead of an improving Jenson Button in fifth. Renault team-mate Trulli also moved up the times going tenth fastest.

Halfway through the session Jordan's Giancarlo Fisichella would had a major accident and the session was red flagged. He was to run wide over the kerb at Estoril, losing a front wing and he would fly off the track and into the tyre barrier. at high speed. Fisichella was out of the car and walking but was taken to the medical centre to be checked over, then airlifted to hospital.

Eddie Irvine continued Jaguar’s weekend progress and would finish the session with eighth fastest. It certainly looks like the Jaguar team are getting some pace from the R3B. Sauber’s Nick Heidfeld was ninth, followed by Jarno Trulli, and Felipe Massa. Irvine’s team-mate Pedro de la Rosa was twelfth, followed by Takuma Sato, Olivier Panis, and Fisichella whose earlier running meant he was fifteenth.

Arrows finally managed to take to the track in the last ten minutes but it seemed it was only for a shakedown rather than timed laps. Enrique Bernoldi and Heinz Harald Frentzen climbed into their cars for the final ten minutes of running before qualifying.

For Minardi the mechanics continued to work on a gear-shift problem on Mark Webber’s car, which saw him set the slowest time in the opening Saturday practice. He would eventually take to the track and set the nineteenth fastest times just ahead of team-mate Yoong.

BAR's Jacques Villeneuve had a frightening moment when his BAR got out of shape forcing him to apply huge amounts of opposite lock in a dramatic high speed slide. He would finish the session in sixteenth, with team-mate Panis in fourteenth.