By McLaren Fans
May 28 2006

With 28 Formula One cars rumbling around the streets of Monaco for the first two Practice sessions of the Grand Prix weekend, McLaren like everybody else would struggle to find some clear air. In the end the majority would keep their noses clean, and live to fight another day. Thursday – First Session

Surprisingly the first session was very active, unlike most circuits where the race drivers normally sit out the first session, pretty much everyone got their lap counters into double figures. Fernando Alonso, who is yet to win in Monaco, set the early pace a tenth of a second ahead of Honda test driver Anthony Davidson. Davidson completed the most laps in the session, totalling 31. Toyota’s Jarno Trulli and Ralf Schumacher were back in the pack in eighteenth and sixteenth, just behind the Ferrari of Felipe Massa. The only real drama was the sudden exit of Kimi Raikkonen who suffered a small fire towards the end of the session.

1	F. Alonso		Renault		1:16.712	13
2	A. Davidson		Honda		1:16.872	31
3	G. Fisichella		Renault		1:16.888	12
4	M. Schumacher		Ferrari		1:16.973	8
5	JP. Montoya		McLaren		1:17.458	7
6	R. Kubica		BMW		1:17.869	19
7	A. Wurz		Williams		1:17.949	28
8	J. Button		Honda		1:18.329	12
9	R. Doornbos		Red Bull		1:18.394	23
10	R. Barrichello		Honda		1:18.406	12
11	D. Coulthard		Red Bull		1:18.406	12
12	N. Rosberg		Williams		1:18.480	15
13	M. Webber		Williams		1:18.571	17
14	F. Massa		Ferrari		1:18.695	15
15	J. Trulli		Toyota		1:18.703	11
16	R. Schumacher		Toyota		1:19.021	14
17	J. Villeneuve		BMW		1:19.246	16
18	C. Klien		Red Bull		1:19.543	10
19	N. Jani		Scuderia Toro Rosso		1:19.651	25
20	G. Mondini		Midland F1		1:19.669	29
21	T. Monteiro		Midland F1		1:19.730	17
22	V. Liuzzi		Scuderia Toro Rosso		1:19.857	16
23	S. Speed		Scuderia Toro Rosso		1:20.137	13
24	C. Albers		Midland F1		1:20.552	17
25	T. Sato		Super Aguri		1:21.144	23
26	F. Montagny		Super Aguri		1:21.594	21
27	K. Räikkönen		McLaren		2:06.592	3
28	N. Heidfeld		BMW		no time	1

Thursday – Second Session

Amazingly the second session was more exciting than the first, with three red flags brought out during the one-hour session. A bollard on the circuit brought the first red flag whilst Anthony Davidson and Robert Kubica both hit the barriers stopping the session. Amongst the spinners Alex Wurz found some clear air near the end of the session to go fastest, with Juan Pablo Montoya putting in a strong showing to finish the fastest race driver in third. Once again, the lap counters were sent into overdrive, with Monaco being such a short lap and the engines less stressed than there are at other venues, the drivers completed far more laps in the second session. Jarno Trulli finished eleventh completing twenty-five laps whilst teammate Ralf Schumacher was eighteenth with twenty-six laps.

The Monaco circuit speeds up dramatically over the cause of the weekend, as the circuit is a normal public road when its not being used for race weekends. Therefore expect the times to get even faster before Saturday’s all or nothing qualifying session.

1	A. Wurz		Williams		1:15.907	27
2	A. Davidson		Honda		1:16.075	15
3	JP. Montoya		McLaren		1:16.138	24
4	F. Alonso		Renault		1:16.221	18
5	R. Doornbos		Red Bull		1:16.292	36
6	K. Räikkönen		McLaren		1:16.707	18
7	G. Fisichella		Renault		1:16.721	23
8	D. Coulthard		Red Bull		1:16.870	19
9	J. Button		Honda		1:16.903	20
10	F. Massa		Ferrari		1:17.251	25
11	J. Trulli		Toyota		1:17.325	25
12	T. Monteiro		Midland F1		1:17.439	30
13	R. Barrichello		Honda		1:17.456	24
14	G. Mondini		Midland F1		1:17.497	30
15	M. Schumacher		Ferrari		1:17.603	25
16	V. Liuzzi		Scuderia Toro Rosso		1:17.638	31
17	M. Webber		Williams		1:17.744	19
18	R. Schumacher		Toyota		1:17.793	26
19	N. Rosberg		Williams		1:17.845	15
20	J. Villeneuve		BMW		1:17.874	13
21	C. Klien		Red Bull		1:18.123	22
22	N. Heidfeld		BMW		1:18.257	10
23	S. Speed		Scuderia Toro Rosso		1:18.420	29
24	C. Albers		Midland F1		1:18.430	24
25	F. Montagny		Super Aguri		1:18.731	19
26	R. Kubica		BMW		1:19.273	12
27	N. Jani		Scuderia Toro Rosso		1:19.445	27
28	T. Sato		Super Aguri		1:19.803	31