By BMW Sauber F1 Team
June 29 2007

In the first free practice session for the French GP, the BMW Sauber F1 Team drivers completed their scheduled preparation programmes without experiencing any problems. Nick Heidfeld finished seventh, while Robert Kubica claimed ninth place on his first appearance since his heavy accident in Canada.

The first 90-minute session at the "Circuit de Nevers" took place under overcast skies, with cool temperatures of only 19° C. Nick carried out a slightly more extensive programme than his team-mate and completed a total of four stints totalling 25 laps.

He started his preparation work half an hour into the session and completed his final stint in the closing seconds. Nick set a personal fastest lap time of 1:16.338 minutes, thus securing seventh position on the time sheets. It was the only stint he completed on the softer of the two Bridgestone Potenza compounds available.

Robert, however, waited an hour before going out for his first timed stint. Over the course of the session, the Pole completed three stints totalling 19 laps. His personal fastest lap time of 1:16.441 minutes gave him ninth place in the overall classification. The quickest driver of the session was Ferrari's Kimi Räikkönen, who posted a 1:15.382-minute lap.

In the second free practice session, starting at 14:00hrs CEST (13:00hrs BST), Nick and Robert will continue their preparations for the remainder of the weekend.