Friday March 29th, 2002

David Coulthard was encouraged after topping the timesheets in today's practice session for the Brazilian Grand Prix, where the McLaren driver will try to net his first points of the 2002 season.

The Scot retired from the Australian and Malaysian Grands Prix with mechanical problems in his Mercedes-powered car, and is looking to the Interlagos race to kick start his campaign after the disappointing first two races.

Coulthard's weekend did not start brilliantly, as he spun in the first session, but he recovered well in the second to finish nearly three tenths ahead of Juan Pablo Montoya in the Williams.

The Scot was encouraged by the result, but is nevertheless expecting a difficult qualifying on Saturday.

"I'm quite encouraged by today's performance and I believe we have taken a step forward since Malaysia," said Coulthard, who won last year's race in Brazil. "We ran reliably and I got a lot of laps under my belt.

"There was a small spin in the first session due to a problem with the traction control, but on the whole I'm pleased. Qualifying will be hard, but I'm going to give 100 per cent, get the maximum from the car and aim for that perfect lap."

Coulthard's teammate Kimi Raikkonen was sixth quickest after also spinning in the first session. The young Finn, however, stalled his car and lost a lot of valuable time.

"We have been able to consistently improve the car throughout today but unfortunately I lost the majority of the first session as I spun and was unable to continue," said Raikkonen.

"I believe there is still room for improvement, and I'm looking forward to making further progress tomorrow."

Published at 18:42:54 GMT