F1: Schumacher sets the pace in Sao Paulo

Michael Schumacher swept back to the top of the time-sheets in penultimate practice for the Brazilian Grand Prix in Sao Paulo. But the title pacesetter had to work hard to eke out an advantage of just 0.063 secs over the McLaren-Mercedes of Kimi Raikkonen.

Schumacher had dominated much of the session in his new Ferrari having posted the fifth best time until Raikkonen went top with just a couple of minutes left. The German responded by immediately taking to the Interlagos track and regaining his first place with an impressive lap.

Ferrari team-mate Rubens Barrichello was third quickest in last year's car - just under 0.4 secs off the pace. Ralf Schumacher posted the fourth best time in his Williams-BMW while David Coulthard slipped to fifth in his McLaren.

Juan Pablo Montoya was sixth fastest in his Williams just ahead of Renault's Jenson Button. Allan McNish's belief that he would not be able to hold onto the third place he managed on Friday was quickly realised as he plummeted down to 20th spot in his Toyota Racing car. The 32-year-old Scot was almost three seconds slower than Schumacher while Eddie Irvine was 18th in his Jaguar Racing.