Raikkonen gives Alonso food for thought

Kimi Raikkonen fired a warning shot to world champion elect Fernando Alonso this morning when he set the fastest time when practice resumed for the Belgian Grand Prix at Spa-Francorchamps.

The Finn, whose championship chase could end this weekend, set a best time of one minute 48.125 seconds, over a second clear of Alonso’s fourth-placed Renault.

Juan Pablo Montoya gave a clear indication of McLaren’s superiority by backing up team-mate Raikkonen with second place while Renault number two Giancarlo Fisichella was third.

Outgoing world champion Michael Schumacher was fifth for Ferrari with Jenson Button sixth to give BAR-Honda hope of an improved performance after their Monza disappointment. Mark Webber’s Williams was seventh and David Coulthard’s Red Bull eighth.

Despite seeing all of yesterday’s second practice washed out by torrential rain, this morning’s session was quieter than usual, with no lap times registered in the opening 25 minutes.

Friday’s rain, which prompted fears of a race behind the safety car, robbed teams of the chance to perfect their car set-ups but few seemed keen to make up for lost time early in the session.

The action improved in the last 15 minutes, by which time the track had dried out after a damp start. Jacques Villeneuve was caught out though and spun his Sauber while Toyota’s Jarno Trulli ran straight on at the Les Combes chicane.

Montoya moved to the top of the timing sheets with five minutes remaining but ruined an attempt to improve soon after by running wide at La Source. A late flurry put Raikkonen on top by 0.391secs.