David Coulthard surprisingly topped the times at Catalunya yesterday after a series of relatively poor outings for the Adrian Newey-designed RB3, though this becomes less surprising when the presence of Red Bull owner Dietrich Mateschitz at the Spanish circuit is taken into account.

Nick Heidfeld was second quickest for BMW Sauber, with Felipe Massa third quickest for Ferrari. Tonio Liuzzi, in the new STR2, was 19th and slowest, more than 5 seconds off Coulthard’s pace.