SAUBER PETRONAS drivers Giancarlo Fisichella and Felipe Massa finished 13th and 17th respectively after today's first practice sessions for the United States Grand Prix.

Giancarlo Fisichella: "We got off to a good start today but then I had some problems with oversteer and the rear tyres were tending to blister, so our main focus has been on improving the set-up to minimise this. We have a lot of work to do before qualifying tomorrow."

Felipe Massa: "Like Giancarlo, I had some problems with oversteer today. As for the incident, I knew that Sato was some way behind me and he wasn't in my mirrors or alongside me when I looked before turning in as normal. Then he hit me. I don't understand. This isn't a race today, it's just a practice session..."

Peter Sauber (Team Principal): "It was a usual Friday for us, but clearly we have more work to do on the set-up of the cars to get the best out of the tyres for qualifying and the race."