Michael Schumacher was in a positive mood after first practice in Korea today, despite finishing the afternoon session in a modest 12th place.
The former champ noted that he was fastest through the speed trap, and is optimistic about his prospects at a circuit he clearly already enjoys.
“We look to be pretty reasonable in terms of our pace and speed,” said Schumacher. “So I guess certainly [we expect] to be in the points, and qualifying in the first 10 is absolutely realistic. A podium is probably still unrealistic.
“What we learned for sure was who was out at the last moment with new tyres was the quickest, because the track kept improving massively during the day. Every five minutes it was half a second quicker because the track was rubbering in. So to have a proper picture of who is standing where is not completely possible. But I felt pretty reasonable.”
Schumacher said he was very happy with the track: “I must say the circuit is very demanding, very challenging, very good. I really like it. It’s been a good day for us, we’ve been able to work on track. It’s tricky, it’s difficult, but that’s the challenge. We like difficult tracks.
“You have to imagine that a new track and new asphalt has to rubber in, so with time it got better and better. It’s very demanding.”
Adam Cooper F1 
Michael looked fantastic except for one corner which he can’t seem to get the car around. I don’t know the number but it’s a left hander in sector two. It looks like the car wants to push initially and then the back end steps out and he has to correct. Loses a lot of time there.