Jarno Trulli gave Jordan Grand Prix an excellent start to the weekend by setting fastest time during the opening practice sessions for the Malaysian Grand Prix. Heinz-Harald Frentzen was seventh fastest at the end of a trouble-free day for Benson and Hedges Jordan Honda.

"It's been good!" smiled Trulli. "It's the first trouble-free day I have had for some time and this is the result. Each time I got in the car, I was able to push 100 per cent and we have been competitive all the way through. It is only the first day, of course, but the good thing is that we have been able to get close to McLaren and Ferrari. We are also able to show that we have made progress with this year's car; it's much better and we are moving in the right direction. I'm happy, not just for me, but for everyone on the team. It was so good not to have any problems today and I wish for the same tomorrow!"

The two 60-minute practice sessions were run in hot and humid conditions, the ambient temperature reaching 33 degrees C with the track temperature running 10 degrees higher.

"If it's like this on Sunday," said Frentzen, "then it is going to be one of the hardest races of the season. It's really hot in the car and I think the track temperatures affected the lap times. It's a little hotter than when we were here in October and that may  be a reason why the track feels a bit slower today. The car continues to feel well balanced and it's definitely nicer to drive than last year's. It was a typical Friday practice session today, trying different tyres and set-ups for the race. We gathered good information and I think we'll be in good shape. But it's early days yet."

Tim Holloway, the Head of Engineering at Jordan Grand Prix, said it had been a satisfactory first day. 'It's been very good,' said Holloway. 'We had no problems and were able to work on improving the balance and on choosing tyres. We've got a clear indication of the way forward for tomorrow.'

Trulli beat the Ferraris of Michael Schumacher and Rubens Barrichello as the Italian team concentrated solely on tyre choice. Both drivers left the road briefly, as did McLaren drivers Mika Hakkinen (sixth fastest) and David Coulthard (fourth). Hakkinen, who also spun, made major changes to
the set-up of the car in a bid to cure a handling problem.

Eddie Irvine (Jaguar) was fifth fastest despite problems with his clutch and power steering. Juan Pablo Montoya was slowest, the Williams driver completing just five laps thanks to problems with the fuel pump and electrics.