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Ferrari must improve qualifying - Massa

Felipe Massa believes Ferrari's qualifying pace is its biggest weakness © Getty Images

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• Felipe Massa

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Felipe Massa says the greatest room for improvement at Ferrari is with its qualifying pace.

Fernando Alonso has won two races this season, but in five grands prix so far Ferrari has only been on the front row once courtesy of Massa's second place in the wet of Malaysia. With the team less competitive over one lap in dry conditions, Massa said it needed to work on its qualifying pace but that it shouldn't detract from what has been a strong opening to the season.

"Overall, it's been a positive start," Massa said. "In some races we did very well, while in others, Bahrain for example, we had a few problems which cost us valuable points. We have seen an all-round improvement this year, from the car to the way the team works and we have shown we are competitive, but clearly we can still improve, especially in qualifying. We are well aware of this and working towards that goal."

Looking ahead to Monaco, Massa couldn't resist a dig at Red Bull following the recent tyre changes made by Pirelli.

"I like the Monaco track a lot, partly because it's my second home race, given I live there. You are always on the limit, very close to the barriers, with no room for error. Grid position is much more important than at any other track and so we hope we can do well right from Saturday. My aim is very simple, to always be in the fight for a podium finish. The tyres? We must try our best with what we are given, that's it. In Spain, we won with a four stop strategy, but it's definitely not the first time something like that has happened…"

© ESPN Sports Media Ltd.