Michael Schumacher blitzed his opposition in the largely dull third practice session for the San Marino Grand Prix.

The German’s time of 1:21.356 was enough to secure the top position by over one and a half seconds from his team-mate Rubens Barrichello.

Sauber’s Felipe Massa was third fastest and Kimi Raikkonen fourth.

But the Scuderia’s strong results did little to entertain the Italian crowd who would have been largely bored.

Damp sections of the Imola circuit, due to overnight rain, had the majority of the field uninterested in running.

After 30 minutes of the 45-minute run, only five cars had completed a flying lap.

Narain Karthikeyan provided the session’s only drama when he spun his Jordan.

The Indian came off the circuit at relatively high speed and was lucky to escape a big shunt with a barrier.