NewsOnF1 - 2003 Brazilian GP - What the teams and drivers said

Jean Todt: “It was a very closely fought qualifying session, with fifteen cars all within the same second. Rubens drove a very good lap. It is great for him and for Ferrari to have taken pole here, in front of such an enthusiastic crowd. While his time is not far off that of those at the front, Michael only managed to take seventh place on the starting grid. Given the new regulations his chances are still intact. Bridgestone did a very good job. Tomorrow, we can expect a tough and demanding race in which the various strategies and the changeable weather conditions could play a key role.”

Ross Brawn: “I am very happy for Rubens, who put in a really super lap. It's very exciting that he has taken pole position here in Brazil. We are looking forward to a great race from him tomorrow. Michael had a few difficulties, but I think we have a good car for the race. Now we can only wait and see what happens tomorrow.”

Rubens Barrichello: "I feel fantastic! Ever since I was a kid, all I wanted to do was to be here in a competitive car, waving at the crowd from pole position. It was great to see the reaction of the fans, even though I was keeping a close eye on Mark (Webber.) On my lap, I concentrated on not over-driving and not making any mistakes.
Usually, I have the split times on my display, but today I wanted to be on my own out on the track and I asked the team to switch it off. I had a good run, but all that counts is tomorrow. The whole day will be a challenge and I know the pressure will build. But I am not worried about that and, like in a football match, you always play better at home. The weather? I will be asking my grandmother about that later.”

Michael Schumacher: “First of all, I must say I am very happy for Rubens, who has never had much luck here. It must be a wonderful feeling for him. As for myself, I did not manage a perfect lap, having made a small mistake in the first corner. Considering how close the times are, my grid position is the result of this small slip up. Seventh is not the best position, but we will have to see what strategy the cars in front of me have adopted. On top of that, the weather might change quickly and affect the outcome of the race. It will be a tough afternoon, but as usual I will try my best.”

McLaren ( David Coulthard - 2nd, Kimi Raikkonen - 4th )

Ron Dennis: "An excellent qualifying by the whole team, which has not compromised our race strategy. We look forward to tomorrow's race."

Norbert Haug: "A super performance by both drivers and the team. David's second and Kimi's fourth places are a good basis for the race. The first four are within half a tenth which shows that this was a thrilling qualifying session."

David Coulthard: "A reasonably tidy qualifying lap - the best I have done so far this year. I wasn't comfortable with the balance of the car during the 15-minute warm-up, so we changed it back to how we ran it during this morning's practice and everything felt fine. Now we will see what happens tomorrow. The new rules make it difficult to know the competitiveness of the other teams."

Kimi Raikkonen: "My qualifying lap was not perfect but fourth place is acceptable taking into account how close the competition is. I got the car a little bit sideways at Turn Nine, which lost me a small amount of time, but I think we are looking reasonably strong for the race."

Jaguar ( Mark Webber - 3rd, Antonio Pizzonia - 17th )

Dr Mark Gillan: "Our preparation going into the race has gone exactly to plan and we are delighted with Mark's performance today - a truly outstanding lap. To start this race from the second row of the grid ahead of Schumacher's Ferrari, a McLaren and both Williams is just reward for the hardwork everyone has put into making the Jaguar R4 a solid contender around Interlagos. The car is very well balanced around this circuit and combined with the excellent Michelin tyre, we have been rewarded with P3 on the grid for tomorrow.
Our sector times have looked quite strong all weekend and after the traumas of the first two races, it's great to finally prove what the Jaguar R4 is capable of. The potential of this package has never been in doubt back at the factory but we haven't capitalised on it in a race situation - something we are obviously aiming to put right tomorrow. Combined with giving Michelin their first-ever wets pole position yesterday, today really belongs to Mark Webber. He put an absolutely storming lap together and missed pole position by just under 5/100th second. Antonio unfortunately suffered today because of niggles with brakes and balance and having to take the T-car didn't help either. His original race car will, however, be ready for tomorrow to take on the role of T-Car."

Mark Webber: "I'm surprised because we simply didn't think we would end up on the second row of the grid. We were aiming for top ten qualifying positions but the car felt great out there and that was as close to a near perfect lap I could have done. Contrary to what some people are saying, we were not running the car light with fuel and our strategy going into the race tomorrow is two-stops - not three. We may decide to come in a little early compared to the Ferraris and McLarens but in all honestly, we are not competing with them yet at this stage of our development. We need to come away from the race tomorrow with points and while a podium would be a dream result, the strength of our package is not yet capable of challenging for podium honours.
Nonetheless, I must credit the team for the clear improvement we have demonstrated relative to the opening two races and let's see what tomorrow brings. The pace of the Jaguar R4 is good, I enjoy driving around this track and given how strong the Michelin tyre is, we go into the race quite well prepared. Reliability, however, is something we need to demonstrate tomorrow. Being quick over one lap is one thing - being consistently quick over a race distance is quite another - and that's our next major test. Leaving Interlagos with championship points is the order of the day now and in the process, rewarding the 300-strong team for their incredible hard work over the past few months."

Antonio Pizzonia: "I am delighted for Mark but disappointed with my end-result. The fact that Mark has put the Jaguar on P3 for tomorrow's race shows clearly the potential of the package but my qualifying session was ruined by various things. I suffered problems with my brakes and the balance of the car was not to my liking - particularly in sectors two and three. We were aiming to put both cars into the top ten today and that's really where I should be. Very disappointing given my home event but there is still a race distance to undertake tomorrow and let's see what can be salvaged from this."

Renault ( Jarno Trulli - 5th, Fernando Alonso - 10th )

Pat Symonds: "A reasonably satisfactory qualifying session for us. We are pleased with Jarno's starting position which is in line with the strategy we intend to employ. Although Fernando didn't get the best out of his lap, his starting position, in tenth place, considering our strategy, should allow him to have a good race as well."

Denis Chevrier : "As it has always been the case on this circuit, the lap times are very close, with 15 drivers in one second. We have done a good job throughout the weekend so far, without incurring in any problem and I see no reason for the team not to have a good result in tomorrow's race."

Jarno Trulli: "The team has done a very good job these past two days in developing the car and the result is reflected in my fifth place today. I am very happy with the car, since we found a good compromise with the aero-package. Furthermore, I am confident with the race strategy we have chosen and with the reliability of the car, so I really think we should finish in the points tomorrow."

Fernando Alonso: "Today in qualifying we were able to work on a dry track, which had been impossible yesterday afternoon. I am quite happy with my laptime because I didn't make any mistakes and the car felt good. I am in 10th position and, considering that I believe we have a good strategy, I think that tomorrow we could bring home some more points."

Williams ( Ralf Schumacher - 6th, Juan Pablo Montoya - 9th )

Sam Michael: "Obviously we would always prefer to be a bit further up on the grid. But the race tomorrow is a different story . Since the advent of the new regulations it is very difficult to evaluate everybody's qualifying performance and we are keen to see on which strategy the other teams are on. We have done better in today's dry qualifying than we did under wet conditions yesterday. The new aero parts and the new rear suspension have improved the performance of the car and it is our task to find further improvements as we head into the European sector of the season."

Mario Thiessen: "The Brazilian public can be happy with the outcome of this qualifying. Finally local hero Rubens Barrichello is on pole, but we can't say we are unhappy either. This was one of the tightest qualifying sessions I can remember: The first 15 drivers have qualified within just one second. If one thinks that ten kilos of fuel costs about 0.3 seconds every lap, it is clear how important the fuel load is. We will know the answer to this question tomorrow."

Ralf Schumacher: "I had too much understeer in some sectors of the circuit and I think I lost two or three tenths there. I was also a bit too careful braking into turns seven and eight. However, all in all I am quite happy. I think we've achieved some further improvements with our new chassis. We have used here a new front wing and a modified rear suspension for the first time."

Juan Pablo Montoya: "All in all it has been a pretty good qualifying, even if lost a bit of time in the last two corners due to some understeer. In the third sector I lost something like three or four tenths from my out lap to my timed lap and this is of course a bit disappointing. That's what we've got for tomorrow but I think we are going to have a good race."

Jordan ( Giancarlo Fisichella - 8th, Ralph Firman - 16th )

Gary Anderson: "I'm reasonably content with the way it ended up. To be honest, we will have to wait and see what happens tomorrow but hopefully we've got a good strategy and with a bit of luck we can score some points. Giancarlo drove a good lap and Ralph did his best lap of the weekend and drove well although he made one little mistake. Overall I'm happy."

Giancarlo Fisichella: "I did a very good lap today, almost perfect. The car was reasonably good, although I didn't think we would get on the first four rows so I'm pleased. We did a good job, the mechanics and everybody, and I'm hoping for a good race tomorrow. Maybe I will score some points."

Ralph Firman: "We made some changes to the car between practice and qualifying which improved the car a lot so I'm pretty happy. I made a small mistake but I would been in the same position anyway I think. We've got a good car for the race and I'm looking forward to it."

BAR ( Jenson Button - 11th, Jacques Villeneuve - 13th )

David Richards: "We marginally underperformed with both cars today, Jenson because he was first on the track and Jacques with a technical problem, possibly an exhaust. It's all too easy to look back on qualifying and wish you'd pumped out a little more fuel and run lighter, but I'm confident that our strategy is very sound for the race tomorrow."

Geoff Willis: "It is always difficult to comment on Saturday qualifying since fuel loads have such a significant effect on grid position. It is quite possible that some high qualifiers have compromised their race strategies. I think both our drivers could have been faster; Jenson was disadvantaged by running first and Jacques had a mechanical or engine problem which we have yet to confirm but will investigate when we get the car back from parc ferme. We look forward to the race tomorrow when I hope we will continue to run reliably. Our aim is to finish in the points again, this time with both drivers."

Shuhei Nakamoto: "Although I was hoping for slightly higher grid positions today I'm still confident that our strategy is correct for the race tomorrow."

Jenson Button: "My time was a little slower than this morning and the last sector was a couple of tenths down from where it should have been. It's so difficult to go out first because you've got to get rid of the hot air out on the circuit. The race set-up isn't too bad and I think we have gone in the right direction in terms of the strategy, but I think we can make a few adjustments that will help us tomorrow."

Jacques Villeneuve: "I'm disappointed to be starting the race from 13th position. The most annoying thing is that as soon as I accelerated out of turn one, the engine noise changed rapidly. I lost a lot of power and that stayed for the whole lap so it's very frustrating. Our speed was down as well so I hope we can identify the problem and deal with it for the race because, if not, it will be a big problem."

Sauber ( Nick Heidfeld - 12th, Heinz Harald Frentzen - 14th )

Peter Sauber: "We know that we are a bit too slow here and we will work hard on that for the future. We are confident that Bridgestone will do the same."

Nick Heidfeld: "The car was fine. I think I lost out a little bit because I had to run so early in the session, but compared to the rest of the weekend I was quite happy with the way the C22 performed today."

Heinz Harald Frentzen: "It was a good lap, as good as the one I was on this morning until I spun. I'm pretty happy, and all day the car has been consistent. We didn't make so many compromises with it, and we have a good set-up whatever happens with the weather tomorrow. I had a good, driveable car today."

Toyota ( Olivier Panis - 15th, Cristiano da Matta - 18th )

Keizo Takahashi: "Unfortunately, we were not able to reproduce our speed from this morning's practice. We had trouble with the set up on Cristiano's car, and could not find the correct balance to allow him to get the most out of the car. Olivier made a mistake in the second sector of his flying lap and lost one second. It is disappointing because we should have been much higher up the grid for this race. Nevertheless we will keep at it and hope for a top eight finish tomorrow."

Olivier Panis: "When I started my qualifying lap, everything was fine with the car. I tried to push hard but I made a big mistake in the second sector and we are down in fifteenth as a result. I really want to say sorry to the team because we did a great job in free practice this morning and the car is really good in terms of performance, so obviously I am extremely disappointed for the team and myself but tomorrow is another day and I will try to drive to the limit tomorrow to get some points."

Cristiano da Matta: "Due to the bad weather conditions yesterday, we simply haven't had enough track time to find the optimum set up on the car for this track. I experienced problems with the grip levels and the general handling of the car this morning, so we made some changes to the set-up, which did not make any difference. I am really unhappy to be starting my home GP from so far back on the grid, but we'll see what happens tomorrow."

Minardi ( Jos Verstappen - 19th, Justin Wilson - 20th )

Paul Stoddart: “Today's performance by the European Minardi Cosworth team in near-perfect weather conditions didn't secure quite the grid positions we would have liked, but we're convinced our race strategy is a good one. Both drivers completed their full technical programmes and the cars ran faultlessly all day long, so we think we're in good shape for tomorrow's Grand Prix.”

Jos Verstappen: “It wasn't a perfect lap - the first sector wasn't bad, but we struggled a little in the second, as we have for the last two days. At the end of the day, though, we're about where we felt we would be in qualifying. The Bridgestone tyres are holding up well, and I think we have a good race strategy, so I'm happy with our prospects for tomorrow's race.”

Justin Wilson: “I was quite pleased with this afternoon's qualifying run. There were no problems and I drove a pretty clean lap. The time is certainly acceptable for the fuel load we were carrying. All told, we've had a productive day technically, and I'm looking forward to a good race tomorrow.”

Race Preview

Main Brazilian GP Page

Fan Reviews

Session	2003		2002
Friday Practice	Results	Report	Results
Friday Qualifying	Results	Report	Results
First Saturday Practice	Results	Report	Results
Second Saturday Practice	Results	Report	Results
Saturday Qualifying	Results	Report	Results
Race	Results	Report	Results
What the teams and drivers said Friday - Saturday - Sunday

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