ROUNDS 17 & 18 QUALIFYING QUOTES
Jordi GENÉ, SEAT Sport – fastest
“I must be the happiest man in Spain. I couldn’t
have asked for anything else, today at least. Tomorrow is
a new challenge. The team adopted some very good tactics and
we knew that the track is demanding on the chassis so it was
all or nothing. I took a lot of risks on both my fastest laps
but it ended up perfect, especially thanks to Peter (Terting)
pulling me up the straights. To be honest I am little bit
surprised that the León is going so well straight away.
However, we had no summer holidays and everyone worked hard
so we deserve it. Here the straights are not very long so
we knew it was our chance and we had to capitalise on it which
we clearly have done. As for tomorrow, I am never happy to
have a BMW close to me at the start because they get away
quickly. I hope for a good, clean start and then to stay in
front and be consistent. I will be giving 110% to achieve
the win.”
Peter TERTING, SEAT Sport – 2nd fastest
“It’s the first time I have qualified and will
start on the front row of the grid and this is great achievement
for me. I am pleased that in my first year in this championship
I am showing people that I am quick. The León works
well and considering I have not a done a lot of testing I
am really happy. For me and my engineer this morning was difficult
because we had to learn a lot about the car and the changes
we need to make. There were steps forward and backwards but
in the end we went the right way for qualifying.”
Dirk MÜLLER, BMW Team Deutschland – 3rd
fastest
“To be honest I wasn’t really focused on qualifying
so high. My target was 7th or 8th so I am really happy with
3rd. The handling of my car is quite good which is encouraging
for tomorrow and I have a few changes in mind which should
help. In terms of the Championship, yes I will be concentrating
on scoring points because each one is important, but I will
also be fighting for the win, I have to. My main competitors
for the Championship are not too close behind me but you never
know what will be the outcome of the reverse grid. Expect
some close racing tomorrow.”
Robert HUFF, Chevrolet Racing – 4th fastest
“It would have been fantastic to start from the front
row but 4th position is still a dream come true for the team.
It’s really what we needed and thanks to everyone who
has put in the hard work to make it happen, it has all come
together. I am confident with the car so I think I could be
fighting for the podium positions. I can attack on this circuit
and push hard so fingers crossed it will be Chevrolet’s
first podium this weekend.”
Augusto FARFUS, Alfa Romeo Racing Team – 6th
fastest
“We have found a track which is totally different from
last year, with new kerbs and run-off greens with artificial
grass. Conditions change continuously and this has put us
in trouble. However I’m confident for tomorrow. We have
to work on the set-up and focus on recovering positions in
the first race.”
Tom CORONEL, GR Asia – 11th fastest
“After Istanbul we changed from the 20 valve to the
new 16 valve engine which doesn’t affect power but does
make a difference in pick-up so I can feel the difference.
Qualifying was good, I made a little mistake in the first
corner but I am really happy. Here if you are off the line
you have no grip and so it’s difficult to overtake.
This means I won’t be able to work through the field
and challenge the works drivers but I will have to wait and
see if people make some mistakes tomorrow.”
Andy PRIAULX, BMW Team UK – 15th fastest
“There are a number of things that have built up and
I’m not comfortable and confident with the balance of
the car which means I can’t get the best out of my driving.
I did make a mistake in qualifying which probably cost me
five positions. It’s now a question of finding the balance
for tomorrow and we’ll see what can happen. I was worried
about the championship title before this weekend and obviously
I have not given myself the best chance here but anything
can happen and it usually does in motorsport. There is no
way I am giving up tomorrow and I will fight hard.”
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