ROUNDS 13 & 14 QUALIFYING QUOTES
Gabriele TARQUINI – SEAT Sport Italy, pole
position
“I know this track very well, I was here for its official
inauguration 19 years ago. The track is exactly the same;
it hasn’t had to be improved over the years because
it was excellent to start with. I was surprised with my great
performance in qualifying today, because we only found a good
set-up in the second free practice and then the car was really
good. I only used 2 sets of tyres so I could save a fresh
front set for tomorrow which I hope will help. It will be
totally different tomorrow because after a few laps the front-wheel
drive cars usually have some trouble – I don’t
know how much though. It will be difficult to keep up with
the rear-wheel drives, especially if the weather stays fine.
Sometimes it’s good not to win because it gives you
ballast, but I hope to win here.”
Jörg MÜLLER – BMW Team Germany, 2nd
fastest
“The team and I showed in the free practices that the
car was competitive and so I really expected to be somewhere
on the front row. It was extremely close in qualifying and
is it especially difficult to get a good clear lap here because
there are so many corners. The first time I drove here was
in 1988 with Formula Ford so I know this track well. The asphalt
is very smooth and clean so it’s good to be here again.”
Alessandro ZANARDI – BMW Team Italy-Spain,
3rd fastest
“I am certainly not disappointed to be third despite
leading qualifying at one stage. To be honest I expected more
SEATs in front of me and I was certain Jörg would be
ahead of me because he was so quick in practice. I blame myself
for making a small mistake on my last lap, which was a fast
one but I am very happy to be where I am. I am going to try
to have a good start counting in the fact that after three
or four laps the endurance of the car and tyre wear really
counts and the BMWs are strong in this element.”
Andy PRIAULX – BMW Team UK, 5th fastest
“I am pretty happy but I still feel there is some potential
for the car and myself which hopefully we can pull together
for tomorrow. We have seen this year that the SEATs are very
consistent so I am not taking anything for granted. I am hoping
that we can maintain a good consistent balance for the whole
race but it’s not easy to drive with 60 kg around this
big circuit.”
Tom CORONEL – GR Asia, 8th fastest
“It is always my aim to be the first privateer and
this has happened here in qualifying. I was here two years
ago with the ETCC and in Race 1 I finished 8th and in Race
2 I finished 6th. The car feels very good and I like this
track. Starting from this position it is my goal to finish
8th in the first race which equates to pole in the second.”
Augusto FARFUS – N.technology, 10th fastest
“I am very happy that I did a good lap but our problem
for tomorrow will be trying to follow the BMW and SEAT cars.
All I can do is try to score some points to remain in the
fight for the championship.”
Robert HUFF – Chevrolet, 15th fastest
“In testing I ran well and in the first free practice
I was again top 10. In the second session we tried something
new and it didn’t work at all so we went back to what
we knew for qualifying. During qualifying my first set of
tyres got dirty very quickly and on the second set I was caught
in traffic. Finally on my third set I got a really clear lap
in and the car worked well. It is encouraging for the team
that we qualified 4th but disappointing because of the engine
change penalty.” NB – after posting the 4th fastest
time, Huff had his best lap disallowed because it was clocked
under yellow flag.
James THOMPSON – SEAT Sport UK, 20th fastest
“We have been at the front of the grid for a while
so we thought we’d have a go at the back! To be honest
there is nothing really wrong with the car; this was just
the best we could do on the day.”
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