Turkey GP: Sunday Quotes
“I wish I could have had the whole team up there on the podium with me today! This was definitely a victory for us all, everyone at the track, back at the factory in Brackley and at Mercedes-Benz High Performance Engines in Brixworth. Today we really showed what this car and engine can do and to beat our closest competitors fair and square is a great feeling. I had a good start from the dirty side of the grid and it was really important to maintain second position into the first corner. I took my opportunity on the first lap when Sebastian went wide and from there we controlled the race. Once we knew that Sebastian was going for a three-stop strategy, we filled the car up at my first stop and I just tried to be as consistent as possible to keep him behind me. It's not nice to see a car catching you so quickly, even when you know he is on low fuel, but once he pitted I was able to push harder. I had a smile on my face for pretty much every lap today, the car felt that good, and I was able to back off in the last stint to conserve the engine. This is the first time that the car has been absolutely perfect for me and it means so much to the team to see just how good this car is. To go to Silverstone for our home race leading the Championships is a wonderful feeling but we know that we have to keep pushing to maintain our advantage."
Mark Webber, Red Bull-Renault (2nd, +6.714 secs):
“A good race. I knew I had to hang in there for as long as possible in the first stint. It worked out pretty well and I managed to go a lap longer and save fuel, which helped me gain some time. I knew Sebastian's strategy and that I was in with a sniff of getting a podium finish. Both Sebastian and I knew that first place was gone and it was about who would finish behind Jenson – he was on another planet! The second stint was therefore crucial, I had to push really hard. When you're on a different strategy, the other guy is almost invisible until after the pit stops, but it turned out well for us and my engineer kept me updated with what was happening. I did enough in the middle stint to be able to jump Sebastian at the pit stops. Then, at the end we turned the engine down and brought the car home."
Sebastian Vettel, Red Bull-Renault (3rd, +7.461 secs):
“The start worked out okay, I was ahead but then I nearly lost the car in Turn 9 and 10 on the first lap. It was my mistake, it was extremely difficult there and I nearly did the same on the second lap. It was quite tricky, but I think without that there wouldn't have a big difference, as Jenson was too quick today. After that I thought the strategy might swap to a two-stop plan, but it didn't. I got caught behind Jenson who was heavier in the second stint and that allowed Mark to get ahead. Nonetheless, a good result for the team and I think we can be satisfied with second and third."
Jarno Trulli, Toyota (4th, +27.843 secs):
“I am pleased with the race result and also with the car. We have worked really hard to find more performance and it's great to be back in the fight for a podium. The team deserve a lot of credit for the improvement this weekend, including the engineers who have made a good step with our starts. My start was incredible and I made up two places into the first corner, however I struggled a lot on the first lap with locking brakes so I dropped back to fourth. After that I got into a good rhythm and I was fighting hard with Nico Rosberg. He got ahead at the first pit stops but I bounced back and overtook at the second stops. I was really competitive towards the end when there was a lot of rubber down and it was enjoyable to be fighting at the front. I started the weekend with a positive feeling and we quickly found the right set-up so I am extremely happy to be back to a competitive level."
Nico Rosberg, Williams-Toyota (5th, +31.539 secs):
“I am happy with fifth place and happy for the team as well because this is a good result. I had a great start, which I have to thank my engineers for as it went exactly as I'd hoped it would, and by the end of the first lap I'd managed to make up four positions. From there, I pushed hard to get past Trulli, and I thought I could because my pace was good, but he had a quicker car today. I hope we can keep up this momentum and score points at every race. At the moment, I would say we can consistently be in the top eight."
Felipe Massa, Ferrari (6th, +39.996 secs):
“"
Robert Kubica, BMW Sauber-BMW (7th, +46.247 secs):
“It is good to finally score points. I think I raced well today. My pace was good and I made no mistakes. The race was very hard, as nearly all the time I had someone very close behind me, and the smallest mistake would have cost a position. It was very hard to keep up the pace. However, finishing seventh was a clear step forward and we now have to keep up the speed of development."
Timo Glock, Toyota (8th, +46.959 secs):
“It was not easy to score points from 13th on the grid. At the start I was a bit unlucky; I got a good launch but I got caught at the exit of turn one and another car pushed me to the outside. I lost some positions so maybe the result could have been even better. But in the end I am happy to score a point because the car was spot on, really quick with race fuel. It's tricky to make up positions in Formula 1 but our strategy was right, the pit stops were great and the set-up worked really well so thanks to the team for a good job. Our target before the race was to get into the points so I am pleased to achieve that and I expect even more at the next race."
Kimi Räikkönen, Ferrari (9th, +50.246 secs):
“"
Fernando Alonso, Renault (10th, +62.420 secs):
“Of course I feel frustrated that we didn't manage to finish in the points, but to be honest we couldn't expect much more today. We started in eighth position and having the lightest car on the grid penalized us because after the first pit-stop we just couldn't keep up with the pace with the top contenders. We therefore need to improve quickly. Hopefully the changes expected for the Silverstone race will be significant enough to see us score some good points and change our situation for the second part of the season."
Nick Heidfeld, BMW Sauber-BMW (11th, +64.327 secs):
“For me today's race was disappointing because I lost all my chances in the beginning when I had a problem with the car. As early as the formation lap I realized the car pulled to one side and the front left tire had no grip at all. It stood still when I tapped the brakes softly. The start itself was okay as I was ninth, but then I more or less went straight on in the first corners because of my problems, and quite a few cars went by me. It was better in the second and third stints, but it was way too late for points. Nevertheless it is positive that the car has generally improved and again we are able to score on our own merits."
Kazuki Nakajima, Williams-Toyota (12th, +66.376 secs):
“I had a good start and a strong first lap. Everything was then going well until the second stop. What happened was a real shame as I think that was probably the best race of my career so far. Basewise, we were competitive today, so thanks to the team for a good car and a solid strategy which allowed me to beat Räikkönen and Alonso on the track. We will just have to learn from the mistake in the pitstop and hope for a better result next time."
Lewis Hamilton, McLaren-Mercedes (13th, +80.454 secs):
“It was quite an uneventful race but I actually enjoyed myself this afternoon. I was very heavy at the start but I just pushed and pushed. That's why I can smile – because I think I drove to my full potential. The most important thing is for us to keep our heads up and to keep pushing. I see my role from now on as helping the team to cure the problems with this year's car and to make next year's car the best it can possibly be. When the team gives me a car to win, I will win. Now we look ahead to Silverstone – I really wish Jenson all the best: he did a fantastic job today. Personally, I hope I can come away from my home race with a great feeling from my home fans. I hope they won't give up supporting me."
Heikki Kovalainen, McLaren-Mercedes (14th, +1 Lap):
“This was a character-building race for everybody in the team. At the start of the race, I really got the maximum out of the car and I'm pleased about that. I had a good fight with Rubens too – it was great to be racing hard and fair and it was very satisfying to keep a faster car at bay with some good old-fashioned racing tactics and also our KERS hybrid. In the final stint, the engineers elected to turn down the revs to protect my engine. Still, we have to be realistic: we finished 14th and we all know we can do better. We've had some great days in the past and we'll continue to push hard to enjoy some great days in the future."
Sébastien Buemi, Toro Rosso-Ferrari (15th, +1 Lap):
“It was a tough but a good race for me, as I attacked as hard as I could. We have to stay positive and today, we looked a bit more competitive than over the rest of the weekend. For me, after the last two races, it was a good experience to finish the Grand Prix today and get more mileage. Now we need to do two things: analyze exactly what went wrong in qualifying and get some updates for the car as soon as possible. We will have to make the best of the next two races, after which we are hoping to have some major improvements for Hungary. We need to continue to work hard."
Nelson Piquet Jr., Renault (16th, +1 Lap):
“It was quite a straightforward race today, but my fate had been decided yesterday with the problems that I had in qualifying and so it was difficult to make the strategy work. The car was good and I had some fun battles, including the one with Hamilton when I passed him, but our final result is disappointing. However, I remain confident we can improve in time for Silverstone."
Adrian Sutil, Force India-Mercedes (17th, +1 Lap):
“Perhaps we had hoped for more from 15th on the grid. I lost a couple of places at the start but was able to get them back quickly. The race pace was quite good though and I could have some exciting battles on track with a McLaren and a Brawn, which was great. It was not a real problem with Barrichello: he touched me once through a corner but I was just defending position. It was an interesting race, the car balance and the race pace were pretty good. Only the result was not as we would have liked, but it's been quite a positive weekend overall."
Sébastien Bourdais, Toro Rosso-Ferrari (18th, +1 Lap):
“Starting at the back was always going to be difficult. After the start, Fisichella seemed to be in trouble and was all over the place, so I couldn't take too many risks trying to get past and I lost between 3 and 4 seconds on the opening lap. Of course, I also had to deal with a very heavy fuel load and after that, I had a solitary race. Doing the long second stint on the Option tire was also not easy. We opted for a one-stop strategy in the hope that circumstances or a Safety Car might help us move up the order. It's been clear all weekend we were off the pace, but we have to stay positive and think about how to improve for Silverstone, when we can expect to have a few minor upgrades on the car."
Rubens Barrichello, Brawn-Mercedes (Ret, +11 Laps):
“It was a difficult and immensely frustrating day for me today. We had a problem with the clutch at the start which caused the car to go into anti-stall so I wasn't able to get off the line. That dropped me back into the pack and to complicate things further, I was hitting the limiter on the straights which meant that I couldn't overtake and had to take risks. So it was an eventful first half of the race as I tried to compensate for the problems and I had a couple of incidents with other cars. I was prepared to fight my way up the field but the damage caused to the gearbox by the problems at the start began to get worse so the team had to retire my car. It's difficult to have a day like this when you could see the pace of the car was fantastic but we will bounce back. Silverstone is one of my favorite circuits so I'll stay positive and look ahead to the British Grand Prix in two weeks time."
Giancarlo Fisichella, Force India-Mercedes (Ret, +54 Laps):
“I have had a few problems with the braking this weekend. We changed all the brake systems to see if it made any difference but it was actually worse today as the car was almost completely locked. I had a good start and in the beginning of the race I was quite competitive with the cars around me but then unfortunately the brake pedal was getting longer and longer and we decided to come back in to the pits. We tried to see if we could get back out again but in the end it was very risky and we had to retire. It's a shame as I enjoy this race but I've just had terrible luck at the track!"