Monaco post-race GP2 quotes

GP2 Series: Stoffel, third win of the season for you. How does that feel?

Stoffel Vandoorne: Things are feeling quite special at the moment. I mean, winning in Monaco is probably one of the nicest races that you can win. To have achieved that is just great. It wasn’t easy. I had to fight for it so it makes it even better. Me and Rossi started on the prime tyres. Marciello and Pic were on the options, so we knew they were going to pit quite early. The risk was that there was going to be some traffic at some point. In the end, there was a VSC about 20 laps from the end I think. It was just on the limit to box or not with the prime tyres. In the end, it seems that it was the right decision to box then. We had to make the super soft to last until the end. It was not that easy: O drove quite slow in the beginning, making sure I didn’t kill the tyres. Then, I had some left in the end to push.

GP2 Series: Talking about your pitstop, the VSC was a bit lucky at that point for you, but also that’s where you were able to pass Rossi. It was quite close. How was it from the car?

Stoffel: Yeah it was very close. We were very close together coming to the pitlane. I knew there was a chance to out-pitstop him. The team did a great job putting the tyres on very quickly. And then, we just managed to get alongside before the pit exit and then the track was green again after that. I think the race today was won in the pitlane. I felt a little bit quicker than Rossi before the pitstop, but overtaking around here is close to impossible. In the end, I’m really happy to have passed him in the pitlane and when you’re leading you can just manage your own pace and you decide how the race is going to be.

GP2 Series: Tomorrow, you will be starting from P8 on soft tyres. What can we expect from you?

Stoffel: It’s Monaco, so any point we get tomorrow is going to be a bonus to what we got today already so we know overtaking is really difficult, but we’ll see where we end up. Our pace was really good on the prime today and so was Rossi. I think, we need a good start and then we see where we end up.

GP2 Series: With 111 points in the drivers’ standings at the moment, you must feel quite comfortable after three rounds…

Stoffel: Yeah I need to keep going until the end. For sure, we have scored a lot of points so far, but I really want to continue like this until the end.

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GP2 Series: Alexander, P2 today from pole position. Sure, a podium is a great result, but I am sure you’re a bit disappointed…

Alexander Rossi: Yeah when you start from pole especially around Monaco, you think that you’re in a really good position to win. After the line, I knew that It was going to be difficult to keep ahead of the option runners into turn 1, but I was not too concerned about it because I knew they would be pitting. So once they did, I felt that my pace was quite good. Everything was manageable: we were looking after the tyres and we were quicker. It was kind of cruising at that point because we knew we would pit quite late into the race. When the VSC came out it was clear that we had to come in for the options earlier than we wanted too, but we also knew that it was possible. Unfortunately, we lost a lot in the pitlane because the team that was before us was also preparing for a pitstop so it was a very tight angle and I couldn’t get in. Because Stoffel’s spot was before us, he could get a quicker pitstop and he got me at the end. And then, the race was about pushing and seeing if we could overtake, but to be honest I did not have high hopes considering who was in front of me. At one point, I realised it was probably best to keep second as I had a big gap to third. Obviously, it’s great to be on the podium, but it hurts a little bit to lose a win in Monaco from pole.

GP2 Series: Tomorrow is another day. You’ll be starting from P7. You have a good pace. Anything is possible…

Alexander: 100%. I think tomorrow will be a little bit more fun for me. When you’re on pole, it’s quite a big burden. So to start from seventh, I will need a good first lap and settle in and then after that, like you said, it’s Monaco, anything can happen. So I’m gonna go into it and hope for the best and who knows? Maybe, I’m going to be able to finish on the podium again…

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GP2 Series: Sergio, P3 today. This must feel quite special…

Sergio Canamasas: Yes. I feel really happy. To achieve another podium finish here in Monte Carlo is an amazing feeling. Considering how difficult it is to driver around this track, it’s always quite special to get on the podium. I’m really happy for me, the team, my father and my girlfriend.

GP2 Series: It’s been a difficult race. How was it from the car?

Sergio: As soon as we got the message of the VSC, I told the team to box because it was tight. We knew we could do 15 to 20 laps on the super soft. At the end, we did 22, but I could manage at the end of the race. It was a bit tricky because the super soft were degrading faster than the soft tyres. I knew I had to do the move on Pic as soon as possible because I knew that my grip level was higher than his. I knew if I did it at that moment, I could then manage to keep him behind. Then, we were towards the end, my team told me that Leal had a time penalty. So I backed off because I did not want to take any risk. I only controlled Leal and Pic behind me. I knew that if I needed it, could overtake Leal because I was faster than him, but as he had the penalty, I decided to keep safe.

GP2 Series: You’ll be starting from P6 today. You started from P9 today… What are you goals?

Sergio: Last year, I started from P4 in the sprint race and we finished P2. Why not do another good performance like that tomorrow? I hope. But today, I just want to enjoy with my family and we will see about tomorrow. Obviously, we will have to make some changes on the car to make it faster. And I will push like always. We will try to go for another good result.