19 March: Malaysian Grand Prix - Saturday Qualifying Report - Renault F1
Fernando
first and Giancarlo third after first qualifying, a promising result.
Qualifying 1 Alonso, P1, 1:32.582 Fisichella,
P3, 1:32.765
First (Fernando Alonso) and third (Giancarlo Fisichella) for the Mild Seven Renault F1 Team in the first
qualifying session for the Malaysian Grand Prix. A promising result ahead of second qualifying and the race tomorrow.
Fernando
Alonso, 1st position “The car was quite difficult to drive yesterday, but the engineers did a really good job last night;
this morning, the car was quick and easy to drive again. There was more grip than I had been expecting for my timed lap, and the car
was well balanced, although I lost some time on the exit of Turn 6. It’s good to have a small gap ahead of tomorrow’s qualifying
session, which I think will be a difficult challenge. But I am optimistic for the race.”
Giancarlo Fisichella, 3rd
position “I am pleased to finish third this afternoon: the car was understeering a bit on the timed lap, and I made some small
mistakes, but I think that I can still fight for the podium tomorrow, and maybe the win. We learned yesterday that the R25 has the
potential to be competitive on high fuel loads, and I hope we can confirm this result tomorrow morning, in order to fight strongly
in the race.”
Pat Symonds, Executive Director of Engineering “It was a satisfying day: Fernando’s lap for
provisional pole seemed very clean, and he thinks he could have got more out of the car. Giancarlo lost time this morning when he
spun, but recovered well in qualifying. The cars are much better balanced than yesterday after hard work from the drivers and their
engineers last night. Michelin has supplied tyres with an impressive level of grip on the first lap, and even more impressive
consistency on the long runs in extreme conditions. We are happy with our potential on higher fuel loads tomorrow but in my opinion,
the key to tomorrow’s race will be to correctly manage rear tyre wear over the full distance.”
Denis Chevrier, Head
of Engine Operations “The results of first qualifying give us real reason for satisfaction. This was the first ‘real’
qualifying session of the season, to be held in equal conditions, and it is reassuring to see the cars are performing well, after
our strong performance in race conditions in Melbourne. On the engine side, we have suffered no problems, and the good top speeds
show we have found a good aero-engine balance. However, the very small gaps in today’s session mean that this result is far from
definitive: I think we may see the order change tomorrow morning, before we get a more representative idea of everybody’s
competitiveness in the race itself.”
