Brno: Qualifying quotes

GT Pole Position : Matteo Bobbi - nr 1 BMS Scuderia Italia Ferrari 550 Maranello : "I was pushing very hard and found the perfect lap. There was no traffic, no mistakes. I couldn't see my lap time inside the car, so I had to ask the team. But I knew that it was a very good lap time. I'm very happy to be on pole, but tomorrow will be a different story. We're fast, but we're not fast enough, and the Saleens will be tough competition. So I'm a little bit worried about tomorrow."

N-GT Pole Position : Christian Pescatori - nr 62 GPC Giesse Ferrari 360 Modena : "I'm surprised by the result. I did a good, fast lap. The new Pirelli tyres are very fast - great for qualifying, and hopefully for the race as well! But we don't know yet. It's going to be a very hard race for the tyres. We want to finish without problems. But I also want to push a lot and try to win my first race."

2nd in GT : Uwe Alzen - nr 5 Vitaphone Racing Team Saleen S7 : "I have to say that I'm very happy with second place. I'm a bit surprised that Ferrari is on pole here, with the 80 kg ballast! But we're on the first row, and that's a good position to start the race from. We have a good car, a good set-up, and the tyres are in very good shape. We have to see what we can do for tomorrow. The main issue is to finish the race. So far, we've always been quick for one or two laps, or maybe half an hour, but then we get problems. The goal for tomorrow is to see the finish line. Perhaps we can overtake Ferrari at the start. Then, if we can get through without any problems, maybe we can finish on podium."

2nd in N-GT : Emmanuel Collard - nr 50 Freisinger Yukos Motorsport Porsche 996 GT3-RS : "The second position in N-GT is good, but we'll have to wait for tomorrow. The race will be hard for us. The ballast is going to be a big disadvantage. Apart from that, the tyres seem to be very difficult. But I like this circuit. It's a good track, and you can overtake very well here."

3rd in GT : Fabrizio Gollin - nr 2 BMS Scuderia Ferrari 550 Maranello : "We're in a good position, but not in a position to win the race. If we do, we will have 150 kg ballast weight and that would be very difficult ! Ferrari and Michelin are very quick in qualifying, for one lap. Our problem is the race. The ballast doesn't matter so much in qualifying, but it's important for the race. We know that the Saleens are very quick. I think the race will be difficult for both the BMS cars."

3rd in N-GT : Sascha Maassen - nr 99 Freisinger Motorsport Porsche 996 GT3-RS : "We cannot race for the win. Otherwise we would have 75 kg ballast weight, and it would be close to impossible for us to lose that weight again, because you only lose weight when you finish outside the top three. So our problem here is not to win the race. The good thing is that Ferrari is making it very easy for us. They are so quick that even without the weight, we wouldn't have a chance to win the race."

4th in GT : Anthony Kumpen - nr 28 Graham Nash Motorsport Saleen S7: "The team is doing really well, and they are very motivated for this race. The car has the potential to be a race winner. I'm really impressed and I think we can do something really good here. At this stage, I don't have much experience in the car, whereas Paolo has done a few races. We had a long discussion about the set-up yesterday, and I think we have improved the car. I think we're going the right way. I'm happy to be back in the Championship. I really hope for the team that we can get a good result. It would be nice to get to the finish line ! The last race I finished was at the end of 2002, when I finished second, the last win for me was Donington 2002. My last good memory was pole in Monza last year."

5th in GT : Tommy Erdos - nr 7 RML Saleen : "The second session yesterday was excellent. We're at the sharp end of the field. This track seems very good for Saleen. The car has the potential to be good everywhere - it is an excellent package. But we have to keep working on our side to get closer to the other cars. Now, three or four races into the season, there is a good feeling in the team, and we're working well together. Having two cars with sensible people around, good drivers, good engineers, good mechanics, it is all working well. We didn't have as good a run as we'd hoped in qualifying. I had to come in right away as there was a strong fuel smell in the car, and I didn't want to take any risks. When I went out again, I did manage one clear lap, but that was really it. Realistically, we could have improved slightly, but not much higher than fourth or third."

8th in GT : Karl Wendlinger - nr 17 JMB Racing Ferrari 575 M Maranello : "To be honest, Brno is a bit of a disappointment so far. We cannot get the car to work properly, and then I had problems in my qualifying lap, so we are quite a way off the pole. My new team-mate, Jaime Melo, is doing a good job. He was on the times straight away, and was quickly confident with the car. But after Hockenheim, we were able to test for the first time, and we improved the car quite a bit. So we don't understand why we cannot get the car to work here. I think the surface, the car and the tyres are just not working together. Maybe it is a track that doesn't suit the car - both our car on Michelins and the other 575 M cars on Pirelli tyres appear to be struggling. Without traffic, I could have done a 1:57, but no way could I have done a 56. I was faster than the BMS cars in Hockenheim, so this is a big difference. It is likely to be a tough race for car and drivers, and the only thing we can do is to get the car reasonably comfortable to drive during the race and then we will see."

6th in N-GT : Josef Venc - Machanek Racing Porsche 996 GT3 : "Tomorrow should be a nice day, with 24°, which should bring the people out. We are quite happy with the car, although we have a slight problem with the tyres. I know the circuit very well, and it is nice to be back here."

15th in GT : Stephane Lemeret - nr 10 Zwaan's Racing Chrysler Viper: "The Viper is pretty different from a Clio ! But it's going well, and I hope not to be too far from the times set by my team-mates at the end of the weekend. At the moment I'm around 2 seconds slower, but I hope to get to around 1 second by the end of the weekend. And by the time we get to Francorchamps, it should be fine - and there, I'll be on home ground."

-fia-