Oschersleben: Post-race quotes

1st in GT : Mika Salo - nr 33 AF Corse Maserati MC12 : "I've been on podium quite a lot lately, but this is the first victory for me for some years now. It turned out that being fifth in qualifying was good enough for the victory today. We didn't have any problems with the car at all. The only issue was that something ripped off the radio cables and we were left off without any radio. We didn't know who was in front and who was behind us, and when we had to push hard. It was only near the end that they showed us a pit board saying that we were leading and stating the gap to the others, so then we went a bit easier. Our speed isn't the best. Even the Saleen with the maximum penalty weight did quicker lap times than we did. We were very consistent, though, and that's what helped us win the race."

1st in GT : Andrea Bertolini - nr 33 AF Corse Maserati MC12 : "For Mika and me, this has been a very hard race. The strategy turned out to be very important. We started the race on intermediate tyres, which was difficult on the first three or four laps when the track was still wet. I have to thank Pirelli and the team, who did unbelievable work with the pitstop."

1st in N-GT : Sascha Maassen - nr 99 Freisinger Motorsport Porsche 996 GT3-RS : "It sounds very easy when you have pole position and win the race, but the race today definitely was not easy. The conditions were quite difficult. All of the leading N-GT cars decided to start the race on slicks, which was the right decision, but it made things very difficult at the beginning, because there were many accidents. We were saving fuel right from the start of the race because we knew that we could get through the race with on stop in the wet, and we did that! I'm very happy."

1st in N-GT : Lucas Luhr - nr 99 Freisinger Motorsport Porsche 996 GT3-RS : "For me, it was quite an easy race. I didn't have to push too hard. I came out in front of Emmanuel [Collard] after my pitstop and managed to stay ahead. I could even pull away a bit from him. I didn't push too much because I knew that the track is hard on the car and the whole equipment. We slowed down a bit in the end to make sure we could finish without a splash and dash."

2nd in GT : Fabrizio Gollin - nr 2 BMS Scuderia Ferrari 550 Maranello : "It was incredible! Today was just a dream day! The team did fantastic work. Luca and I didn't make many mistakes during the whole season, and it paid off. Eight podiums in one season is unbelievable. I'm lost for words."

2nd in GT : Luca Cappellari - nr 2 BMS Scuderia Italia Ferrari 550 Maranello : "We've done five races with 100 kilos ballast this year, that's just incredible. The fight with our teammates [Bobbi and Gardel] was so hard, but we didn't make mistakes and that's how we won the title. Today was a hard race for us. I was hit in the side, which broke the exhaust of the car. That cost us about three or four tenths a lap. But the Scuderia Italia did a fantastic job here today!"

3rd in GT : Chris Goodwin - nr 8 RML Saleen S7 : "You can be close to a very good result but still a million miles away. Today is the best result we achieved all season, by a long way. It just never come together before today, there was always something coming up. But today, I had a Rally driver with me, which was just perfect in these conditions!"

3rd in GT : Jose Pedro Fontes - nr 8 RML Saleen S7 : "For me, this is the first time I've raced a GT car. I'm very happy for the team. I hope I'll be coming back to this series - maybe even for good."

4th in GT : Tarso Marques - nr 17 JMB Racing Ferrari 575 M Maranello : "This is a completely different world compared to what I was driving before. I'm very happy, though. I wasn't expecting to be on podium here today. But I have a very experienced teammate who did a great job. I think if it hadn't been for the penalty we could have been even higher up on podium."

4th in GT : Karl Wendlinger - nr 17 JMB Racing Ferrari 575 M Maranello : "The race was very good. We took the risk to start on slicks, which was the right decision. It was very difficult during the first couple of laps, but then the race was going really well for us. During my last stint, the nr 3 car was in front of us and blocked us, and that's how the nr 1 car could close up to us. He tried to overtake, he touched me, I touched him, and I think that's what the penalty was for. Otherwise, we could have even had a better result, but it's okay."

2nd in N-GT : Emmanuel Collard - nr 50 Freisinger Yukos Motorsport Porsche 996 GT3-RS : "The traffic was really bad. I was just behind Luca when he came out of the pits and he went to overtake some GT cars. It was more difficult for me, though. Maybe it was because of our extra weight. Anyway, it took me 15 laps until I had passed them and I lost a lot of time there. But at the end of the day, it was important for us to finish here and not make a mistake, so we don't lose to many points."

2nd in N-GT : Stéphane Ortelli - nr 50 Freisinger Yukos Motorsport Porsche 996 GT3-RS : "I had the advantage of driving a Porsche, which in these conditions is so much safer than driving a GT car. I lost the lead thanks to the Safety Car period, but that's how it goes - sometimes the Safety Car is helping you - like in Spa - sometimes not. But I have to say that I really enjoyed the race. In conditions like those, the Porsches are really one of the best cars."

3rd in N-GT : Christian Pescatori - nr 62 GPC Giesse Ferrari 360 Modena : "It was very easy for us to drive in those conditions. Ferrari is always competitive. Today we made a mistake with the pit stop. It was the first time something like this happened. In any case, I'm looking forward to the next round in Dubai."

3rd in N-GT : Vincent Vosse - nr 62 GPC Giesse Ferrari 360 Modena : "It was very nice! The car was good to drive. I got in, then we had the Safety Car phase and I was stopped by the red traffic light at the end of the pitlane. We lost quite some time because of that. Then I was stuck in the traffic and lost even more time. We got vibrations on the tyres later, which slowed us down a bit. Overall, it wasn't the best strategy, but the car was great."

4th in N-GT : Nicolaj Fomenko - nr 77 Freisinger Yukos Porsche 996 GT3-RS : "It was a good race, with just one mistake for me and Alex, in that we started on rain tyres, and so we had to make a stop for dry tyres after twenty minutes, so we lost so much time and positions. But the start was absolutely good, and the race was perfect. Freisinger is the best team !"

5th in N-GT : Maciej Marcinkiewicz - nr. 69 Proton Competition Porsche 996 : "The race was alright. Coming in fifth is okay for us. Really, there's not much chance for a better place under normal conditions. The three Porsches are very good cars, and then there's the G.P.C. Ferrari. We can't really beat those four, and we did manage to be best of the rest. Unfortunately, on the last lap we had an incident with one of the Maseratis. It pushed me from behind, the car spun a bit and then it touched me again on the front, so that both the back and the front of our car are badly damaged. It didn't matter too much for the race, because there was only one lap to go, but the team will have to work hard to repair the car."

5th in GT : Matteo Bobbi - nr 1 BMS Scuderia Italia 550 Maranello : "It was a difficult race, but it was going well until just 20 minutes to the end when Wendlinger touched me and pushed me off. I spoke to him, and he apologized and explained that it was not his fault. I finished fourth, the Championship is finished now, but I'm still in second place, and I hope to keep it until the end."

14th overall : Wolfgang Kaufmann - nr 28 Graham Nash Motorsport Saleen S7 : "It was good race; we had electrical problems at the end and Jamie couldn't finish, which was a big shame. Paolo did a great job, Dunlop did a great job and the intermediate tyres were exactly right for the conditions. We came in slightly too early to change to slick tyres, and Paolo [Ruberti] went out and gave me the car in third. Our pit stop wasn't perfect as the Proton was in at the same time. We dropped to twelfth but I took it easy and the stint was great; the lap times were fantastic and I gave the car back in third position. Anyway, the team did a great job, Dunlop did a great job, and I am really happy. It would be great to be back with the Saleen for the other races."

19th overall : Walter Lechner Jr - nr 4 Konrad Motorsport Saleen : "I was fighting hard all race. I made a good start, with the right tyre choice, because you cannot start with from the front on slick tyres, when those behind are on intermediates. I would have been a chicane for everybody. If you're at the back, you can choose what you want. We were leading the race. We were third after the pit stop, but I had a drive-through penalty for staying too long on the stand on the grid, and we fell back to ninth. Toni [Seiler] did a good stint, but when I was going to get in again, the starter motor failed and we were stopped for pushing the car."

23rd overall : Uwe Alzen - nr 5 Vitaphone Racing Team Saleen S7 : "I'm very disappointed and sad that the car didn't work today. We did everything we could, made no mistakes. We started on slicks, then Michael [Bartels] did a great stint, catching up and fighting his way through. He was leading, then we did the pit stop and I took over. Just a few laps into my stint, something on the rear suspension broke. It's our home race, we had a lot of supporters and fans here, so we repaired the car and rejoined the race. But of course by then, a good result was out of reach. We still did our best, though, even driving fastest lap. Not a good weekend for us..."

DNF: Andrea Piccini - nr 24 Dams Lamborghini Murcielago R-GT : "The race was quite good as long as it lasted. The start was difficult for everyone. The conditions were difficult, but we were catching up. When we put on slicks, we did really good lap times. We were almost as fast as the leading cars. And then, a drive shaft problem stopped us again. I'm sure we could have finished on podium, if it hadn't been for that. It would have been a great result. But anyway, we're making good progress, and we know what we still have to work on. We were competitive here, and we're happy about that even if it didn't work out in the end."

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