Saturday: Mixed results for Virgin pilots

Timo Glock – 21st

It was about the perfect Saturday for me. The free practice sessions went well this morning, and it was one of the best qualifying laps I’ve ever done here in Monaco. I gave it my all in this one. I had a couple of moments where I brushed the rail, very close to the barriers, and in the end, it gave me a great lap. Just before the crucial lap, I told my engineers it’s all or nothing, and I turned four-tenths faster than the lap before. A big thanks to the team, they did a great job, and I took my chance to make a bit of a difference. In the end, we’re only a tenth off one of the Toro Rosso cars and in good shape compared to the Lotus, so I’m happy with my work today.

Jerome d’Ambrosio – 22nd

« Not a very good qualifying for me. I think we were a bit behind compared to this morning and Thursday, so we really need to understand why we didn’t keep progressing. We need to focus on that and understand, and then see how we will be in the race. »

John Booth

« First of all, there was a big crash for Perez today, and we have positive news regarding his condition. For our team, after a day spent analyzing the data, we applied most of the setup changes we made on Friday to both cars this morning. While initially both our drivers reported a loss of grip, they were reasonably satisfied with the car configurations. The red flags interrupted our programs, but we came out of the session fairly satisfied. In a place where mechanical settings make a huge difference, the engineers did a good job optimizing the cars. Timo’s lap in qualifying was perhaps the best we have seen from him, and it’s good to see him being satisfied with himself on a circuit where the driver makes the greatest difference.

On Jerome’s car, a small adjustment was made before qualifying, reverting to a setup he used on Thursday, and this time he was happy with it. Unfortunately, it might not have been the right thing to do today, but we are pleased with his rapid progress over the weekend nonetheless. Looking forward to tomorrow, we are aiming for a strong race for both our cars. There will be a lot of action on the track, and we will try to maximize any opportunity we have.