Saturday Report – A 2007 Remake for Renault?

As the initial trials suggested, the competition was very fierce within the pack, and the battle for the final qualifying phase was very tough for the Renault F1 team. Fernando Alonso seemed to have his place in the Top 10 but ultimately failed to qualify for the super pole due to a technical problem with his car at the end of the second session.

Nelson Piquet, on the other hand, will start his first Grand Prix in 21st position after a challenging qualifying session due to the few kilometers recorded by the young Brazilian since the beginning of the weekend.

These performances are reminiscent of those achieved last year, on the same track where Kovalainen had difficulty getting his season started while Fisichella did not seem able to lead the way.

Fernando Alonso – 3rd and 10th (Qualified 11th):

« As we expected, it was very tight today. I was satisfied with the behavior of my car this morning but had a differential problem during qualifying that disrupted the balance of the car and made it very difficult to control. I am convinced that we can bounce back tomorrow, and we will work tonight to ensure that is the case. »

Nelson Piquet – 15th and 21st:

« I haven’t done much driving since the start of the weekend for various reasons and it showed this afternoon during qualifying. I’m disappointed because of course I hoped to do better for my first Grand Prix, but I’ll try tomorrow to do my best to climb back up and, above all, continue to learn as much as possible.

Pat Symonds – Executive Director of Engineering:

« It’s a disappointing day. Nelson [Piquet] unfortunately didn’t get much track time, resulting in a difficult qualifying. With Fernando [Alonso], we comfortably had our place in the Top 10, but a differential problem on his car compromised his effort and didn’t allow him to secure his place for the final phase of this session. »

Denis Chevrier – Head of Trackside Engine Teams:

« The session was very competitive, and I think we might have to get used to it this year. The gaps are very tight, the drivers are pushing to the maximum to qualify as best as possible, and we witnessed several off-track excursions and even an interruption that inevitably disrupted our qualifying. Fernando [Alonso] had a differential issue that compromised his last lap to get into Q3. Unfortunately, Nelson [Piquet] didn’t drive as much as we would have liked, which didn’t help our Brazilian for his debut. We now have to hope for a good start tomorrow and try to make the most of our position on the grid. »

According to the Renault F1 Team