Saturday Report – BMW Attacks the Leaders!

A single observation for the Bavarian team; BMW is in the game. The team has never shown extraordinary performances during winter testing. But today, for both sessions, free practice and qualifying, the F1.08 managed to position itself as a challenger.

The team secured a one-two in the third free practice session but narrowly missed the pole position in qualifying with Kubica. He will start second while Nick Heidfeld will take the 5th position on the grid tomorrow.

Results bode well for the rest of the weekend, especially since the only competitors will be the McLaren drivers, with Ferrari being more behind.

Robert Kubica – 1st and 2nd:

« Being in P2 is a great result for the team and it’s a very good start to the season! I took a lot of risks in the second run and in Q3, but in the end, it didn’t work out when I briefly went off the track onto the artificial grass. »

« This mishap cost me between two and three tenths of a second and maybe the pole position. We had a difficult day yesterday, but we made good progress. The F1.08 is a very fast car, but it is still tricky to set up and drive. »

« I would also like to thank all the factories and staff in Munich and Hinwil who have done a superb job! »

Nick Heidfeld – 2nd and 5th:

« I am very happy with this result even though I could have taken 4th place by a few hundredths. The qualification went well and its results are better than expected after the first steps taken yesterday… »

« The team has made great progress, that’s clear, and it’s a nice reward to see all its efforts rewarded. I’m eager to see the start without traction control tomorrow and especially without Ferrari in front of us. »

Mario Theissen – BMW Motorsport Director:

« We are very satisfied. Positions two and five are our best results since our debut in F1, and Kubica could have easily taken pole without his small mistake. »

Ferrari and McLaren are fast here and our goal is to be on the first three rows of the starting grid in each qualifying session. Mission accomplished for now, but we need to be careful. Seeing the team’s work rewarded is very pleasing in any case!

Willy Rampf – Technical Director:

« It was a good start to the season with these qualifications. Kubica achieved the best result of his career and we can do very good things tomorrow. We are optimistic. »