Sunday: Alonso and Ferrari do not rest on their laurels

Fernando Alonso – Winner

It was an incredible race! I am very happy, for me and the whole team: I am proud of these people. Even though we went through tough times, no one gave up, in fact, everyone worked even harder to try to get back on track.

The strategy was perfect, the mechanics did an impeccable job, the engineers did their best to prepare the car, and I drove my best during the 56 laps of the race. I would never have bet on this victory, and I think whoever did must have won a hefty amount!

As I was returning to the pit lane after the checkered flag, I didn’t even know where to stop the car: winning with all the problems we’ve had is something extraordinary.

On the wet track, I was doing very well, but as the track dried, our weaknesses came out again. Sergio was very close, and I was trying to stay on the dry line: if he wanted to overtake me, he would have had to take the risk off the racing line.

Yesterday, both of us finished ninth and tenth, and today we fought for victory, which shows just how unpredictable this championship can be. Our ambition was to limit the damage during the first races, and now we find ourselves at the top of the championship. We must now urgently improve our performance, starting in China and Bahrain. We need to get back to work immediately to find those two or three tenths that could allow us to fight at the front.

Felipe Massa – 15th:

« First of all, I want to congratulate Fernando on his great victory thanks to his fantastic driving in the race. It is a very important victory for the team, even though it should not make us forget that our car is not yet at the level of the best.

Obviously, I am disappointed with my results. Things were going well at the start, and I was able to fight with the drivers directly ahead of me. As the track dried, I suffered more and more from tire degradation and couldn’t maintain my race pace. We decided to follow what Rosberg was doing ahead of me, even though it seemed he was also struggling with his tires, but it didn’t work out and we lost a lot of time with this additional stop, considering the others stayed on the track for about ten more laps before switching to slick tires.

It is important for us to understand why there is such a difference in the way our cars perform, but ultimately, our goal is to have a more competitive car as soon as possible.

Stefano Domenicali, Team Director:

« It’s an incredible victory, absolutely unexpected, but that doesn’t make it any less beautiful and emotional! Once again, Fernando was amazing, driving with a cool head and determination, managing to get the best out of the car and the changing weather conditions.

Today’s victory does not change our situation one bit: we know that for the moment we do not have a competitive enough car to fight for victory under normal conditions, and we know that we have a lot of work to do to get back on track. Clearly, this victory gives us more motivation because it shows that this championship is not over and that anything can happen. A slight improvement in performance can result in a good advancement compared to other teams.

Felipe suffered too much from the degradation of his front tires, which forced him to make an additional stop compared to Fernando: it’s a particularly difficult time for him because he can’t get the maximum out of a car that is, objectively, very difficult to drive. We have an obligation to support him as is expected in a team as cohesive as ours.

Now, we are enjoying this moment for a few hours, but tomorrow we have to return to the factory to speed up the development of this F2012.

Finally, I want to congratulate Sauber, who achieved their best result today, as well as Sergio Perez, one of the young talents from the Ferrari Driver Academy, who confirmed his great talent today.