Toro Rosso Report – The team has nothing to be ashamed of

What a debut for Frenchman Sébastien Bourdais! Admittedly, a ‘small’ problem two laps before the end of the race forces him to stop. The 4th place with its 5 points slips away from him, but luckily he will still score 2 points after Barrichello’s disqualification and, above all, a large number of retirements!

And for good reason, his teammate Vettel had to retire in the early moments of this breathtaking race. He was thus able to go to the pits and observe Bourdais’ feats.

Sébastien Bourdais – 7th:

« This is not the first time I have encountered disappointment in a race, and it will not be the last. But what is important is that the team really worked well, reacting very quickly. »

« But it was very tough because I was under a lot of pressure, first with a BMW, then with Fernando and Kovalainen. »

« I didn’t dare take any risks but I knew it was almost the end of the race. I only had two laps left but then my engine gave up on me and everything collapsed in a matter of seconds. »

« But starting from 17th place, finishing fourth was an excellent start. But we get two points, and for a first Grand Prix, it’s not so bad. »

Sebastian Vettel – Abandon:

My problems started right at the beginning when I got hooked. There was nothing I could do about it, it wasn’t really my fault. I had Kimi and Jenson on the left and right.

« I tried to stay as close as possible to Kimi to give enough room to the car on the right. Then, in the corner, I felt I was hit from behind. Very disappointing. »

Gerhard Berger – Team Director:

« Bourdais proved throughout the weekend that he was as good as his teammate Vettel. He was a bit unlucky in qualifying, but he had a fantastic race. He engaged in battles with the best and managed to maintain his position, even at the end with worn tires. »

« He made no mistakes, he had a good reading of the race from start to finish. I think we have a great team that showed competitiveness all weekend. But luck wasn’t on our side and it hurts to miss out on fourth place by two laps. »

A point, or maybe two, is better than nothing. For the moment, we do not know exactly what forced Sébastien to stop.