Q:
Michael, I think it has been exciting for everyone to watch, but
a little confusing. Let's ask how it went yesterday, how has it
been going and how it lead to pole today?
MS: Well, obviously, it didn't start perfectly for me yesterday.
I wouldn't think I had the best set-up. Rubens had done a much better
job in that area and I just simply copied - and that is what team-mates
are there for, to help the other out when he is in trouble. It worked
out very well for me taking his set up and it worked out well for
me today.
Q:
Yesterday, you described yourself as a bit of a street-cleaner,
going out when you did. Today, it was a completely different deal.
What did you think about the one lap qualifying, what was going
through your mind and how difficult is it for the team to adapt
to that new pressure situation?
MS: I guess it is far more difficult to adapt for the team,
because [they have] to adapt to the time frame we have to work in,
when things are very tight. As you can see, we finished the warm-up
at 1445 and, at three o'clock, everything has to be ready for the
race. Then it is very tricky, and I guess some adaptation will be
necessary for the future, but, in general, I shouldn't complain.
It is the same for anyone. For me, in the car, it is no different
because you concentrate and you do your lap whatever the situation
is, whether you have four opportunities or you have one, you concentrate
for it and I don't have the feeling it did anything to me.
Q:
It looked like a very clean lap. Does that mean you had a little
margin because it was only a one-lap burst?
MS: No, I think it was a lap spot on. I don't think I had
any margin left to push further.
Q:
Rubens, it looked like there was a bit of trouble there, with Kimi
Raikkonen on the circuit in front of you, and debris coming from
his McLaren?
RB: Yes, it was the only problem I had really this weekend.
We have new rules, and new everything, and you have to accommodate
yourself for what you see. I was pretty much prepared and the car
felt good. I came out of turn six and I had this flag, which was
the one warning of debris or oil on the track, and it took my attention
away a bit. I felt I could have pushed a little harder because of
that, but there were pieces on the track and the car was still running.
So, in a way, I cannot complain because that is it, but I felt I
could have done a little bit better after being on top all weekend.
Q:
How much does having to race the car you are qualifying effect the
way you look at the fuel strategy and then the race strategy now?
RB: It is a new thing altogether and, in a way, it is less
exciting than it used to be in qualifying, because we're not on
the fuel level we used to have and we used to push the car further.
I mean, you have to be really flexible with the car. We were oversteering
on many points on the circuit, so it is a compromise for the new
rules.
Q:
And Michael, there is still life in the old Ferrari yet?
JPM: Tell me about it!
MS: Yeah. But it's a question of how good is an old Ferrari against
a new Ferrari, and that is something we still have to answer.
Q:
You had a bit of an off yesterday and you had a bit of an off a
couple of years ago at the Australian Grand Prix. Is that the start
of the season, or is it the way things happen?
MS: The off was actually today, but my engineers they came
along and they said they were worried because I hadn't had an off
so far! It seems to be a tradition for me to have an off here and,
finally, it happened. From that moment things started to go well.
Q:
Is it a tradition or does it just take a little bit of time to get
used to it all?
MS: Obviously, no-one does it on purpose, but you push
and you sometimes over do it. As we are on a street circuit, if
you over do it, it is easy to hit the walls. But, here in Melbourne,
they have done a fantastic job in terms of the run-off area, and
I probably should say a big thank-you to Mr Ron Walker, who has
just improved his run-off areas significantly - otherwise I would
have been big time into the wall. Probably not only myself, so a
lot of safety improvements have been done for the good.
Q:
You have a lot of experience. What is your take on the new regulations
and on the new qualifying in particular?
MS: Well, I think we should pass on the whole weekend and
then see where we are. There is no point to judge right now before
the race.
Q:
New Williams. Old Ferrari. When is the new Ferrari going to race?
MS: We hope as soon as possible, but obviously we want
to make sure it is reliable, so it depends on that when it is. You
remember last year, things looked very good for us after the race
and everybody thought well no way can anyone beat Ferrari - and
then we went to Malaysia and everything was the other way around.
I would be careful and wait and go to Malaysia, and see what happens
and get some experience and later on see what is the reality. Those
guys at Williams and McLaren also have lots of room to improve.
Q:
How do you feel now with your car in parc ferme and you can't do
anything now until the race starts tomorrow?
MS: It feels odd because now we have all the time in the
world, but we can't do anything on the car. So it is strange.
Q:
Are there any safety issues with that?
MS: I don't think I want to get into that right now. Its
really too early and you should really take the experience and see
whatever you find. There could be an issue with weather conditions
suddenly changing from dry to wet, but maybe first we should wait
for the experience to see if it is or not.
Questions
from the floor
Q:
How different was the set-up of cars compared with the old qualifying
procedure, where were we on fuel in terms of tactics tomorrow and
indeed, can you give us some insight into pit-stop strategy?
MS: It's better if you go in the garage and see the computer
and talk to the engineers, they will explain you everything.
Q:
Is that an invitation?
MS: Not from me. Obviously, nobody wants to get into details
on this subject.
RB: The only thing I can comment on is the fact that the car is
a lot different from the old qualifying because, as Juan Pablo said,
you have to compromise a lot. So, as I said, now you don't go to
the limit, you go to the very limit of the car that you're driving
right now, but it's quite a different car to the old days because
you carry a lot of fuel.
Q:
The Minardis came straight in so that they don't have to go to the
parc fermé - are they allowed to add fuel?
JPM: That puts them last on the grid?
MS: I don't know, probably yes.
MC:
You're probably asking the wrong people really [laughter]. They
know how to drive, not run the car.
MS: I'm a bit more clever than that [laughter].
MC:
You usually know these things Michael?
MS: Yes, but this is a very detailed question which is a bit fresh.
Q:
How important was the starting order this afternoon?
MS: [misunderstanding the question] Naturally you have
to find the right compromise in finding the right fuel level, a
set-up which allows you to be reasonable in qualifying and again,
good enough for the race, because, if you just work for one, it
will not pay out for the other, so that's the compromise you have
to take. Where is the compromise, where is the right compromise?
That's something, because everything is so new, it's a bit open
and it's experience we have to take from now on and see what teams
are going to do and from the next races.
[understanding the question] I think today the starting order was
less important due to the fact that we had this mini-warm-up just
before and within 15 minutes of the first car running. When I went
out, and I was one of the first cars to be out and try to do a time,
it was very difficult, the circuit was almost like yesterday and
being out first because, after all these Formula Ford and saloon
car races, there was a lot of dust on the circuit. It took some
cleaning up but, by the time we finished the warm-up, I guess that
the circuit was in good condition.
RB: Nothing really, I was only the last one, not the middle one.
Q:
Broadly speaking, the grid line-up is not all that different after
all these chances. Is this a lot of fuss about nothing? Or can we
expect a big change tomorrow?
MS: Honestly, I don't think anyone expected a whole different
scenario, with suddenly Ferrari being in midfield because of the
rules. Because of the rules and because of the mistakes you can
do, it can easily happen, but, in actual fact, we are professional
enough to try and achieve the maximum performance, and I think that's
what has generally happened. On the other hand, if you look at where
David [Coulthard] and Kimi ended up, I guess that was a factor of
this new procedure because, had they had other qualifying laps available,
I guess they would have been further up on the grid. It's the same
with my brother.
Q:
Don't you think people understand completely? It's like Fridays
last year. We don't understand how many kilos you have in the car...
MS: I guess you were responsible for it. You wrote so many
stories about how boring Formula One was, so now you have to live
with it [laughs]!
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