"Of course there is still an element of uncertainty
concerning how much fuel all the cars had on board. We will only
find out tomorrow afternoon. I am happy for the drivers, the race
team and the entire Gestione Sportiva who watched qualifying from
a specially reserved grandstand and also for our technical partners,
especially Bridgestone and Shell. But we still have to face the
toughest part of the weekend, which will be tomorrow afternoon's
race."
Michael
Schumacher:
"Today, what we refer to as the 'old' car proved what
it could do and what we knew it was capable of. However, it will
be interesting to see what happens depending on today's fuel loads.
My lap was not perfect, as I was cautious and eased off a bit in
the final sector. From testing here we knew what to expect and it
felt comfortable today. It is great to be back on top, especially
here in Imola. Some rain is forecast for tomorrow, but we should
not fear the weather conditions as I do not think we will see rivers
across the track, like we did in Brazil."
Rubens
Barrichello:
"Qualifying is always difficult when you have a problem
so close to the start of the session. As I went off the track during
the warm-up I was not able to set up the car as well as possible
for qualifying before my run. Taking this factor into consideration
I am happy with my third place, especially as I will start from
the clean side of the track. It is looking good for tomorrow."
Ross
Brawn:
"We certainly have not had to compromise our race
fuel strategy in order to get this pole position. We are confident
we have made the right decision concerning the fuel load we ran
and with Michael starting at the front of the field we have the
opportunity to do well in the race. We were disappointed not to
be able to bring the new car here, but today we have shown that
the F2002 is still competitive and we hope to give it a good farewell
send off tomorrow."