Q: There was a lot of pressure from Kimi in the early stages of the race, too.
RB: No, it was very hard. I had a very good start and I was amazed by the grip on the first lap. I actually underestimated it a little bit, I could have pushed a little bit harder because the grip was there so I was feeling good the whole way through and it was really, really nice. Towards the end, because I had an eight second gap, I didn’t push too much and actually the graining on the front stayed there for a longer time so I was having a tougher time actually towards the end of the race.

Q: And quite difficult to pace it right to the end and get it perfect to the chequered flag.
RB: Especially because I had two cars to lap. I mean, the first time I went to lap Villeneuve he didn’t see me so I lost like a second. After that I thought maybe he was concentrating on the car in front so I might have a problem but then he was okay and he let me by.

Q: Well, Rubens, fantastic scenes here in China at their first ever Grand Prix. Talk a little bit about that and your feelings on the podium and, of course, the upcoming Brazilian Grand Prix from your point of view.
RB: Well, it’s been a season where I have been playing catch up, really, to Michael. He started on a higher level and for some reason I wasn’t able to catch him. Right now I am just going through a good phase and here in China since the beginning of the week I have been setting good times and the set-up was quite good. I have to thank the whole team. And in the race it was dealing with a little bit of the small problems that I had with the front tyres and then pushing when the car was good and the car was good for 80 percent of the time so that is pretty impressive.

PRESS CONFERENCE

Q: Rubens, this winning could become a habit, although after the soaking you gave the Ferrari president Luca di Montezemolo I would be a little bit worried.
RB: I actually thought that I was probably the only man in his life that got him wet. I feel pretty happy about that too! (Laughs)

Q: What about the fact you have made history winning this inaugural race?
RB: Well, that’s probably something I am going to see tomorrow or some days later because it was just the fact of winning the race, a new race, a new venue, a new track and everyone starting from zero. I had a tremendous time from the beginning, the guys have been teaching me on the roads how to drive and I was able to put in some good laps today.

Q: What about Kimi, how hard was he pushing in the two stints?
RB: I think they were pushing very hard since the beginning and probably Kimi could have gone faster if he was in front of me at some stage because I had three or four laps that I had to hold him up at the beginning and after that I was able to put a pace which was similar to him and quicker to him towards the end. So, that was the pattern and the team played the pit stops very well and I was able to push very well towards the end so it made my day.

Q: Were you worried about Jenson’s strategy?
RB: You know, at one time I was worried because the team were saying that Kimi was not a problem any more but the problem was Jenson and I had to push. But then I was asking for some gaps and they didn’t know because he had not pitted yet for his second pit stop, so it was difficult to calculate. After he pitted we had 21 seconds and then the second lap I had 21.7 again so I said ‘oh, I’m in trouble and I have to push’ but all of a sudden I saw 25 and they said ‘ok, you must be clear’ so at that stage things became a little bit calmer.

Q: And at the end of the race he was closing on you, how was your car then?
RB: Well, at the beginning when I had the graining I was pushing and the graining was going in three laps. But because I saw eight seconds and I started to be a bit more conservative the graining stayed longer. So, whenever I saw that he was closing and I had to start going faster again it took a couple of laps to actually clean it. If he could have closed the gap on me I am pretty sure I could have put the 32s back again there but it was just frustrating to see the eight-second gap coming down and I had to push again but obviously towards the end and the last two laps it was okay.

QUESTIONS FROM THE FLOOR

Q: (Dan Knutson – National Speedsport News) For the last 90 minutes you have been the fastest three drivers in all of China, but at other times this weekend, and tonight when you go back to the hotel or the airport, you have to be driven because you’re not allowed to drive in this country. What has it been like to be a passenger for the last few days? (Laughter)
RB: It has been crazy, I tell you. (More laughter) In all honesty, I think the reception we have had here has just been fantastic, great people cheering on Formula One so it was really a great place to come. I hope next year I stay in a hotel close by or I will rent a bed just to stay here because it was…They must be good drivers because – it’s amazing - they overtake everywhere. Amazing.

Q: (Liang Yu - Oriental Sports Daily) Question for Rubens and Jenson: how do you judge the performances of your team-mates, Michael and Sato respectively?
RB: To be very honest with you, I don’t know how to judge it because I didn’t see the race. I just saw that he didn’t score any points. He must have had a frustrating race, but I couldn’t judge.

Q: (Andrea Cremonesi – La Gazetta dello Sport) Rubens, did the team warn you about Michael’s puncture and ask you to slow down the pace a little bit?
RB: I didn’t know that Michael had a problem, no. Towards the end I had an eight second lead like I said, and the team told me to conserve a little bit, but there was one stage they said ‘he’s catching you a little bit too fast’ so we had to speed up again.

Q: (Clifford Coonan - Irish Times) What do you think sets this track apart from others?
RB: For me, the fact that you can overtake, that’s all we need. It has been difficult to follow cars lately with Formula One as it is so the fact that the track is quite challenging and you have a couple of corners or maybe more when you can have different lines - that will offer you the chance to overtake.

Q: (Ottavio Daviddi - Tuttosport) Rubens, can you compare this race with the race in Monza? Today the race seemed tougher.
RB: In Monza there was a period of the race when it was wet so it was different. Physically, I would say this race was a lot tougher than Monza, that’s for sure. But any time when you’re winning it’s different. I thought at Monza we had a car that was much quicker than our competitors. Here we didn’t have a car that was a lot faster. I think the car was faster but not a lot. It made it a little bit more difficult, but having said that I think that any time when you are in first place you’re never relieved, you’re always focused to keep on going.

Q: (Livio Oricchio – O Estado de Sao Paulo) Rubens, at what moment were you sure you could make your last pit stop and come out in front of Jenson Button?
RB: Only when I pitted and after everything when I was engaging first gear Ross told me you should be OK; that was the only time that I knew it would have probably been OK because he has the vision for seeing the TVs and the monitors and everything. So I when I returned to the race track I went flat out because you never know. I looked in the mirror after turn three and I couldn’t see anyone so it was a good feeling. But it was only then that I was sure.

Q: (Yanyan Pang - China Radio International) To all three drivers, is there anything you were not satisfied with in the first Chinese Grand Prix?
RB: No, I like it, I like it very much. Everything was really good. I just wish the hotel was a bit closer, that’s all. But that’s all, the rest was pretty nice.