British GP Arrows qualifying notes

Qualifying Hour for the 2001 British Grand Prix became Qualifying 'Half Hour' at Silverstone today. All the teams waited as long as possible before going out as the track had little grip after heavy rain showers this morning. Once the session got underway it was non-stop action as the cars fought for space on a crowded track.

OrangeArrows drivers, Jos Verstappen and Enrique Bernoldi will start tomorrow's race from 17th and 20th positions on the grid respectively.

Jos Verstappen
"We got everything we could out of the car today. My fastest time is similar to the times we were setting on low fuel loads during testing here but, as the track was green from this morning's rain, it shows we are making a bit of progress. I was able to steadily improve during the session so we are moving forward but not enough. Rain would be better of course but maybe we will be luckier with the weather tomorrow."

Enrique Bernoldi
"I had a problem with the throttle on my first run so that messed up my programme a little. I was able to improve my time but on my last run I was blocked by Jos. There was a lot of traffic out there though so I'll give him the benefit of the doubt. I'm not happy being 20th on the grid but all I can do now is concentrate on our preparations for tomorrow's race."

Mike Coughlan, Technical Director
"Enrique had a throttle problem on his first run which meant he had to abort that one. He improved on the next two runs and on his last run he was blocked by his team-mate. Jos is sorry but it was unavoidable because of the amount of traffic out there. Overall for our home Grand Prix the positions are a little disappointing but our performance is always better in the race, especially in the wet, so let's hope for a typical English summer's day tomorrow!"

-Arrows