Japanese GP Prost Friday notes

Heinz-Harald Frentzen - P 5 - 1'36''439 - 41 laps/tours : "This was an exciting first day ! I think I have never done so well on the Suzuka circuit in terms of speed and consistency. The track was quite good and our car was in good shape too. We ...

Heinz-Harald Frentzen - P 5 - 1'36''439 - 41 laps/tours :
"This was an exciting first day ! I think I have never done so well on the Suzuka circuit in terms of speed and consistency. The track was quite good and our car was in good shape too. We have been able to do quite a lot of testing during the two practice sessions and completed our programme. Unfortunately Tomas had a crash this morning which cost him valuable time to learn the track and to do some additional set-up work. So it is quite a mixed emotions day for the team, but I am happy that Tomas was unhurt."

Tomas Enge
"This morning the track was really slippery and it was quite difficult for me to learn the circuit as quickly as possible and to get a feel of the car at the same time. I did not want to make any mistake and I have been able to improve lap by lap. Unfortunately, while I was pushing hard to improve, I entered too fast in a corner and lost the rear of the car. Once I got out of the line, there was nothing I could do to prevent from crashing into the barriers. It is very disappointing because the car is very badly damaged and I lost the benefit of the entire second session. However, looking at Heinz-Harald's work today, it sems the car can be very competitive here, and I am confident we can do a good job together through the rest of the weekend."

Joan Villadelprat, Managing Director
"The team did a very good job today. We went through the normal Friday work, sticking to a single set of tyres this morning to go through the set-up groundwork and then doing some back to back between soft and hard tyres this afternoon. The car has been performing very well throughout both sessions and Heinz-Harald, who has been constantly in the top ten since this morning, is satisfied with his car balance. The only negative point today was Tomas' accident. He overdrove the car a bit and had a big shunt, which prevented him from running this afternoon. It is a shame as he needed to learn the track and he was getting quicker and quicker when he made that mistake. Hopefully it will not jeopardize his chance to perform well tomorrow in qualifying. Overall, the team worked very well today, just like they did throughout the season, and I hope we will confirm tomorrow the competitiveness we have shown today."