Monaco GP: Ferrari Saturday qualifying notes

Monaco GP - First qualifying session

Jean Todt:

"There is not much to say: it was a very disappointing qualifying. We are a very long way off the quickest times, mainly due to a lack of grip. In this modern era of Formula 1, overtaking is already difficult enough, but on this track it is virtually impossible, which means that being down towards the back of the grid is a considerable handicap for the race."

"Obviously, anything can happen and we know that, over a race distance, our package is more competitive than on the single lap. However, tomorrow we face an uphill struggle, but we will not throw in the towel and will do all we can to get the most out of this situation."

Rubens Barrichello:

"I had a good start to my lap, the balance of the car was reasonable, but the fact I did not make a run on new tyres this morning meant I did not have a feel for them straight away. We knew we would be struggling particularly here at Monaco with our one lap performance -- a problem that has been with us all season. This is not a problem that we can sort overnight, even if the work we have done has seen us improve by tenths of a second at a time."

"But this is not a disaster: I have won with Ferrari in the past, I have lost with Ferrari in the past and we will win again. I don't think we can improve much in second qualifying, but we know that in the race, after fighting for grip on the opening lap, we will have a strong package."

Michael Schumacher:

"This was definitely not a good session for us and obviously, I am disappointed. This morning we were only about 0.7 to 0.8 too slow, but this afternoon the gap was much bigger. We know we are not so good when it comes to our one lap performance and the fact I went out quite early in the session meant the track was very slippery and so it was even more of a handicap."

"Tomorrow's qualifying will probably be the same situation, with little chance to improve. However, in race trim the car is much better and we will have to see what strategy we can come up with to make the most of that fact. In general terms, we just have to keep working hard to improve."

Ross Brawn:

"The track here at Monaco always picks up a lot more grip as the session goes on and we did not go out at a very good time. Having said that, we seemed to find even less grip than we had this morning, which indicates that the other cars running on the track during our break did not help the situation."

"Our drivers were struggling to get grip on the first lap. We do have a very good race set-up, but it is going to be a difficult afternoon, unless we can make up a few places in tomorrow morning's qualifying. The drivers are reasonably happy with the cars which are quite well balanced."

Rubens Barrichello: 10th
1:16.142 3 laps
Chassis 246

Michael Schumacher: 11th
1:16.186 3 laps
Chassis 245

-ferrari-