Spanish GP: Ferrari Saturday qualifying notes

Fourth pole position of the season for Ferrari, the third with Michael Schumacher. It is the tenth time, the fourth in a row, that a Ferrari starts the Spanish Grand Prix from pole. This is the Scuderia's 162nd pole and the 53rd for Michael.

Jean Todt:

"It was a very exciting qualifying session. We have managed to secure an all-red front row which is the best possible way to start the race, even though we will have to wait until tomorrow to get a clear picture of the fuel levels being run by the others. The F2003-GA has confirmed its potential right from its very first appearance at a Grand Prix weekend. Now we can expect a very tough race with, as usual, reliability and strategy playing key roles. The support of our partners has been very important here, especially that of Bridgestone and Shell, who have brought a new fuel here, specially designed for the 052 engine."

Michael Schumacher:

"This weekend is the first time I have driven the new car at this track and so it was not easy to find the right direction in terms of set-up, but today's result shows we seem to have got it right. As usual with a new car, we have had more work to do, checking everything on the car, even though we have used it for the past three months. A race weekend is always different, but the whole team has done a fantastic job. My lap was not perfect as I had a bad line through Turn 9 and Turn 11. As Rubens has been very quick, I thought I might be behind him, but in the end I was quicker."

"We always felt we had a chance of pole as we know this car is faster than the old one and at this track, the car's performance is very important. How does this car differ from the old one? It's faster! You always aim to make a car faster and more neutral and the team has worked on each detail of the package.'

Rubens Barrichello:

"The car worked very well, as we managed to improve its balance. But it was not a great lap for me. Being first and second on the grid is a very good start for the new car. In qualifying, there is always a compromise between going on the limit and being a little bit cautious as the track here is very dirty if you go a little bit off the perfect line. As for the race, I think we have a good strategy, although with the new qualifying rules you have to try and work out what the other teams are doing and where you will be in terms of track position. Again tomorrow, the track off the line will get more and more dirty during the race, so it should be an interesting afternoon."

Ross Brawn:

"This year, it is proving very difficult to make an accurate assessment of qualifying, given that we don't know how much fuel the others are using. That aside, we are obviously satisfied with this result and are confident for tomorrow afternoon's race .We had a new Bridgestone tyre at our disposal, but we felt that in terms of the race, the one we had used during test sessions at this track back in March offered a better overall performance."

Michael Schumacher: 1st
1.17.762 3 laps
F2003-GA chassis 229

Rubens Barrichello: 2nd
1.18.020 3 laps
F2003-GA chassis 228

-ferrari-