US GP McLaren Saturday notes

West McLaren Mercedes driver Mika Hakkinen will start tomorrow's SAP United States Grand Prix from the front row after setting the second fastest time of 1:11.945. David Coulthard qualified seventh with a time of 1:12.500.

Mika Hakkinen
'I'm really pleased to have been able to fight for pole position. It was so close and I enjoyed it. To be on the front row is great, and I will go flat out tomorrow. We made a few modifications to the car during qualifying but nothing major as the balance just seemed to be there. I was behind David at some point to see if I could get a tow, but it didn't work as you have to be able to be extremely close. I aborted my second run because I knew the time would not be quick enough. I'm really looking forward to the race, which I think will be exciting. The circuit is so wide and there are plenty of opportunities for overtaking, and I want to put on a great show for all the fans.'

David Coulthard
'We have been struggling since this morning to find a decent balance as we couldn't get rid of the oversteer. All our set-up changes didn't have the desired effect. In those circumstances I think the best which I could have done today was fifth. However the race is tomorrow, and we have shown in the past that you can achieve a good result from lesser grid positions.'

Ron Dennis
'It was nice to see the enthusiasm of the Indianapolis crowd for what turned out to be an exciting qualifying session. Mika did a great job, but David struggled with his car's set-up. Our race performance has often proved better than our qualifying this year, so we will see what happens tomorrow.'

Norbert Haug
'An exciting qualifying with Mika putting in a very good performance. David and his team have not sorted out their set-up problem yet, but the basis for the race is OK.'

Chassis
Hakkinen: MP4/16-04
Coulthard: MP4/16-06
Spare (Coulthard): MP4/16-05
Spare: MP4/16-07