ETCC: Oschersleben: Practice, qualifying quotes

Augusto FARFUS - AutoDelta Squadra Corse, pole position
"It's always quite hot here, and the long slow corners are normally hard for the Alfas. But this weekend, the car had been good from the first moment on. It was downright perfect in qualifying! It was hard to find a clear lap, though. The biggest problem however is that the track is always dirty. Concentration will be important for the races tomorrow, and let's hope that the heat will not become a problem. I think we are strong enough to fight for the podium, and maybe even for the win."

Andy PRIAULX - BMW Team Great Britain, 2nd
"After Imola, it was no surprise see the Alfas to be so strong. Even last year, Gabriele (Tarquini) was fighting for the podium with 40 kilos on board, so I'm not surprised at all. We had a few difficulties with the dust and the gravel on the track, but I think we put a good lap together in the end. I'm happy to be in such a strong position for the start of the first race tomorrow. I'm rather confident. I think the Championship is probably going to be decided in Dubai. There are three or four drivers who still have a chance to win the title, and I'm among them."

Gabriele TARQUINI - AutoDelta Squadra Corse, 3rd
"I've played a lot with the set-up today. It wasn't very good this morning, but we improved it for the qualifying. I made a mistake in the middle of my second flying lap, which effectively cost me second place. The track is a BMW track anyway, though, and I'm happy to be where I am with the 40 kilos on board. The target was to save tyres and aim for a good performance in the races tomorrow. I'm the only one of the Alfa drivers who's fighting for the Championship, which is an advantage. Farfus is in a very good position, and he might be able to help me tomorrow."

Dirk MÜLLER - BMW Team Deutschland, 4th
"For me it was clear from their performance last season that the Alfas would be strong in qualifying here. I'm a little bit surprised about Tarquini, but I have to congratulate him. It's obviously been a very good lap from him. Not being on pole, you know you always could have done better. It was maybe not a perfect lap. I have to admit that I made two small mistakes. But I have 30 kilos in the car and that's a lot. But the car is okay for the races, and I'm looking forward to them. We'll see."

Frank DIEFENBACHER - SEAT Sport, 6th
"I'm not happy. I had a very good first practice session, and the second one was even better. To qualify sixth is disappointing, and to see three Alfas in front, six tenths ahead of me, is a big surprise. I'm the best SEAT driver, and from this point of view, I'm happy. We only did some small changes on the car since the second free practice, because we expected the track to be different. But it was very dirty. I set my best time in the fourth lap, which is not normal for the Michelin tyres. And then my brakes didn't work at all at the end."

Salvatore TAVANO - Oregon Team, 8th
"The team has done wonders after Imola, managing to rebuild my car which crashed during the second race. They put me in a position to have a competitive machine, which was something difficult to expect considering how badly it was damaged. Since this morning we have found an excellent set-up, and this enabled us to get the most out of the new tyres in the qualifying session. Now we have to see how things will go tomorrow in the races, after five or six laps."

Jörg MÜLLER - BMW Team Deutschland, 12th
"It's not really what was expected of us. The rumour that Oschersleben is not an Alfa Romeo circuit has been disproved^Å We knew that they would be strong here. I did my qualifying lap on my second set of tyres. With the first set, the car was not good. It felt good for the second one, but then I was blocked by Zanardi. He didn't see me, certainly not on purpose and it messed up my second run. We just couldn't find a proper set-up today. So I'm on 12th position and have to fight again. But we know the direction, which is the important thing. But it's a long way to the front!"

Luca RANGONI - Oregon Team, 14th
"I was really at ease with my car today. It worked very well, better than expected, in the morning, when I managed to set the third fastest time in the second free practice. However, in qualifying I had some problems. Now we have to look and see if it's a broken exhaust, or if the engine has blown. The set-up was very good, but the car was not accelerating as it should out of the corners."

Thomas KLENKE - Ford Ravenol Hotfiel Sport, 19th
"I'm happy with my pole position for the DMSB Produktionswagen Meisterschaft. We had a lot of bad races in the last weeks, and I had hoped to be in the front here. The qualifying was good for me, the car is good, and I hope I can win the races counting towards the German Championship. At least, this time I will start in the race, unlike at Spa, where I crashed in the first free practice!"

Marc HENNERICI - Wiechers Sport, 27th
"The qualifying was good: 17th position overall and first of the competitors in the German championship. But now I'm really upset because of the stewards' decision to delete my best lap time for cutting the chicane. I think that it was not that bad, and now I've been demoted to the 27th position, which is very disappointing for me."

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