BMW satisfied with Turkish qualifying result
Here in Turkey for the 12th race of the season the BMW Sauber F1 Team continued its strong performance by qualifying both cars in the top ten. Robert Kubica will start from fifth in Sunday’s Turkish Grand Prix, while Nick Heidfeld is sixth on the grid at the Istanbul Park track. In Q2 the two drivers provoked jokes about German/Swiss precision when they set an identical lap time of 1min 27.253secs.
Robert Kubica: BMW Sauber F1.07-03/BMW P86/7 Qualifying: 5th, 1.27.722 min (3rd Practice: 7th, 1.28.224min) “I think it was a good qualifying and to do better was difficult. We hope for a good race tomorrow, but it will be hot and so not easy for the tyres. There is not a big difference between the soft and hard compounds, as the soft ones are quick on the first timed lap and the hard ones quicker and more consistent on long runs. Fortunately I am pretty confident we are in a good shape for long runs as we concentrated on that yesterday. My first run in Q3 was not good, as I made a small mistake, but the second one was okay. We have to be happy and, although we could perhaps have gone a bit quicker, I think it is a lot to ask to put our car in the middle of the Ferraris and McLarens in today’s conditions.”
Nick Heidfeld: BMW Sauber F1.07-08/BMW P86/7 (T-car F1.07.04) Qualifying: 6th, 1.28.037 min (3rd Practice: 6th, 1.28.184min) “I am pleased with the result. My last lap was good and I was pleased to see we have been strong in Q2. I will be starting from the dirty side of the track which, of course, is a disadvantage. I am really looking forward to tomorrow, as it could be an exciting Grand Prix because overtaking is possible on this circuit. But for overtaking you need to have cars in front of you which are generally slower, and this is not the case for me.”
Mario Theissen, BMW Motorsport Director: “It was a good qualifying for both cars. The timing in all three sections was just perfect. In Q1 as well as in Q2 we didn’t have to do more than one outing. This shows we are significantly stronger than the teams behind us. Fifth and sixth on the grid confirms what we expected.”
Willy Rampf, Technical Director: “We are satisfied with the qualifying and took our ‘reserved’ positions. Also for the 12th time in the 12 races this season we managed to get both cars in the top ten on the grid, which is a strong effort. Everything went according to plan, especially the double pit stops in Q3. Looking at our grid positions we are confident for the race on Sunday, which, like today, will be in hot conditions."
