Car 1 SEBASTIAN VETTEL
Position: POLE POSITION
(3rd Practice – P1, 1:14.442)
“We were clear about the car today and able to improve step by step in qualifying. I’m very happy with the result and the laps at the end of qualifying, as we were able to improve each time. It puts us in a great place, but nevertheless tomorrow is more important. We put ourselves in a good position, eight meters ahead of Lewis and then we go from there. It’s supposed to be hotter tomorrow, so it’s important to get a good start and see what we can do. A lot of things can happen.”
Car 2 MARK WEBBER
Position: 4th
(3rd Practice – P4, 1:14.724)
“I’m surprised I’m in fourth – it wasn’t the smoothest session, so I’m actually quite surprised to be there. I wasn’t super happy with the last few runs in terms of confidence in the car and that means you don’t get the most out of yourself, so fourth is okay. It’s a long race and we’re up there. Seb did a very good lap. The car’s good here and the weather should be good tomorrow for the race.”
CHRISTIAN HORNER
“A strong team performance today. Sebastian looked really competitive throughout qualifying, going quickest on his first run in Q3 and improving slightly on his second run to take pole position for tomorrow. Mark also had a strong qualifying and will line up on the second row of the grid, we had a small issue with a tyre blanket on his last run, but nonetheless he did an excellent job and to be starting on pole and the second row is a great for tomorrow’s grand prix.”
(Renault) CYRIL DUMONT
“What a lap from Sebastian today, it was very solid. Mark was a bit behind, but I think he will be up there tomorrow also. It’s good how the team has reacted to the start of the season and got the pole today. Engine-wise, we know there are many straights on this circuit so it works the engine a lot. There is also the hairpin which is difficult as it has a low RPM; it’s not that easy but we managed it quite well and we got this result.”
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PEOPLE TALK
A Formula One team is all about the people, but away from the racing what makes our team members tick? This race, Performance Engineer and local boy (well, Toronto is about as local as we can get) Gavin Ward reveals why it’s important for him to reconnect with Canada every year.
Q: Have you had a chance to get to Toronto while we’ve been here?
A: I got about four days at home with my family, which was great. It’s important to get back to Canada every year – I can even hear my accent changing a little bit when I’m here! It’s nice to come back and watch a little bit of ice hockey and, you know, do some proper Canadian things.
Q: Is there one thing you miss about Canada now that you live in the UK?
A: The biggest thing is friends and family. There’s a lot of other stuff – the hockey and some of the food. Toronto’s a great city, so I miss that too.
Q: You keep mentioning hockey, which team do you support?
A: It’s the Toronto Maple Leafs, but I don’t think I’d be too popular for saying that around these parts!
Q: How do you relax when you’re not at a race?
A: I like cooking and good food; going out for a nice meal or cooking at home. I also like mountain biking. I’m pretty heavily into that. I got to do a bit with my brother last week, which was good.
Q: On a long-haul flight how do you get through the hours?
A: I don’t watch a lot of on-board entertainment – usually I just like to sleep. We’re pretty sleep deprived most of the time in Formula One, so it’s a good time to get some rest.
Q: How do you think your colleagues would describe you in three words?
A: Hopefully it would be dedicated, honest and funny. I really don’t know!
Q: What’s the best thing about your job?
A: I think it’s feeling that you can have an impact on the result, in qualifying and the race; feeling that you are really involved in the performance of the car – it’s an amazing feeling when you get a good result.
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