Jean Todt: Qualifying produced very different fortunes for out two drivers. At one end, we have Rubens in pole position thanks to a very nice performance and at the other, Michael is forced to start from the back row after spinning off the track. At the moment we have not found out what happened at the first corner on his qualifying lap. Obviously, we would have preferred to have an all-red front row for this inaugural Chinese Grand Prix, but getting pole is still a good result. Tomorrow, we can expect a difficult race given that we have one driver at the back of the grid, which will present us with a bigger challenge than usual. Our car, engine, Bridgestone tyre package is very competitive and we will do our utmost to put on a good show for the Chinese enthusiasts and also as a thank you to the organisers of this Grand Prix for doing such a fantastic job.

Ross Brawn: It was a fantastic performance by Rubens, who did a great job. He worked hard on the car all weekend and I think we have a good set-up for the race. I think his strategy will also prove very strong. We are not yet sure what happened with Michael, who we think was also a strong contender for pole position. Now, as far as his race is concerned, we must regroup and recover and we have an interesting challenge ahead. But as we showed in Monza, we never give up. It should be a fun race tomorrow.

Sam Michael (Technical Director, WilliamsF1): It has been an interesting qualifying session as it was the first one on this new circuit here in China. We had a trouble-free day in terms of reliability. Ralf did a good job for his first qualifying after his enforced absence of six Grands Prix. Tomorrow it will be interesting to see what race strategies have been deployed by the different teams and also to see the true picture of the circuit with regards to tyre degradation, brakes and the other normal parameters.

Mario Theissen (BMW Motorsport Director): The qualifying session was exciting. The mistakes made by Gianmaria Bruni and Michael Schumacher showed that the circuit still has very little grip off the ideal line. Ralf felt very comfortable with both the car and the circuit on his come back whilst Juan Pablo was reporting handling problems. With regards to the engines our first Chinese showing has been trouble-free so far.

Ron Dennis: "Kimi's qualifying was exceptional whilst David's relatively small error in the middle sector lost him several places. We feel that we have the right race strategy which coupled with our overall performance should put us in contention for a podium finish. I'm sure that along with all the other teams we hope that the race, irrespective of the outcome, is exciting, which would represent a small thank you for the fantastic facilities and support that the Chinese government have shown us."

Norbert Haug: "A good performance by Kimi. To be on the first row is a good basis for the race. The first Grand Prix of China is a significant milestone for Formula One in general and our team in particular, and certainly we will be focused on putting in a strong performance. David lost quite some time in the middle sector, otherwise he could have been two rows further up. This is the seventh race since we introduced the MP4-19B and on five occasions Kimi or David have started from the first or second rows. We still have to improve our reliability, but speedwise we are heading in the right direction."

Pat Symonds, Executive Director of Engineering: "There have been times this weekend when we have been further from the top of the timesheets than normal but I think our disciplined preparatory work has paid off. Fernando's grid position promises a strong race and we should also congratulate Jacques on a good performance. Single-lap qualifying is a difficult thing to get right when you have had limited time in the car, but his performance was good and we hope that tomorrow, his long distance pace will be even more competitive."

Denis Chevrier, Engine Operations Manager: "It has been difficult throughout the weekend to get a firm idea of the relative performance of the different teams, and qualifying hasn't made things much easier. Several strategies are possible here and according to who has made what choice, the significance of the grid positions we see today could prove very different come the race. We believe we have done enough mileage this weekend to run a strong race tomorrow and fight against BAR. Let's see how things unfold tomorrow."

David Richards, Team Principal: "It was an exciting qualifying session and indicates that the race may well have a few surprises in store tomorrow. With Jenson in 3rd place we are confident that he is going to have a strong race, and as our key goal is to beat Renault he just needs to keep an eye on Alonso on the third row. I am sure that we will see the different tyre characteristics leading to a divergence of race strategies, and we are very satisfied with the performance of the Michelins over a race distance. Taku's ten place penalty puts him at the back of the grid, but he is in good company with Michael Schumacher, and I think we can look forward to the pair of them carving their way through the slower cars. The stage is set for a fantastic inaugural Chinese Grand Prix."

Geoffrey Willis, Technical Director: "Jenson was much happier with his car in final qualifying than he had been in the morning's running. Although the car had been working well on longer runs it had been difficult to find a good consistent balance on new tyres so we are pleased to be starting tomorrow's race from 3rd place. After his lack of running on Friday, Takuma had a hard job to catch up but was pleased with his first run in qualifying. He lost several tenths in the last sector of his final qualifying run that probably cost him four places. Clearly our focus this weekend must be our championship fight with Renault. We are confident with our car performance but we will need to work hard to help Takuma with his ten-place starting grid penalty."

Shuhei Nakamoto, Engineering Director, Honda Racing Development: "Both drivers did decent laps and have given themselves the best chance they can for a good result. Unfortunately Takuma will have to start 19th because of the engine change yesterday but I want to target some points for him. Jenson, however, should be able to challenge for the podium."

Peter Sauber (Team Principal): "What a great welcome for us at this fantastic new venue. We have liked the Shanghai International Circuit right from the moment we first saw it, and now it seems that the feeling must be mutual! This is our best qualifying performance of the year and a wonderful result for us. Congratulations to Felipe and to Giancarlo, and thanks to Bridgestone for providing us with such a competitive tyre. And we must not forget too that this result was only possible because of the whole team's diligent and successful development of the SAUBER PETRONAS C23. We look forward to a great inaugural Chinese Grand Prix."

Dr Mark Gillan Head of Vehicle Performance: We have made the most of our practice sessions this morning during which we worked on our new aero package amongst other things. Bjorn tested the aero package yesterday and given the results we have now put this on both Mark and Christian's cars. Both drivers also completed their tyre preparation work and did some good long runs focusing on balance and tyres. The set-up work was productive and we were encouraged going into qualifying. Mark, although making a minor error on corner seven, did a good lap and secured 11th place. Christian did not get as much out of the car as he would have liked on his final qualifying lap but again we are relatively pleased with his 15th position. We have worked hard in the build up to today and I am satisfied with our results. We have a good strategy in place for both cars and so we are motivated for the race tomorrow and very keen to go out there and show what we are capable of achieving.

Paul Stoddart, Team Principal: We had expected to do a little bit better today, but sadly, Gimmi spun out of contention on his qualifying run. Prior to that, however, both drivers had good practice and pre-qualifying sessions, and we therefore look forward to tomorrow's inaugural Grand Prix of China with a healthy mixture of optimism tinged with realism.

Hisao Suganuma, Technical Manager of Bridgestone Motorsport: Another excellent performance from Rubens. It is great to see him on pole again - his second consecutively. What's more, the Sauber drivers both had very good qualifying runs. They should be congratulated as they have been running well all weekend. It is also a good indicator that Bridgestone's choice of tyres is suitable for this demanding circuit. Unfortunately, Michael had a spin which is a real shame because he too would have been up there with Rubens on the time sheets. But never mind, judging by his performance over the weekend I strongly expect him to be fighting his way through to the top of the field tomorrow.

Ross Brawn, Technical Director of Scuderia Ferrari Marlboro: A fantastic performance from Rubens. He did a great job. He's worked hard on the car all weekend and has got a good set-up for the race and his strategy will prove to be strong too. We need to understand what happened to Michael. I think he was a strong contender for pole position as well. But that's irrelevant now and we must regroup and recover. We have an interesting challenge ahead and as the race at Monza showed, we never give up - it should be an interesting race tomorrow.

Former world champion Jacques Villeneuve (Renault/Michelin) qualified 13th on his grand prix comeback.

Reigning world champion Michael Schumacher will start at the back of the field after spinning at the start of his qualifying lap.

Minardi driver Gianmaria Bruni failed to register a qualifying time. He aborted his lap after spinning at Turn 3.

Pierre Dupasquier, Michelin motorsport director: "The track hasn't evolved quite as we expected. It offered less grip this morning than it did at the end of Friday's two sessions, but conditions gradually stabilised and qualifying times were pretty much in the range we had anticipated. It remains to be seen what kind of fuel loads drivers were running with, of course, and at Shanghai that is an even more significant factor than usual. Every extra 10 kilos of fuel costs more than four tenths - there is a greater weight penalty here than at any other circuit.

"Technically, this new track presents a fascinating challenge. Some parts of the track are so tight that they ideally require a Monaco-style set-up, but you can't put on too much wing because you don't want to compromise speed down the long straight between Turns 13 and 14.

"Our partner teams have all chosen to use the same tyre compound in tomorrow's race, assuming it stays dry. We have taken a slightly conservative approach and thought it might be a slight handicap in qualifying, although things have actually worked out pretty well. The tyre has delivered great speed and consistency and we have had some excellent results during long runs in free practice. That should put us in good shape tomorrow."