The Mild Seven Renault F1 Team had a positive afternoon today at Bahrain's Sakhir circuit. In the first qualifying session, Fernando Alonso took provisional pole position, while Giancarlo Fisichella, hampered by his early running time in the session, when the track was dirtier, currently lies fifth.

Fernando Alonso: The R25 was handling very well on my timed lap, and the Michelin tyres had a very strong level of performance. On the tyre side, this performance is the confirmation that they are competitive in very different conditions, on contrasting types of circuit; it also shows this is true for our chassis-engine package. I lost some time in the final corner, but I still had some margin: I will need to push the car even more tomorrow morning in order to maintain the gap.

Giancarlo Fisichella: It is not too bad to finish fifth, because I was only the seventh car out this afternoon. The track was very dirty early on, particularly in turns 4 and 8, which cost me time. I also lost out in the final corner a little, where the wind was destabilising the cars. However, I have found a good car balance for the race and we know the R25 will be competitive. I hope I can keep my position in the second session.

Pat Symonds, Executive Director of Engineering: It is a nice feeling to take see Fernando take provisional pole position once again. We are of course only halfway through qualifying, but the signs are certainly positive at the moment. Giancarlo was penalised by his early running time, when the circuit was very slippery. Looking ahead to the race, we are happy with the engine performance and the brakes, on a circuit where they are put under real strain.

Denis Chevrier, Head of Engine Operations: The grid tomorrow will be extremely close: the first ten cars are covered by little more than a second. In these conditions, every details counts, and we were pleased that our technical programmes ran very smoothly this morning, without problems. If we can keep our positions tomorrow, we know that we are well prepared for the race, and that should allow us to look to get at least one car on the podium.