03/07/2004
NEWS STORY
A dry day on track at the Nevers Magny-Cours Circuit (France) allowed Jaguar Racing drivers, Mark Webber and Christian Klien to complete a good practice session this morning and then go on to qualify 12th and 13th respectively ahead of tomorrow’s French Grand Prix. With the tyre choice having been delayed from last night to midday today, the team had a busy morning practice session, working not only on their planned programme but also additional tyre work. Completing over 400km between them, both Mark and Christian are now well prepared ahead of tomorrow's
Mark Webber: Today has gone well for us and we are pleased with our progress. We worked through a good testing programme this morning and managed to complete a good number of laps. We spent time working on our tyres as our decision deadline had been moved to midday today. The car felt well balanced going into qualifying and I certainly gave it my all. The grip was good out there and the pace was really encouraging. I was pushing very hard in the final sector and may have lost a tenth but generally I was pleased to have secured twelfth on the grid ahead of tomorrow's race. Given our strategy going into the race I am very much looking forward to getting out on track and having a good competitive race. The team as always has been delivering good results in the garage so I would like to reward them on the track.
Christian Klien: I have really enjoyed today here in Magny-Cours. The track is good fun and the team has prepared my car very well for this circuit. The balance is working well for me and I am very motivated by the progress that we have been making on track. I completed a good practice session this morning in dry conditions and this allowed us to make our tyre choice early on. Going into qualifying I felt confident with the car and I really pushed the R5 through those corners. I am satisfied with my 13th position although I will be looking to make my way up the grid tomorrow as well as aim for the chequered flag.
Dr Mark Gillan Head of Vehicle Performance: Our practice session this morning was very busy for us as we worked through a full list of activities including the extra tyre testing that we needed to do ahead of our tyre choice. Together Mark and Christian completed over 400km with the R5 and experienced no reliability problems. The car suits this track and is well balanced here. Christian has been consistently improving over the course of the weekend and I am pleased to see him in 13th position just behind Mark. Mark as always has been very focused and delivered an encouraging 12th place on the grid. Our strategy for tomorrow should stand us in good stead and I will certainly be looking to Mark and Christian to make their way up the grid in search of points. The team, including Cosworth Racing, Pi Research and Michelin have all been doing an outstanding job this weekend and of course we would like to be rewarded for this with some points.