02/07/2005
NEWS STORY
Tiago Monteiro and Narain Karthikeyan just completed installation laps in the first session of today due to damp conditions. Monteiro also experienced a gear box issue, which was solved for the last Free Practice, during which the drivers spent time further developing their chassis set-ups for both the afternoon's qualifying session and tomorrow's race. In the afternoon, Karthikeyan and Monteiro qualified in 17th and 19th positions respectively. Both drivers were relatively satisfied with their qualifying lap and the balance of their cars. With the region's unpredictable weather conditions, the team is hopeful of an exciting race.
Narain Karthikeyan: "My time was ok, I think. I have made some mistakes, which cost me a little bit of time but generally it was a clean lap. We worked hard on the balance of the car and I am quite satisfied with the set-up we have found. Now we have to wait and see for the race tomorrow."
Tiago Monteiro: "It was a rather good lap, my best of the weekend so far. We have had so many problems since yesterday, which delayed the programme we wanted to follow and limited my track time. Therefore I did not really know what to expect from the car. However, I have pushed really hard and I am satisfied with my time. It was also different to run later in the session as the track was definitively cleaner, I hope we will be able to do this again in the season."
Adrian Burgess: "Both drivers had good and bad parts about their qualifying lap. Narain had a good first sector but then he made a few mistakes in the middle and recovered in the last one. Tiago was not too bad in the first sector but then he made a mistake in the last corner. I think we are in good shape for tomorrow. As normal, we have concentrated on the race tomorrow and we are reasonably happy with our situation.