30/07/2005
NEWS STORY
Panasonic Toyota Racing will have two cars in the top five at tomorrow's Hungarian Grand Prix after a storming performance in today's qualifying session. Jarno Trulli and Ralf Schumacher will start from 3rd and 5th places on the grid after both drivers put in scorching laps on another scorching day at the Hungaroring. Jarno faced a tough task, missing out on some of this morning's practice after a fuel system problem. He also had to go out early in the session, but he did well to make up ground. Ralf also turned in a fine performance, ending just over a tenth further back. Toyota will now head into Sunday's race aiming for another points finish from both drivers. The team currently stands in 4th place in the constructors' championship with a total of 57 points.
Jarno Trulli faced a tough qualifying session after missing out on running due to a fuel system problem in the morning's practice. But he turned in a great lap to take 3rd place despite going out early in the session.
Jarno Trulli: "That was a very good lap, so I'm happy. We always knew this was going to be a tough session because I was going out so early after our problems in Hockenheim. I also had a fuel system problem this morning so I didn't get a chance to try out the car on new tyres. That meant it was a bit of a guess for the balance on new tyres, but our car always goes well over one lap and I tried my best. I gradually built up my confidence as I went round, which was why the third sector was the best. Looking to the race, it's always a tough afternoon here but we'll try to keep up our pace."
Ralf Schumacher put in a fine lap to qualify in 5th place for tomorrow's Hungarian Grand Prix. The performance sets him up for a chance of his fourth straight points finish.
Ralf Schumacher: "All in all that was a pretty good lap for me. It was difficult to get the optimum out of the car because I had a bit of oversteer, but it was reasonably clean. And being fifth on the grid sets us up well for tomorrow, particularly because we will start on the clean side of the grid. We think we've got a good strategy so we'll have to see how it works out. We're certainly aiming for another good result. Since they changed the layout at the first corner there are more chances for passing here. The race will be long in the heat so it's a matter of making no mistakes and hoping for the best."
The whole Panasonic Toyota Racing team is looking forward to tomorrow's Hungarian Grand Prix after putting both drivers into the top five in qualifying.
Dieter Gass – Chief Race Engineer: "We are obviously delighted with today's qualifying performance. We've looked in strong shape throughout the whole weekend and from 3rd and 5th on the grid we are looking forward to a strong race. Jarno obviously had a tough time having to go out so early in the session, particularly after missing out on running this morning. But in the end you could see from Raikkonen that the circuit wasn't quite as bad as we expected at the beginning of the session. In the end both drivers put in strong laps and having them both start from the clean side of the grid is good news for the race. We're confident about our strategy and we'll look to reap more rewards tomorrow."