06/05/2006
NEWS STORY
World championship leader Fernando Alonso will start tomorrow's Grand Prix of Europe from pole position – the 10th pole of his F1 career and Michelin's 103rd. The Spaniard, who is chasing his third win of the 2006 season, lapped in 1m 29.819s – the fastest lap seen at the Nürburgring so far this weekend.
He is one of six Michelin drivers from four partner teams in the top 10: Rubens Barrichello, Kimi Räikkönen, Jenson Button, Jacques Villeneuve and Juan Pablo Montoya are the others.
Nick Shorrock, Michelin Formula One director: Track conditions were very difficult for everybody during this morning's final free practice session – the circuit was very slippery. Things improved as the temperature picked up, however, and our partner teams made very effective use of three different Michelin specifications during qualifying.
We are delighted to have taken another pole position– our third of the year. We knew at the start of the weekend that we would be quick and consistent in race trim, but we didn't know whether we would have sufficient one-lap pace to take pole position. Fernando has just answered that question very effectively – and that gives us an added boost ahead of what is likely to be a very tight, competitive race.
Pat Symonds, executive engineering director, Renault F1 Team: We are confident that we have a good tyre for the race” “Some teams have clearly brought quite adventurous tyre specifications to this race, but together with Michelin we have taken a more conservative approach. Even with that, we have been able to take pole position and we are also confident that we have a good tyre for the race. This is an excellent example of the strong co-operation that exists between Michelin and Renault as we strive to develop good racing solutions.