Sebastian Vettel clinched his seventh pole of 2010 in Budapest on Saturday, outpacing his team-mate, the Ferraris and Hamilton...
Red Bull:
Sebastian Vettel: "It was a very good day for us. We have felt comfortable all weekend and I think we were able to improve overnight also. I said on the radio to the team on my in-lap, "Mark and I were pushing hard to finish first and second, but this is your moment, enjoy it - you built this wonderful car'. It's a pleasure to drive and I'm looking forward to tomorrow. It was quite a difficult session today. I didn't have a good run in Q2 on the option tyre and didn't feel 100 percent. There's not really much you can do to the car between Q2 and Q3, just little trims, but it worked quite well and I had a lot of confidence in Q3. I was able to go quite a bit quicker, so it was a good step. I'm happy to be on pole; hopefully we have a good start tomorrow and a good race."
Mark Webber: "Sebastian did a good job. We have pushed each other most of the weekend, but he put Q3 together well. The tyres are the gold thing around here - you need to get them just right, understand them and then nail the lap, they can be pretty sensitive at times. We'll see how we go tomorrow, it's a long race and I'm in a good position to get some good points. The first three seconds of the race can be crucial and can deliver 70 per cent of the result."
Ferrari:
Fernando Alonso: "I am pleased with my qualifying lap and with the performance of our car, as I don't think I could have done better today. The Red Bulls proved to be very strong and the gap to them is certainly a surprise. Having said that, we have to remain focussed on our work and try to do the maximum, aiming at getting on the podium. We must bear in mind that the leaders in both championships are behind us on the grid and our aim is to make up ground on their points total. The start will be very important. Usually at this track, starting on the clean side brings a clear advantage, but this year we have seen good starts from the dirty side and bad ones from the clean: it will be vital to do everything as well as possible and then we will see where we are at the end of the first lap. At that point we can also decide whether to have an attacking race or to manage the situation. The circuit is very demanding for cars and drivers and you must not lose concentration for a moment."
Felipe Massa: "When you are gapped by over a second in qualifying, there is always something to think about: the way in which they make their tyres work on the first lap is especially incredible and their aerodynamics help them so much in some corners, especially in changes of direction. In the race, the situation can be different, but clearly we cannot claim that we will be quicker on track. However, overall, we have to be pleased with this result because, all the same, we are ahead of everyone else. I did not produce a perfect lap: with these tyres you have to drive extremely precisely because you can easily run the risk of going off the ideal line. The start will be very important and, unfortunately, I am on the dirty side of the grid: let's see what we can do. The race will be very long and as always, anything can happen. What did I feel today, thinking of events one year ago? During qualifying, I did not think about it for a moment, as I had too much to do in the car, but now, I can tell you it's a nice feeling being here having completed qualifying! Today, Professor Robert Veres was in our garage, one of the doctors who looked after me when I was in the AEK hospital and I was very pleased to have him here with me."
McLaren:
Lewis Hamilton: "I'm happy with today's result. I was relieved to get into Q3 - it was very close - and I feel I pulled every last drop out of the car. So I'm satisfied with the job we did today. Obviously, we'll have to work hard again tomorrow - but, all things considered, it's a good place for us to be starting from tomorrow: it's on the clean side of the track, which is a positive, and it's a long haul down to Turn One. So anything's possible. As I say, I'm quite happy. Our car is the best it's ever been at this circuit. And we'll stay focused for tomorrow: I need to get as good a start as I've been getting for the past few races, stay clean, get around the first corner and keep moving forwards after that. It would be great to make up some places off the grid because it's very hard to overtake around here. But we'll do the best job we can. I'm ready for it. Bring it on!"
Jenson Button: "In practice this morning, the car was working pretty well and I felt quite happy with it. We were still some way off the top two teams, but the overall pace wasn't too bad. This afternoon, I still felt pretty happy on the Prime tyre, and ended Q1 seventh-fastest. But I just couldn't find a balance on the Option tyre and I struggled for grip with it. The good thing is that I'll be starting on the clean side of the track. Normally, that can make you up a place or two at the start, and there'll be lots of opportunities into the first corner, which is always exciting here. Plus, I've got two new sets of tyres for the race. So we can still do a lot from 11th - and I'll do my very best to pick up some valuable world championship points from there. I suppose you could say we've just got to be brave tomorrow."
Mercedes GP:
Nico Rosberg: "I'm pleased to be starting from sixth place as we didn't think we would be that far forward today, so it's an unexpected and pleasant surprise. We are a long way from the front which is a concern but we took everything that we could from today and I am happy with our performance. We did a very good job with the set-up which meant we could get the best out of the car. Hopefully I can have a good start and our aim as always is to make up a few more places and get some decent points again."
Michael Schumacher: "Obviously qualifying was not ideal for us today. After yesterday's performance, we purposely went for a different set-up which was supposed to tell us more about the car and was targeted more towards the race. It seemed to be reasonable this morning but as the track became hotter in qualifying, it went against us. Our set-up should work better in the race although starting from 14th place does not make it easy. Being on the dirty side of the starting grid does not specifically help, but I will certainly try again to have a good start tomorrow. And from then on we will have to see how the race develops."
