Race - selected team and driver quotes

[irguiz]

Mercedes
Michael Schumacher (DNF)
“What can I say? It was simply a pity to end the race in this way. In any case, the fuel pressure problem had nothing to do with the incident at the start. But it made it doubly disappointing because I had secretly been hoping for a podium finish today. I will take the boost from the high points of this weekend with me to Canada. The track should suit us and I'm hoping to have a normal, clean race.”

Ross Brawn, Mercedes team principal
“Nico ran a very good race today and did all he needed to do. I think we made the right calls but nothing opened up for us. It was a race that was about managing gaps and finding the right windows in the traffic; the team did a great job on that. Nico was the first of the front-runners to stop, but the harder tyre took a lap or two to come in and it wasn't enough to jump Mark. As for Michael, he was hit on the run to the opening corner which cost him positions, but was very quick when a fuel pressure problem started to slow him later in the race. We tried to continue but it was costing him too much time, dropped him out of the points and forced us to retire the car. It was very disappointing because he put in a great performance this weekend and he was still on course to score useful points. We need to make sure we eliminate the problems for him, starting in Canada.”

Norbert Haug, vice-president, Mercedes-Benz Motorsport
“It was a strong race for Nico and our team, and we were in with a chance of winning until the chequered flag, but Mark did not put a foot wrong all afternoon ahead of Nico. Looking at the results today, Fernando Alonso, Sebastian Vettel and Lewis Hamilton - who lead Nico in the championship - all finished behind him, and this helped him close the gap at the top of the standings to 17 points. That translates to an average of fewer than three points a race separating Nico from the championship lead after six rounds of the championship. It was a pity for Michael: he clearly demonstrated this weekend that he has the speed to win races but his time will come again, like yesterday when he posted the pole position time.”

Ferrari
Felipe Massa (6th)
“It was a good race. I felt comfortable with the car right from the start of Thursday’s free practice. I had the right feeling and it was much easier to drive than at the previous races. Maybe it depends on the nature of the track or the set-up and we definitely need to analyse everything carefully to see what we can learn from this weekend. All things considered, I could have brought home a better result, but I am happy nevertheless. It was a very difficult race and very close and I was able to match the pace of the leaders. I am only sorry I was unable to do a few laps with a clear track ahead of me when the tyres were still competitive. The start was very good and also the tyre degradation, especially on the Soft compound was minimal. A driver always wants to do the maximum so I can’t be delighted with sixth place, however these are important points. I really hope my championship has turned around and that, from now on, I can always be in the fight for the top places, as was the case here in Monaco. Now we go to Montreal, which is a different type of track to this one, because you need a good top speed but, in fact it’s not that different in terms of the set-up required.”

Pat Fry, Ferrari chassis director
“A very intense race, which ended with one car on the podium and the other in the top six. There was not a moment’s respite, right from the start, with the top six all together in just a handful of seconds. We all started a bit blind in terms of how the tyres would behave, both as far as durability was concerned and how they would perform in the first laps of use. Furthermore, the rain was always lying in wait and appeared right in the final moments. Fernando and Felipe both drove impeccably, without making the slightest mistake, as was the case for the crew during the pit stops. As for the strategy, day after day, the option of the one stop became ever more clear and, in the end it was the best choice. Sure, with hindsight, it’s easy to say that if Fernando had stayed out on track for a few laps more, then maybe he could have also passed Rosberg and got on terms with Webber as well as Hamilton, given the time he did on his in-lap. I think this weather was a surprise for everyone, as was the difficulty encountered in getting the Softs up to temperature in their first laps. With just a few seconds to react, we took the most logical decision, which did all the same lead to a podium finish. It all goes to show how every detail is crucial in a championship as closely contested as this one. We need to continue pushing on the development of the car, because we are still not where we want to be in terms of performance.”

Stefano Domenicali, Ferrari team principal
“First of all, I want to say that all our thoughts are with everyone who is suffering as a result of the earthquake that hit the Emilia region last week: we hope that this strong race from Ferrari will have allowed them, just for a couple of hours, to forget their troubles at such a difficult time. We are with you, in thought and deed, because our roots are there, in the ground that has continued to shake there for the past eight days. As for the race, we leave the Principality with a very positive result and, above all, with Fernando Alonso leading the Drivers’ classification and Felipe Massa having delivered a brilliant and feisty performance all weekend long. Both our drivers did a great job, from the first to the last lap and the team behind them was a match for the situation. I am particularly happy for Felipe who needed a positive result: I’m sure this weekend really represents a fresh start to the season for him. We have to be satisfied, but we must definitely not relax, especially as we are not yet the best in terms of performance, particularly in qualifying. As I usually say after a good weekend, keep calm and carry on!”

McLaren
Jenson Button (DNF)
“At the start, Kamui almost landed on top of me because he’d been launched off someone else. Then I almost got stuck at the exit of Sainte Devote, but I just managed to squeeze through. After my stop, I got caught behind Heikki - we weren’t really fighting, but if you position your car in the right place around here then it’s impossible to overtake. That’s quite frustrating when you’re so much quicker than the guy in front. Finally, I had a look up the inside of Turn 15, we touched, and I had a puncture. Game over. Today’s result stems from a poor qualifying performance and being unlucky at the start. Also, when you start from the mid-grid, you’re more prone to incidents. It wasn’t my day today - but hopefully it will be sooner rather than later.”

Martin Whitmarsh, McLaren team principal
This year’s Monaco Grand Prix won’t go down as one of the most triumphant in McLaren’s glorious Monte-Carlo history - since, although Lewis finished just four seconds behind Mark today, in truth the smallness of that deficit was partly occasioned by the unique combination of the drivers’ need to drive with tyre conservation in mind and a circuit on which overtaking is well-nigh impossible. As a consequence, Mark was able to back the field up in the closing stages, without risking his lead. Still, Lewis scored a useful 10 points, and lies only 13 points off the drivers’ world championship lead. Jenson had a frustrating afternoon, striving to make up ground from 12th on the grid, the result of which was ultimately a lap-71 DNF. Our next stop will be Montreal, another non-purpose-built racetrack, but one on which overtaking is at least feasible. Jenson won brilliantly there last year, and Lewis won superbly there the year before - so, although we weren’t able to add to our unrivalled record of 15 wins here at Monaco this afternoon, you can rest assured that in two weeks’ time we’ll be aiming to score a hat-trick of Vodafone McLaren Mercedes Canadian Grand Prix victories.”

Lotus
Kimi Raikkonen, (9th)
“Ninth was the best we could do today. I didn’t start in a great position and I had some difficulties during the race so it’s not been the easiest weekend, but at least we got a couple of points. It’s better than nothing but not exactly what we wanted. One race doesn’t change the fact that we have been pretty strong everywhere – even here at the beginning of the weekend. This circuit is completely different from any other and I don’t think we should worry too much about the fact that it wasn’t our best weekend. It is what it is – sometimes it doesn’t go the way you expected and now we should look to Canada for a better result.”

James Allison, Lotus technical director
“We’ve had five races so far this season where we’ve shown strongly. Sadly, at the sixth we were not on the pace. It was a completely joyless experience from start to finish. Romain has been metronomic this weekend, but he was out of the race before the first corner which was a massive blow to our hopes for today. Kimi had an okay start, but wasn’t able to keep the car running at a challenging pace once the sheen came off his tyres after ten or fifteen laps. We stayed out longer than we would have done otherwise on the first set of super soft tyres as we, and everyone else, were waiting for rain to come. Now we have to pick ourselves up and come back in Canada to bring both cars home in strong placings.”

Eric Boullier, Lotus team principal
"We arrived in Monaco after two consecutive podiums and did not really know what to expect at such a unique circuit. Before qualifying it was obvious that the E20 was going to be competitive, but things did not go as planned. Our positions on the grid did not reflect our true pace and that put us on the back foot for the rest of the weekend. Unfortunately Romain’s race ended prematurely after contact with Michael Schumacher, and like the Stewards I think it was a racing incident. With Kimi, we knew that fighting for a podium was going to be more than difficult. It then became obvious that we were struggling with our tyres when the temperature fell. The grip was just not there and we could only defend our position. In the end, the two points we’ve scored today are disappointing but because the field is so tight we have not lost too much ground on our opponents. We have the same number of points as Ferrari in the constructors’ championship, while Kimi is 25 points away from Fernando Alonso who’s leading the drivers’ classification. Anything can still happen and the championship is wide open. We’re now looking forward to Montreal, the first low downforce track of the season, where the E20 should be strong. Finally, I wish to congratulate the team for all their hard work this weekend. Our 500th was not one of our best, but I hope the 501st is!”

Williams
Bruno Senna (10th)
“I’m happy we got a point from a very tough race. We deserved more and I felt we could be stronger than this, but today it didn’t happen and so we did the best we could do. It’s good to be in the top 10 but I have bitter-sweet feelings. Now we are fired up for Canada and I’m really looking forward to that race. I have a lot of confidence that we are getting there with the set-up of the car, so I can’t wait to get going again.”

Mark Gillan, Williams chief operations engineer
“Whilst we are pleased to get a point today with Bruno we are equally frustrated as the car and drivers had much more pace than those immediately in front of them. Unfortunately Pastor's race ended on the first lap as he hit Pedro de la Rosa who was in turn braking hard due to the Grosjean incident ahead. Bruno drove a very good race pushing Räikkönen hard all the way to the end, but could simply not get past despite trying hard. We will now regroup for Canada and hope to do a better job in Montreal.”

Laurent Debout, Renault track support to Williams
“Monaco is a challenging track for engine engineers as it’s unlike any other circuit on the calendar due to the high number of low speed corners. But this weekend has been difficult overall. Starting so far back means it is hard to make up positions so one point for Bruno is a reasonable result. We’re looking forward to Montreal for a better outcome.”