Alex Zanardi also impressed with his first outing in the ETCC and was only just over a
second off the pace, despite having to sit out the first free practice while BMW
Team Italy-Spain fixed a problem with his clutch. Another driver to miss a session
was Andy Priaulx, as he spun off in his BMW Team Great Britain 320i on his first
lap of the second free practice, meanwhile for the second race running Fabrizio
Giovanardi will have to start from the back of the grid as his engine is being
changed.

Positions for the BMW drivers are:  1st - Jörg Müller, 2nd - Dirk Müller, 6th - Antonio
Garcia, 7th - Andy Priaulx, 11th - Alex Zanardi, 15th - Fabrizio Giovanardi (he will start
from the back of the grid).

BMW Team Deutschland - Schnitzer Motorsport - Charly Lamm:   "Looking at
the qualifying sheet I still cannot believe what is printed there. To be first and
second in Monza is more than we could ever hope for and this puts us in a good
position for the races tomorrow. We are now focusing on the preparation of our
BMWs for the race and look forward to tomorrow."

Dirk Müller (GER) (2m 00.467s): "At the moment this result has to sink in as I never
thought we could be first and second in both practices and qualifying. What we did
was the best show of team-work I have known in my career and it was great slip
streaming with Jorg, who I have to congratulate. We have no problems, we had
luck on our side and I can't wait for the green light tomorrow."

Jörg Müller (GER) (2m 00.454s) (carrying 20 kilos ballast): "Obviously I am very
happy with this result. There was a lot of pressure on us and the guys from Alfa
Romeo and I think we just handled it a little bit better. We came here very well
prepared. It is important in Monza to slip stream, we tried this in the first practice
and it worked well. This is the best position I can have for winning the
championship but it is going to be tough tomorrow."

BMW Team Great Britain - RBM - Bart Mampaey: "BMW looks really strong,
which I don't think was expected. We still have a chance of the championship and
that is what we will go for. I think we have the potential left in the car to get a better
set-up and to have two very good races."

Andy Priaulx (GBR) (2m 01.250s) (carrying 10 kilos of ballast): "We had a knock
on effect from missing the second free practice when I went off. I think we did really
well considering the time we have had at Monza. I think we can only get stronger
for tomorrow. I think it is going to be a question of being clever like we have been
through the year in the races and hopefully not get caught up in anything
happening. Today in qualifying I think we have made it possible to finish in the top
two places in the championship."

BMW Team Italy-Spain - Ravaglia Motorsport - Roberto Ravaglia: "We knew
we had an engine problem before qualifying so Fabrizio did qualifying only to help
Antonio. Unfortunately Antonio has a broken differential,but it is still a good sixth
position. BMW is looking very good with four cars in the top six. We are happy
because Alex did a really good lap time. He lost the first practice and in the end he
was only one point one seconds behind pole, which is not a lot for a circuit like
Monza. I think he can do a really good job in the race."

Fabrizio Giovanardi (ITA) (2m 02.576s)(time will be disallowed as he is having an
engine change): "I have an engine problem, which is now being changed so I will
have to start from the back of the grid. To be honest I would prefer to start from the
back with a good engine than in the middle of the grid with one that is not so good."

Antonio Garcia (ESP) (2m 01.093s): "It was not a perfect day for us as Fabrizio
had an engine problem so it was very difficult to slip steam with him. My other
problem came on the last corner of what I thought was a very good lap. It was a
problem with the differential. I went straight on almost onto the gravel. Then on the
long corner between the first and second chicanes I had wheelspin on the rear, so I
was certain I had a problem with the differential. Anyway we are still on the third
row and anything can happen in the first corner."

Alex Zanardi (ITA) (2m 01.612s): "I am partially happy. On my last lap I missed a
gear a couple of times at reasonably high speed out of the Ascari chicane. This
definitely cost me a couple of tenths, which could have placed me a little better on
the grid. I did the lap time on my own, not in a slipstream, which helps here. These
are really the things that come with experience and the feeling for the car. For me it
is more a question of getting on the rhythm, and making a clean lap without any
mistakes with the gears or spinning off. I am happy I kept it out of trouble in a day
where other people with more experience did not. We missed the first session,
which did not help at all. From the one free practice we did and qualifying we were
able to make an improvement , which was probably mainly on my side with my
driving. I hope tomorrow I can drive a clean race and bring it home in the first round
in eighth, which is my goal."

Results: 1. Jörg Müller (GER/BMW 320i) 2m 00.454s, 2.  Dirk Müller (GER/BMW 320i) 2m
00.467s, 3. Roberto Colciago (ITA/Alfa Romeo) 2m 00.613s,  4. James Thompson
(GBR/Alfa Romeo) 2m 00.786s, 5. Duncan Huisman (NED/BMW 320i) 2m 00.928s, 6.
Antonio Garcia (ESP/BMW 320i) 2min 01.093s.

Only registered users can write comments.
Please login or register.

Powered by AkoComment 2.0!