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Claudio Berro:
“It is a fantastic day. With this victory we celebrated Maserati’s 90th
Anniversary in the best of ways. Also, we won in Germany, our second biggest
market.
"We knew we could do well as we had two well-balanced cars and we had a
carefully prepared race strategy that could be adapted according to the weather.
We then changed the approach after the safety car came on and for a number of
laps we had the two MC12 in the top two places.
"The drivers, staff, technician, AF Corse and our partners like Pirelli,
really gave their all. I’d like to thank everybody involved."
Andrea Bertolini: “I am very happy. It was an important win for Maserati
obtained with Mika on a circuit where I had already won in the N-GT last year.
All of the team was going for the win right from qualifying.
"I worked very well with Mika on regulating the set up of the car and we
benefited from this in qualifying. It wasn’t easy with the intermediate tyres at
the beginning but we climbed to second position.
"Following the pit stops and the entry of the safety car, we slipped a few
places but came back well to take the lead before the driver changes. Mika
increased our lead and held out until the end."
Mika Salo: “I am very pleased with this win as I have never raced on the circuit
before. Having a good set up was much more important than at Imola. Andrea and I
concentrated on the set up in qualifying.
"Everything went well in the race. After the first stop we took on a lot of fuel
but we stayed focused and consistent, determined to win despite the handicap
weight of 95kg. We only had a few problems with the radio. Fifteen laps from the
finish I eased up a touch and controlled the race."
Johnny Herbert: “It could have gone better; we didn’t have any luck. We were
going well despite the entry of the safety car on two occasions, a factor that
forced us to change our strategy.
"We took the lead after a third of the race and we could have challenged for the
win along with our team mates. Unfortunately we had to pit immediately after the
change of driver, losing a lot of places. We will make up for it in Dubai."
Fabrizio De Simone: “We were going well. We settled on a good set up in
qualifying and we were consistent. Johnny managed to take the lead.
"Unfortunately, I had to come back into the pits straight after with a problem
with the left rear wheel. I was able to climb up to fifth but I had to stop
again to refuel and so ended the race in eighth. It will go better next time.”
Race: no.33
Andrea Bertolini/Mika Salo 1st 118 laps in 3.00.027 chassis no.06/15442; no.34
Johnny Herbert/Fabrizio De Simone 8th at 2 laps chassis no.03/15440; Weather:
air temperature 19°C, track 20°C; rain, then cloudy; Circuit length: 3.667km
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