In a race of
exceptional
reliability – 20
cars started and
20 cars finished
–
Minardi F1 Team
drivers'
Robert Doornbos
and
Christijan
Albers
took the
chequered flag
in
18th
and 19th
positions in
this afternoon's Italian
Grand
Prix at Monza. Despite
both the cars
displaying good
pace, neither
driver was able
to capitalise
completely on
the
situation. Albers’
race was
compromised by
two unscheduled
visits to the
pits, one to
replace a
damaged front
wing, incurred
in an opening
lap collision
with the Jordan
of Narain
Karthikeyan, and
the other, to
comply with a
drive-through
penalty assessed
for failing to
let Felipe
Massa’s Sauber
pass quickly
enough. By
comparison,
Doornbos had an
untroubled race,
completing his
two scheduled
fuel stops
without incident
and pressing on,
with a string of
consistent laps,
to the
finish.
ROBERT
DOORNBOS (Best
lap: 1 min
25.193 secs;
Position: 18th)
“Today marked my
fourth Grand
Prix for Minardi. The
weekend was
going well and
we were
expecting to
have a good
battle with the
Jordans. Monteiro
appeared to have
a slightly
better car in
the opening part
of the race, but
I had a good
start and was
able to maintain
position ahead
of my team mate
and Karthikeyan. I
was even able to
pass one of the
Williams
briefly, so the
first lap was
very exciting,
as usual, and I
really enjoyed
that. As the
race developed,
though, it
became clear the
pace wasn’t
quite there, so
I just focused
on the lap times
and talking to
my engineer on
the
radio. Anyway,
we have been
competitive all
weekend, even if
not quite to the
level we would
have liked in
the race, and
now look forward
to Spa and
another
opportunity to
fight the
Jordans.”
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Despite
both cars displaying good pace, neither of the
Minardi drivers were able to capitalise on the
race situation |
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In a race of exceptional reliability Minardi F1 Team drivers' Robert Doornbos and Christijan
Albers took the chequered flag in 18th and 19th positions in today’s Italian Grand
Prix |
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CHRISTIJAN ALBERS (Best lap: 1 min 24.966 secs; Position:
19th)
“We did a good job between qualifying
and the race, and I was happy with the work we did. I think
we had a competitive car and could have finished in front of
the Jordans, as we could have done yesterday in qualifying,
but sometimes you also need some luck. I stopped four times
in the race – once for a new nose, one for a drive-through
penalty, and two normal pit stops – so I think I have seen
enough of the pit lane this weekend. Anyway, we’ll now put
this race behind us and look forward to the next one, in
Spa. I want to say a special thank you to the mechanics and
engineers, because they did a really good job with the car,
and that was reflected in our lap times this afternoon.”
PAUL STODDART, Team Principal,
Minardi Cosworth
“It was a somewhat disappointing race from the Minardi
standpoint, because although both cars took the chequered
flag, our pace suggested we should have finished in better
positions than we did. We were ahead of the Jordans on pace
and, in fact, our best lap was less than one-and-a-half
seconds shy of Michael Schumacher’s fastest race
lap. Unfortunately, Christijan tangled with Narain
Karthikeyan on the first corner of the first lap, which
necessitated an unscheduled pit stop, and then, later in the
race, he was assessed a drive-through penalty for failing to
move over quickly enough for Felipe Massa. Christijan simply
didn’t hear the call on the radio to do so, and we
subsequently apologised to Sauber for this.”
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