PAUL TRACY (#3 Indeck Ford-Cosworth/Lola/Bridgestone):
“This is great. We used our
Bridgestone optional tyres yesterday and went faster, so we knew we had an opportunity to better the time today with those tyres on. I knew if I could get the right lap and time that lap, that we could get the pole. I went around posting a fast time, but it was not good enough to grab the pole. I had one more lap to go, was able to have the last lap clear and clean, then as I headed into the pit, I really wasn’t sure where I was going to end up because I knew Sebastien [Bourdais] and Bruno [Junqueira] were on their final lap, so it was a bit of a nail bitter. But we were able to hold on to the top spot to earn the pole position. I am very, very happy for the Forsythe Championship Racing team today.
BRUNO JUNQUEIRA (#2 PacifiCare Ford-Cosworth/Lola/Bridgestone):
“I think the qualifying session went really well. The PacifiCare car was strong again today. I think [Paul] Tracy just got a really good lap and just had us. The car was really good, but we just didn’t have what it took to out run Tracy. But tomorrow is the race, and that is really what counts. I hope we can have a great race car, good pit-stops, a good start and a great strategy to finish on top tomorrow.”
MARIO DOMINGUEZ (#7 Indeck Ford-Cosworth/Lola/Bridgestone):
“I am really very, very happy considering that I didn’t know anybody on the team until Thursday and this is our second day working together. It has been a real crash course, to say the least. This just shows how professional Forsythe Championship Racing is, and if you’re with a good team, you can be fast. I am happy for Paul Tracy to have gotten the pole and happy to be here in the top three.”
SEBASTIEN BOURDAIS (#1 McDonald’s Ford-Cosworth/Lola/Bridgestone):
“The McDonald’s car was pretty good, but I was just trying very hard and made a couple of mistakes. We could have improved a couple of tenths, but we were not really in a position to fight for pole today. Unfortunately, we broke the record for top-three starts 15 – I guess it had to happen sometime. We just weren’t fast enough today to keep it going. We’ll just try to have a good race tomorrow. If P4 is a bad day, I’ll take it."
JUSTIN WILSON (#9 SanDisk Ford-Cosworth/Lola/Bridgestone):
“Well, I’m very happy overall with the first outing with the SanDisk/RuSPORT team. We qualified fifth, we’ve been quick all weekend, and we’re always right there at the right end of the grid. We’ve got the speed and consistency to deliver a great result, so I’m looking forward to tomorrow’s race.”
TIMO GLOCK (#8 Rocketsports Ford-Cosworth/Lola/Bridgestone):
"Qualifying wasn't too bad for us today. The car was difficult to drive yesterday, but this morning we did a long run in practice and I was able to develop a rhythm. We also found a good set-up during the practice and during my first run we were really good. On my last lap on that run, I hit the wall which changed the toe [
tyre alignment] on the left rear of the car. The team did a good job and we made some good changes on the car. This will be my first rolling start, so I don't know really what to expect. It will be difficult in the first corner and should be really interesting."
ALEX TAGLIANI (#15 Aussie Vineyards Ford-Cosworth/Lola/Bridgestone):
“Qualifying seventh is a fantastic start for Team Australia. We obviously would have liked to be a little faster, but this programme is very new and I am extremely enthusiastic about how everything has come together. I am confident we can improve our position in the race tomorrow because this team has a history of good strategies and the guys have been working hard on their pit-stop practice. I had a little bit of understeer on the option tyre which hurt my lap time a little, but the biggest problem was trying to find a clear lap. Every time I was on a hot lap, I kept finding traffic. At one stage, I got held up badly by Junqueira as he was coming out of the pits on sticker tyres – that certainly didn’t help. But, overall, the car is good and we have a long race tomorrow, so I am sure, if we are there at the finish, we will be in great shape.”
CRISTIANO DA MATTA (#21 PKV Racing Ford-Cosworth/Lola/Bridgestone):
