Klien and Horner furious after Sato block.
Christian Klien and Red Bull Racing boss, Christian Horner, have hit out at Takuma Sato after he blocked the Austrian and prevented him from getting into the second knockout session.
It was a torrid session for Klien, who had been comfortably in the top ten during morning practice, from the outset after the timing glitch that produced a phantom red flag caused him to slow on his fastest lap, the Austrian choosing to stay out on worn tyres to try and qualify with his second lap.
Christian Klien and Red Bull Racing boss, Christian Horner, have hit out at Takuma Sato after he blocked the Austrian and prevented him from getting into the second knockout session.
It was a torrid session for Klien, who had been comfortably in the top ten during morning practice, from the outset after the timing glitch that produced a phantom red flag caused him to slow on his fastest lap, the Austrian choosing to stay out on worn tyres to try and qualify with his second lap.
However, mid-way through a lap that would have definitely moved him into the second stage, Klien was blocked by Sato's Super Aguri and as a result finished the session in 17th place, marginally outside the time required to see him progress.
Klien was inevitably aggrieved by the incident, in a session that he believed would have seen him challenging in the top ten.
"I'm massively pissed off. All weekend I've been quick, I was in the top eight this morning and it was a really good opportunity for me and the team to be in the top ten today. During a timed lap, my engineers told me there was a red flag, so I slowed down and prepared to come back to the pits.
"I was then told to continue, which was very strange, as that normally can't happen under a red flag. So, I did another lap. My tyres were worn, but I was on for a good time until I came up to Sato. He didn't look in his mirrors and ruined my whole lap and whole qualifying session. For me it's a really shit day and makes the rest of the weekend pretty complicated."
Christian Horner was angry at Sato, claiming that he 'blatantly blocked' Klien. "Christian was extremely unlucky. When he was on his flying lap, the FIA timing screen crashed bringing on a red flag. It was immediately relayed to the drivers to slow down, so his lap was aborted.
"When it was clear that there wasn't a red flag, Christian started a second timed lap, but Takuma Sato blatantly blocked him, which cost him well over a second and any chance of moving into part two. It's a great shame, as he's been looking good all weekend."
