Driver reaction - Spain qualifying

The 22 drivers have their say on the qualifying action in Spain, where Mercedes locked out the front row.
Red Bull

Sebastian Vettel: "I was pretty happy with the last sector, as historically it's been a bit weak for me. Now finally, after the last couple of years, I understand the last few corners a little better. I'm quite happy as yesterday and this morning I wasn't too comfortable, particularly in the last sector, but we improved the car.

"We had a pretty smooth qualifying session, we took a slightly different approach to some others using option tyres only - whether that helps us tomorrow we'll have to wait and see, but it will be an interesting race and a lot will be about tyre degradation. It's good to start a little bit higher up, so let's see what we can do tomorrow."

Mark Webber: "Qualifying went well today apart from Q3. I was disappointed with the lap in Q3 and lost a lot of time in the last sector; I'm normally quite strong there, but I was in trouble with the rears. It's a sensitive game these days and you need to get everything lined up. So, in the end I'm disappointed with the last lap, but everything else I was happy with. It will be an interesting race tomorrow."

Fernando Alonso: "It's a well known fact that Saturday afternoon is our weak point and fifth place is more or less what we were expecting. We were well aware that Red Bull and Mercedes would both be very strong, but while it's true we have to start taking back points on Vettel, we are not too scared of Mercedes, who usually have higher tyre degradation. The team and I are optimistic for tomorrow as our race pace is good and usually we manage to go better on Sunday.

"We start from the clean side and hope that will allow us to get off the line well, because what we need here is to make up some places at the start and then put in a few clean laps in the early stages or at half distance. We will also have to defend against Raikkonen: so far he has gone very well in the races and the Lotus doesn't seem to suffer too much on the tyre front. As usual this season it will be very important to choose the right strategy, because there is only one lap difference in terms of degradation between the two tyre compounds".

Felipe Massa: "I can't say I'm pleased with this result, because I was expecting more after the times I did this morning. Unfortunately, in the third sector I had slight understeer which was costing me time, but all the same, I feel very confident because our car seems competitive. Now we must concentrate on tomorrow's race, because it will be a long one and anything can happen. As for the Stewards' decision relating to what happened with Webber in Q2, it was not my intention to get in his way and in all honesty, I can't recall having affected his qualifying.

"When I saw him in the mirrors, I thought I'd get through the corner before letting him by, which was the only course of action at such a narrow point. On top of that, he was on worn tyres at the time and I don't think he was doing a quick lap. I'm not surprised at the pace of the Mercedes, as they were already strong here in winter testing and their car is always very competitive in qualifying. This result shows once again that, on Saturdays, our rivals prefer to take a more conservative approach in the morning before revealing their true potential in the afternoon".
McLaren

Sergio Perez: "We've had a difficult couple of days - I had problems throughout practice - so to get through to Q3 was a great result, and something we really weren't expecting. I'm very pleased because I got absolutely everything out of the car.

"So we'll go into the race tomorrow looking to maximise our potential. If we can manage that, I think we should be satisfied.

"The whole Vodafone McLaren Mercedes team is determined to keep on fighting. I've seen how hard the guys in the garage, and everybody back at MTC, are working to get us back to the front - so today's result just makes me even more hungry to justify all their efforts."

Jenson Button: "Congratulations to Checo - he did a great job, particularly in Q2. He did everything right this afternoon and showed that some of our recent upgrades are definitely working. It's not yet enough, but it's rewarding to see that we're making some progress.

"For me, the car felt okay in Q1, but, in Q2, I couldn't find the grip for my final run. It felt as though the tyre pressures may have been too high, but to be honest we're not yet quite sure exactly what happened.

"So, tomorrow, from 14th on the grid, whatever we do will be difficult. It'll be a tricky afternoon, but we'll definitely do our best to make the best of it."
Lotus

Kimi Raikkonen: "That was more or less all we could do today. I didn't make any mistakes on my fastest lap so that was pretty much all there was to come from the car. I wouldn't say it was a perfect lap, but I don't think we would have been much higher up the order if it had been. The Mercedes, as we've seen before, seems to be pretty fast in qualifying but hopefully in the race we can turn it around. Our race pace has been pretty good all year so let's try and get on the podium. I'll have to make a good start, then let's see what happens."

Romain Grosjean: "We did a good job today throughout qualifying but on my last lap I made a mistake into turn one, so I decided to back off and save the tyres. Otherwise, I think we could have done a bit better and maybe sit one or two rows further towards the front. I was happy with the car and all the work we've done since Friday. For tomorrow, we will see what happens as the competition is very tight. As we have seen, conditions are variable this weekend and once more the tyres should be key."

Nico Rosberg: "It's a great feeling to be on pole again. So far this weekend has been very positive and it's a pleasure to see that the team is improving and fighting through the problems together. I know everyone back at the factory and at home will have been watching this afternoon and it's a great feeling for all of us.

"However, we know that this is only half of the job completed and have the painful memory of what happened in Bahrain to prove that. We've worked very hard on our race pace but this track is tough for the tyres, particularly with graining. So it will be a big challenge tomorrow and our goal is to make the most of the opportunity we have from starting at the front and get a strong result for the team."

Lewis Hamilton: "A great job by the team and I'm so happy that we got a one-two qualifying result today. It's a real bonus for us to be so high up, and that's all down to the hard work that the team have put into this car, I can't thank them enough. Of course, I'd like to be one place higher but Nico did an awesome job and really nailed his lap.

"I've not been totally happy with the balance of my car all weekend, even today, so we need to look at it this evening and see what we can do for the race. Limiting the degradation is going to be my major challenge as the general pace isn't too bad. It's going to be tough to keep these positions tomorrow but we'll give it our best shot."