Sunday: Barrichello and Williams not fast enough for points
Rubens Barrichello hoped for better in his home race, but due to the lack of a sufficiently competitive car, the Brazilian driver only finished in 14th place. However, he expressed satisfaction with his race and thoroughly enjoyed driving in front of his home crowd. His teammate, Pastor Maldonado, had to retire after going off the track after 26 laps.
Rubens Barrichello – 14th
We thought it was going to rain today, so we had a first long stint. I started from the bottom of the hill, and since it was a dry start, I lost places. It was a fun race, but I didn’t have the car to finish in the points. I want to thank the team for all the work done this year. We had a tough season, but we got through it together. There have been a lot of rumors this weekend, but I think I will still be here next year.
Pastor Maldonado – Abandonment
I had a good start until I lost positions fighting to stay on the track. Our race pace was good, but the rear wing settings held us back a little on the straight. My retirement came after an overtaking on Senna on lap 26. The car had too much understeer and I couldn’t control it.
Mark Gillan – Chief Engineer
« Rubens had a difficult start which cost him many positions. We then decided to switch him from two to three stops because we had more wear than expected. Rubens attacked and eventually finished 14th, managing to hold off Schumacher in the final laps. Pastor went wide at turns 6/7 on lap 26 and had to retire because his car was damaged. Rubens and Pastor had a good fight today but we didn’t have enough pace for points. I would like to thank the whole team for the efforts made this season. »
