Saturday Report – McLaren towards the title… but without Alonso

McLaren is under pressure in Brazil, but isn’t giving up. Ron Dennis’s team responds brilliantly to Ferrari during qualifying and evidently, both the team and Hamilton aren’t aiming for the win, but ‘simply’ the driver’s title. To achieve this, they will need to outperform the Ferraris, which will be challenging for tomorrow.

The race is long, anything can still happen, but Hamilton seems best positioned to reclaim the driver’s title. Alonso will therefore have to use all his skills on the track.

Lewis Hamilton – 2nd and 2nd

« It’s a fantastic last qualifying for me. I might have been able to take pole position, but the car worked well, and the team did a good job allowing us to refuel in time and do a final fast lap. »

« I am quite confident and relaxed for tomorrow, and I know what I need to do to win the championship. My goal is not to win the race but the Title. »

Fernando Alonso – 8th and 4th

Of course, I would have liked to be on the front row, but that wasn’t the case… We made some changes to the car for the qualifying, but unfortunately, it didn’t help us.

« Nevertheless, as we have seen in China, a lot of things can happen during a race, we must wait and see what will happen.

Ron Dennis – McLaren Director

« Both Alonso and Hamilton did a very good job in qualifying. They have delivered, and the team has provided them with the maximum to be on an equal footing. Everything is in their hands now. »

« Obviously, it is very interesting to see a Brazilian on pole at home, but we want to win the driver’s title, and we expect to have an exciting race tomorrow, for us and for our fans.

Norberg Haug – Mercedes-MotorSport Director

« It’s a good start to be on the front row with Hamilton and only 30 thousandths behind Räikkönen for Alonso on the second row. The team has really worked hard to have a good car and we hope that will be enough tomorrow to leave with the title!