Arrows ‘deserve better’

Pedro de la Rosa claims the team merit better fortune than that which has been their lot hitherto.

"It's not been a good weekend for me and frustrating as I think we deserve better, but I'm now looking forward to Barcelona" he said.

" It was very difficult, but this is motor racing and I just have to accept it. When I came in to do the pit stop I had some flashing red lights on the dashboard and clutch problem which clearly isn't a good sign! Then I stalled and went out again but found the same problems which I think were caused by the electronics," he continued.

The Spaniard had had a disappointing qualifying session after mistiming his final run. The race looked to be better, however, and De La Rosa was making up places as those in front dropped out.

Verstappen was on course for points, hounding Michael Schumacher's Ferrari in the early stages. The Dutchman was easily able to stay with the two-times World Champion but all came to naught when the glitch that had caused De La Rosa's early bath, afflicted the number 18 Arrows Supertec.

"It was an electronic problem but I don't know what exactly - the engine wasn't running right. I didn't have a fantastic start but the car was running fine and I was happy with the balance to start so it's a shame as I think we could have come in the points," said Verstappen.

"The problem showed up in my last 6 or 7 laps so that's why I had to come in. We tried to fix it but weren't able to. I was behind Schumacher at a similar speed but found it impossible to overtake because of the problem with the car. It's always disappointing when I don't finish a race, but I think the team did very good work and I'm very happy with them. We will work together to sort it out but it's a shame as it could have been a good result for the team".