Verstappen Happy after 'Positive' Weekend

Minardi's Jos Verstappen was happy to finish the Hungarian Grand Prix despite not getting close to the point-scoring positions.

"I think this has been one of the better races of the season for us although it is clear that we are still not able to run at the speed of the other cars yet," said Dutchman Verstappen after finishing in 12th position in Minardi's 300th Formula One Grand Prix.

"From a personal point of view, I thought this race might also be a tough one physically, but I was pleased to find that I felt good when I climbed out of the car at the end. All told, it has been a positive weekend for us."

Verstappen's teammate Nicolas Kiesa completed his second Grand Prix in a row after making his Formula One debut in Germany three weeks ago. The Danish rookie finished behind his teammate, four laps behind race winner Fernando Alonso.

"I made a mistake at the start, when I engaged first gear but forgot to activate the launch control," said Kiesa. "That delayed me when the race got under way, but it was okay once I got going. The chassis set-up we chose meant we had to sacrifice our qualifying performance yesterday, but it definitely helped us in the race.

"I had a better car for the race this afternoon than I had in Hockenheim and I managed to let the faster cars through without reducing my own performance as much. I was able to put the knowledge from Germany to good use and am pleased to have taken the chequered flag for the second Grand Prix in a row."