Skip to main content

Sign up for free

  • Get quick access to your favorite articles

  • Manage alerts on breaking news and favorite drivers

  • Make your voice heard with article commenting.

Autosport Plus

Discover premium content
Subscribe

Recommended for you

"We don't want to put tape on anyone's mouth" – F1 boss reacts to driver criticism of 2026 rules

Formula 1
"We don't want to put tape on anyone's mouth" – F1 boss reacts to driver criticism of 2026 rules

Why the 2026 F1 season won’t end in Las Vegas

Formula 1
Why the 2026 F1 season won’t end in Las Vegas

How a young driver is using his illness to help others

Feature
National
How a young driver is using his illness to help others

The litmus test that has Hyundai confident for WRC season run-in

WRC
Rally Finland
The litmus test that has Hyundai confident for WRC season run-in

How F1 2026 has been a season of two halves for Ferrari so far

Formula 1
Hungarian GP
How F1 2026 has been a season of two halves for Ferrari so far

KTM's biggest weakness exposed by Vinales contract drama

MotoGP
KTM's biggest weakness exposed by Vinales contract drama

How Silverstone has proved that bigger isn’t always better

Feature
National
How Silverstone has proved that bigger isn’t always better

IndyCar releases renderings of new chassis for 2028 regulation overhaul

IndyCar
IndyCar releases renderings of new chassis for 2028 regulation overhaul

Australia Friday quotes: Ferrari

Fernando Alonso - 15th: "I am happy to be racing in Melbourne: this is one of the most enjoyable events on the calendar. Overall, I am reasonably happy with the work we managed to get done today, despite the rain that came in the second session. Sure, I would have liked to have got a greater understanding of the tyre behaviour, especially the softer ones, which we only used in FP2. However, I think everyone was in the same situation. We worked exclusively at preparing for Sunday's race and that's why I'm not bothered by my position in the classification. Usually on Friday, this track is very dirty but this time the grip level on the first lap was not so bad. For the race, tyre management will be a key factor, given that it's very probable that we will have to do a lot of laps on the same set of tyres. We will need to try and handle it in the best way possible to be able to attack when the right moment comes."

Felipe Massa - 17th: "It was a difficult Friday, especially the second session. Because of the rain which came and went, we did not manage to do exactly what we would have wanted. We concentrated on race preparation while it's possible some other teams were on a different programme to us. So, there is no point in trying to understand the situation simply by looking at the time sheet. Our aim tomorrow is to be well prepared for qualifying, which at this track will be even more important than usual. From what we have seen, the tyres do not suffer much degradation, but it's still a bit early to draw any definite conclusions. I like the Albert Park circuit a lot: I have always been quick here, but for one reason or another, I have never managed to finish the race in the points, apart from in 2007 when, after a difficult qualifying, I finished sixth. I hope I have better luck this time."

Stefano Domenicali: "We tried to get through all our planned programme, which centred on finding the best set-up for the race and on evaluating the two types of tyre Bridgestone has supplied for this Grand Prix. Obviously, we would have preferred to have been able to do more laps in consistent conditions, but this applies to everyone, so it's not worth complaining about. All in all, from what we could see, the situation is similar to the one in Bahrain. Tomorrow, it will be vital to have a good qualifying: in order to do that, it will be very important to manage the timing to find the best moment to go out and do a time, especially in the first two sessions."

Chris Dyer: "We did not manage to get through everything we wanted to do, but all the same, we were able to acquire enough information on the handling of the car and the tyres. The F10 seems to be pretty good on this track too, both on the harder and softer tyres. As scheduled, both cars were fitted with the engines they had on Friday and Saturday in Bahrain. On Fernando's car, we also tried a new updated front wing, which gave positive results. Tomorrow, it will be available to both drivers."

Previous article Australia Friday quotes: McLaren
Next article Reliability woes hit Virgin Racing again

Top Comments