Brazil preview quotes: McLaren

"You do need good grip to be quick, and set-up of the car is not to either extreme to try and be quick in the twisty section at the back of the track and also up the hill and onto the pit straight. Another couple of the main features of Interlagos are that a lot of the corners have adverse camber and we run anti-clockwise.

"This will be my final race with Team McLaren Mercedes, I am of course sad to be leaving the team. We have had some great times together and it would be fantastic to go out with a win. It is going to be tough, but we are all pushing hard to try and make it happen."

Pedro de la Rosa: "After the disappointing race we had in Suzuka, I am looking forward to getting back on track and working with the team to finish the year on a high. The test in Jerez this week has been positive, with a lot of the focus on tyres with Michelin and as a result, we feel confident we will be able to get more out of them at Interlagos.

"The track tends to be fairly abrasive on the tyres, but we are fully prepared for this. Qualifying is vital here, so we have to improve our performance from Japan. Because of the gradient of the start / finish straight, you need to be near the front of the grid otherwise you start on a much steeper hill.

"The track at Interlagos is bumpy, this does lead to significant vibrations and it makes it quite a demanding race on the car. Braking stability is also very important in Brazil."

Martin Whitmarsh, CEO Formula One: "It is fair to say that the 2006 season has been far from ideal for Team McLaren Mercedes, and as a result it would be fantastic for the team and our Partners to bring the season to a close with a victory and there has been a massive final push by everyone involved toward making this happen in Brazil.

"As with any race this will be a challenge, but you cannot predict anything in motor racing as we have seen over the past few races. As we go into the winter, we have exciting prospects ahead of us for the coming season and the motivation and determination within the team is incredibly high.

"This race marks a definite end of an era for us as a racing organisation with the departure of Kimi. Ron spoke for the team in Monza when he said how much we have enjoyed working with Kimi since the start of the 2002 season and we wish him all the best."

Norbert Haug, Vice President, Mercedes-Benz Motorsport: "Interlagos will be a great finale to a great season from many viewpoints. Of course, all the interest will be focused on the Drivers' Championship, which has not yet been decided. With regard to our team, we certainly want to end a difficult season with a good result for Kimi and Pedro.

"We have won four out of the last eight Grands Prix here; a fifth would be a good conclusion to a season in which we wanted to finish first and finally ended up third. In Brazil, Kimi will drive his 88th and final race for Team McLaren Mercedes. During his five years with the team he has been Championship runner-up twice, in 2003 and 2005.

"On behalf of Mercedes-Benz I thank him for his efforts and achievements, and I wish him all the best for his future - which will begin in the next Grand Prix, the last one of 2006."