Bruni Laments Pitstop Incident

Several Minardi mechanics sustained minor injuries after a pitstop incident during today's British Grand Prix.

The Italian squad, mourning the death of their sporting director John Walton, had a tough day, with only the car of Gianmaria Bruni making it to the end of the race.

The Italian driver was involved in an incident during his final pitstop when he tried to leave the pits before the refuelling nozzle had been fully disengaged from the car. Several mechanics were dragged with the nozzle before Bruni braked.

"It was a difficult race today with a number of problems, but I'm pleased that I was able to take the flag as a tribute to John," said Bruni.

"I was struggling with the handling of the car for quite a bit of the race, and was then given a drive-through penalty for a blue-flag infringement. I also had a problem with my second pitstop, when a misunderstanding meant that I left the box too soon.

"Fortunately, none of the crew was seriously injured, and after that, I was just determined to get to the end of the race. It has been a tough weekend, and I hope we have much a better time at Hockenheim."

Bruni's teammate Zsolt Baumgartner failed to finish the race after suffering an engine problem.

"I'm upset that I wasn't able to finish the race and take the chequered flag today," said Baumgartner. "I had promised myself that I would do it, both for John and for me. I felt my performance was okay today - when you compare my lap times with Gimmi's, there was very little between us, and I also managed to overtake him after the first pit stop.

"There was some close, but very fair racing between us before my car suffered an engine problem. Everybody worked really hard this weekend in difficult circumstances, and I want to thank the team for that. I just hope we have much better luck at the next race."