Europe Friday quotes: McLaren

Heikki Kovalainen - 6th: "I immediately found a good balance at the front-end and slowly dialled in the rear during the first session. But the track was very green this morning which meant there was little point in making big changes to the car. In the afternoon, we made a number of changes which seemed to pay off for us - by the end of the session, the car was working well and the balance felt really good. Today's progress is very encouraging."

Ron Dennis, team principal: "It's always an interesting engineering challenge whenever you arrive at a new circuit - and today in Valencia was no exception. We spent two very productive sessions concentrating on tyre choice, while running appropriate fuel levels. Lewis and Heikki also performed faultlessly, allowing us to collect plenty of valuable data which we will go through tonight."

Norbert Haug, Mercedes-Benz: "A great circuit and a first class job by the organisers and especially Bernie for the maiden race here in Valencia. For Lewis and Heikki and our team it was a good start to the weekend with fast and consistent lap times in race trim. We stayed clear of the walls which is very important here - you definitely should not lose valuable time on a new track because your car is in pieces and needs to be put together in the pits while your competitors are learning for qualifying and the race."