Italy Preview Quotes: McLaren

Juan Pablo Montoya: "I always enjoy driving at Monza, it is a great track and I have good memories there as I won my first Formula One race at the circuit in 2001. There is always an enthusiastic atmosphere from the tifosi, I don't think they're cheering us on though! It is a tough track on the cars, with the bumps, chicanes and long, fast straights. We need to have high speed stability, braking stability and be able to ride the kerbs well, with a softer than normal mechanical set-up. However there are also four high speed corners, and we need to ensure we are fast through these. After Turkey, we are really close in the Constructors' battle and I am looking forward to getting some strong results over the final five races towards the title."

Pedro de la Rosa: "As a result of it's unique characteristics, Monza is a challenging track to get right set-up wise, so I will be conducting some additional work in this area with Kimi and Juan Pablo on Friday. We had a good test with Michelin last week at Monza, completing much of the tyre selection programme."

Martin Whitmarsh, CEO Formula One: "We demonstrated in Turkey that we have the strongest package and we are in the hunt for both Championships. We need to keep the momentum going and do a better job than Renault over the remaining five races and then see what happens. We believe we have the pace in the cars and are focused on our objective of winning these five Grands Prix, however we are aware that Renault need to make some errors. It is going to be an exciting seven weeks. In preparation for the Italian Grand Prix, we completed a two day test at Monza last week. Work focused on running with the revised aero package we will use for the race, this is as a result of needing the lowest amount of downforce all season. In addition to trimmed front and rear wings, this will see the removal for this race of the mid roll hoop winglets, which will return for the final four races."

Norbert Haug, Vice President, Mercedes-Benz Motorsport: "Monza is more demanding for the engines than any other Grand Prix circuit. This is due to the track's main features with its long straights, three tight chicanes and high speed corners. Monza is the fastest circuit on the calendar with average lap speeds exceeding 250 km/h and the top speeds on the front straight reaching more than 360 km/h. The drivers have to brake hard from these speeds causing high strain on the brakes. Although it has been remodelled a couple of times, Monza is a classic circuit with a great tradition. The only time we won here was in 1997 with David Coulthard. It would be nice to get another win this time. The team went through an intensive preparation programme testing at Monza last week. We have been fast and reliable there running more than 1200 kilometres with one engine in extreme conditions."