Stoddart Defends Yoong after Qualifying Failure

Minardi have defended Malaysian Formula One driver Alex Yoong from criticism after he failed to qualify for a race for the second time this season.

The 25-year-old, who brings in significant sponsorship for the struggling team, was absent from Sunday's British Grand Prix grid after failing to set an acceptable time in Saturday's qualifying at Silverstone.

Australian team owner Paul Stoddart said that he did not blame the driver but also suggested he might not be so forgiving in future.

"Let's be very clear on this, Alex was always going to be marginal at Silverstone," he told Reuters. "The two tracks I worried about all year were Imola and Silverstone. He didn't make it at Imola and he hasn't made it here."

Stoddart said that Yoong had suffered because of a decision taken by the team's technical director against using power steering.

"I have my own opinions on whether it (the power steering) should or should not have run but at the end of the day I don't blame Alex for this one," he said. "If he was to miss another one, that's a different story.

"There's never no question. There comes a point where if I felt that non-qualification was due to him then I would be seriously reviewing his position."

Stoddart said Yoong's actual race performances were 'quite good' but he had a problem with qualifying. In Australian Mark Webber, the former Renault test driver, Yoong also has a very quick and competent teammate - just as he did at the end of last year with young Spaniard Fernando Alonso.

Yoong's next qualifying session will be at the French Grand Prix on his 26th birthday, July 20. The Malaysian, who made his Grand Prix debut in Italy last September, has not raced a Formula One car at the Magny-Cours circuit before.