Michael, that was a fabulous lap, congratulations on the return of Ferrari and that middle sector, half a second quicker than anyone.
Michael Schumacher: It was a good lap. We obviously feel very delighted after a suffering period where not very much seemed to work in our favour, and all weekend long we have been very competitive and that is the result. A big complement to Bridgestone, they have had to suffer a lot this year and this shows the effort they have been putting in.

What were your expectations coming here and what are your explanations for the speed you have now?
MS: It is a little bit of a surprise to us, honestly, as it has been a big surprise to be as slow as we have been recently. We have obviously changed the tyres substantially and it seems to pay off. We might have to find out if it is just a combination of many things, where this circuit suits the car and the tyres and everything or if that is a general trend. That is to be established, but I am pretty confident. There was no reason not to believe in Ferrari’s return, in a way, and it is a great result for all of us, it gives a lot of motivation to everyone, a lot of pleasure to everyone. It was too much time ago.

And obviously a great place to start what will be a long, hot race.
MS: Yes, honestly a lot of people put a lot of emphasis on the start position but I don’t do as much as it is important to be on the right side of the circuit, rather than to be on right side, because that could not work in the race. Otherwise the strategy is more important than your grid position and hopefully we have the right one.

Juan Pablo, you have a new helmet, obviously in Colombian colours, not quite the lap you expected but a good one nonetheless.
Juan Pablo Montoya: Well, I went into the first corner and had a bit of a moment there so I decided to just do a clean lap. I had a time difference to what I was doing before and I knew that it wasn’t a problem. I just paced myself and got a good lap in. Once I passed the first corner I knew I wasn’t going to beat Michael and then it was more get to the end, to get to the front and we did. I think we are in a good position, I think from the long runs we have seen we should be stronger than Ferrari so it should be good.

And what about Michael’s comments about being on the right side of the grid, you are on the slippery side there?
JPM: Our starts are pretty good so if we get off the line, good, if we don’t we don’t. I would rather be second than third, obviously, but it is nice to be at the front.

And very tough conditions expected for tomorrow’s race.
JPM: Yes, it is going to be hot, it is going to be hard on the car, the tyres, and first of all we need to try to get to the end and see where we stand.

Jarno, a great lap from where you went out in qualifying, you were seventh out, the track was a lot slower then, and here you are, top three for the sixth time this season.
Jarno Trulli: Well, I am delighted about my lap and my qualifying considering I started very early in the session so the track was improving quite a lot. You also have to consider that this morning I missed quite a bit of practice, I didn’t use the new tyres so I didn’t know much about my car and the balance. It was a bit of a guess but I think I have done a pretty good lap. It is very good. Disappointing, because starting a bit later we could probably have fought for pole position, but anyway I am happy with the outcome of this qualifying.

Very closely matched between you and Kimi Räikkönen, who was out first today, and equally Toyota have looked very strong all weekend.
JT: Yeah, our car has been looking pretty good over the weekend, especially over one lap on new tyres, but we will see tomorrow during the race with our strategy and our pace. But so far it has been pretty good.

Michael, is this the beginning of the big Ferrari return for the rest of the season?
MS: From our point of view we hope so. It is one step in the right direction. Tomorrow is a long race, we obviously want to do well in the race to confirm all the hard work and good work we have been doing so far and then we will see how we go from there.

Press Conference

Michael, you mentioned you were a little surprised by that.
MS: I have been surprised by the gap in the end. It wasn’t expecting to be this big and I am not surprised that we were able to fight for pole position but as I said I expected it to be a bit tighter. Obviously, one was out of the game, because Kimi had to go early so he was not in best shape.

You mentioned you made changes. Were they any since last weekend?
MS: Obviously we have a new tyre here, and that is the main factor. The car is the same as last weekend.

Sometimes this has been regarded as something of a Bridgestone circuit.
MS: Yeah, two years ago we were lapped, you are right!