Lewis Hamilton - 12th“We qualified about where we expected to. We don’t yet have the pace to get into Q3 but the balance doesn’t feel too bad – we’re just unable to carry enough speed through the corners. We expect to see some improvements over the next two or three races.  For tomorrow, I’m just going to race my heart out, do the best I can and try and score some points.”

Heikki Kovalainen - 13th“We knew that getting into the top 10 would be tough, so my result was more or less what I expected. The gap to the cars in front is smaller than it was in Melbourne, so I’m confident that we’re headed in the right direction, but we haven’t yet found that extra bit of speed we need. The balance today wasn’t completely to my liking, but I did my best and I’m looking forward to an enjoyable battle in the race tomorrow.”

Martin Whitmarsh, Team Principal“We always knew that qualifying would be difficult around Sepang because MP4-24 lacks the aerodynamic downforce needed to match the top teams. That’s no fault of either Lewis or Heikki, who have driven faultlessly all weekend: they just lack the grip needed to get the most from the car through the high-speed corners. Of course, starting 12th and 14th is not where we are accustomed to starting Grand Prix, but we are confident that the improvements we are preparing for the forthcoming races will allow us to quickly move into the midst of the tight pocket of cars competing for times in Q3.”