13/09/2003

Italian Grand Prix - Second Qualifying Session

After a troublesome free practice session this morning Olivier Panis's Italian Grand Prix weekend started to come together in Monza today as he claimed 9th place in second qualifying. His Panasonic Toyota Racing team-mate Cristiano da Matta however was not satisfied with his lap and will line up three places further back in 12th.

Olivier Panis - Car Number 20
Session Classification:9th
Lap Time:1m22.488s +1.525s from pole
Running Order:11th
Chassis:TF103/07
"This weekend has been pretty difficult for me so I am pleased with my qualifying lap today. We had some electronics problems in practice this morning but everyone has worked well to improve the balance of the car for today's session. We are now in a good direction for the race and starting from ninth I think we will again be in a position to fight for points tomorrow."

Cristiano da Matta - Car Number 21
Session Classification:12th
Lap Time:1m22.914s +1.951s from pole
Running Order:17th
Chassis:TF103/04
"Not a great qualifying lap for me this afternoon. I made a small mistake at Ascari and probably lost two or three tenths which was a shame. Even so the level of our performance today was not as high compared to yesterday's sessions and we need to figure out why. The Italian Grand Prix is a long race and quite tough particularly in terms of reliability but I am confident that we can reach the finish and get a good result."

Keizo Takahashi - General Manager Car Design and Development
"This qualifying result is satisfying for the Panasonic Toyota Racing team. I am pleased with Olivier setting the ninth fastest time given that he missed one of this morning's free practice session due to electronic problems. Cristiano's car was not as competitive as yesterday but I think both cars should be in reasonably good shape to challenge for points in the Grand Prix tomorrow."

Weather:Hot and sunny.
T-car:TF103/08 set up for Olivier Panis. Spare Chassis: TF103/02

Weekend at a Glance
Friday practice (dry track)
Da Matta P6 1m21.881s 24 laps
Panis P12 1m22.584s 20 laps

Friday Qualifying (dry track)
Da Matta P4 1m21.829s (+1.173s)
Panis P10 1m22.372s (+1.716s)

Saturday practice 1 (dry track)
Da Matta P11 1m23.312s 12 laps
Panis P20 No time set 4 laps

Saturday practice 2 (dry track)
Panis P7 1m22.321s 14 laps
Da Matta P12 1m23.194s 20 laps

Warm-Up (dry track)
Panis P10 1m23.095s 5 laps
Da Matta P14 1m23.467s 6 laps