How do you feel after your best Formula 1 result?
I am really happy because everyone on my crew has worked so hard for this. They have done a perfect job in the past few weeks, and all my mechanics have worked so hard. So it was a fantastic moment to finish fourth and score points for those guys, as well as everyone back in Cologne because I visit the factory quite often and I can see how much effort they are putting in.

It’s also your first points for Toyota, is that a relief?
It was just a great moment to cross the finish line. I knew things would come together at some stage because my crew has been doing a great job and we have shown good pace. I had a really disappointing weekend in Monaco but this time everything worked perfectly. There have been a few races already this season when it looked like I could score points – Australia and Bahrain for example – but things didn’t work out, so it was really satisfying to score five points.

Do you have a special liking for the Montreal track after your good results there?
I have a good record in Canada but it’s not because I particularly like the track or anything. It just happens that I have had some of my best results there, with points on my Formula 1 debut in 2004, second in Champ Car a year later and now this. It’s a bit unusual that these results all came in Canada because there are several other tracks which I like more and which I feel suit me more.

How did it feel to lead a Grand Prix for the first time?
Obviously it was quite a special moment to see P1 on my pit board but I knew I had to pit. It was nice but it wasn’t really so significant overall. My ultimate goal in Formula 1 is to see that on my pit board much more often but I know we’ve still got work to do before we reach that stage. We know where we are at the moment and fourth place is a good result for us.

Now you have scored your first points of the season, do you expect more in the French Grand Prix?
There’s no reason we cannot score points again in Magny-Cours. My first goal will be to get into Q3 because I have been so close to that in the last few races but just missed out. If I can get into Q3 then I can fight for the points, although it will be very hard to repeat this fourth place. My goal for the rest of the season has to be to regularly finish in the top eight.

Was it a hard race, considering the track conditions?
It was very tough out there; one of the hardest races I have driven. The track was really difficult and after about 20 laps the grip just went away and that made it extremely hard. I had to really concentrate on not making any mistakes because it was so easy to go off line and have an accident. I was focusing 100% but unfortunately I made a small mistake at turn two towards the end.

What happened in that incident?
I just got on the kerbs and the car stepped out so I ran wide. I had to move back on to the line to avoid losing positions and it was unfortunate that this caused Jarno to lose a place to Massa. It’s a pity for him but it was a racing incident. I apologised to him and everything is okay; we have a good relationship and the important thing is that we scored a lot of points for the team.

Earlier in the race you had been close to Jarno, was it a close battle?
I lost three places at the first corner and then spent the first part of the race directly behind Jarno. I was a bit quicker than he was but with the track conditions it was nearly impossible to overtake. I got close but it was destroying my rear tyres, so I waited until the pit stops because I knew I had more fuel. 

Brakes are often a concern in Montreal, was that the case on Sunday?
No, we had no issues with the brakes. Everyone knows in advance that brake cooling is an issue in Montreal so we prepared for that and it paid off. They were consistent but with those track conditions the car was still tricky to drive.