China GP : Fernando Alonso victory pics

China GP : Alonso and Massa Sunday quotes

Fernando Alonso: "this race could not have been better, I have not won since the Germany so it's a special feeling because it was an action-packed hard race.
I won here and in Australia I do second what shows that the car is competitive and that we are working in the right direction to be in the fight for the podium and it is for this that I have to thank the team for the efforts that have been deployed on-site and at the factory.
They have all worked very hard to put me in this position and allow me to fight with others on an equal footing. We had a good feeling throughout the weekend and the 3rd place in qualifying round gave us the possibility to fight for the top places.
We maybe had a bit of luck and in addition to this all important parameters are well place settings, the strategy, the pit stops, this victory was not easy in which we had a good pace and we had well managed the tires, which is without doubt the most important element.
The absence of Vettel on the podium makes the interesting result, even if we are aware that it is only the third race. We must continue and focus to our further improve."

Felipe Massa: "it is difficult to understand what happened today because the start and the start of the race went very well, I was quick and the car was working perfectly.
At the first stop, I put medium tires and after a few laps I suffered from graining on the front, that my fact wasting time on other car and it was probably a problem related to the track conditions and my riding style.
I do not feel comfortable on these tires since the start of the weekend and all my attempts to preserve were unnecessary because without this problem I would have definitely been in the fight for the podium but I am confident because I was able to score major points in a season that is just starting ."

China GP : the race results

China GP : Alonso and Massa Saturday quotes

Fernando Alonso: "two cars in the top 5 is a result that fills our race of hope as the F138 has been competitive all weekend and so that means that we have a step forward thanks to the work of the team.
Some developments have worked well, as expected, but others need more work. To return to the race, we have established our strategy in the context of the race but we know that the night will be long for us as for everyone, given that half of our rivals will begin in soft tyres.
I must say that I am not worried about the choice of McLaren and Red Bull for medium tires because generally they were stronger than our degradation but I know that the race will be interesting and the greatest threat may come from Raikkonen because Lotus has already shown that their tire management was excellent."

Felipe Massa: "it was a good qualifying, with a car that works well and is fast. Frankly, after my performance during free practice 2 and 3, I was expecting from the first three but it is likely that our competitors were running with more fuel and it is also true that the strategy has more than two or three positions on the grid.
Today, the qualification presented several different choices: we prefer to use the tender as early as Q1 as spend in Q2 would have been difficult with the hard. This enabled us to save them for tomorrow in a race that should be tightened where three pit stops may be necessary.
Today, our main competitors were better than us but the race is long and anything can happen. Tire management and strategic choices will be certainly key factors."

GP de Chine : la grille

China GP : Alonso and Massa Friday quotes

Fernando Alonso: "the sensations are good at the end of the day because we did a good job and I have to say that I always take pleasure to drive here in Shanghai, which is a circuit with very specific characteristics as for example the first corner.
Between the first and the second practice session, the track conditions have improved significantly, the track is clean and temperatures have risen, allowing us to see what is going to be tomorrow.
Once more, the tyres will be one of the keys for this race especially for the degradation observed on the long relay. We must seek the best strategy for Sunday so to better understand the car, as always, we will have a long night of work ahead of us."

Felipe Massa: "today, I had a great feeling with the car as soon as the early laps even if I was not completely satisfied with the behavior of tires mediums as we were not as fast as our opponents, but times were good enough.
When I put the soft tyres, the car has improved markedly, which allowed me to achieve the fastest time of the day and it was awesome to drive, the car was different we have an excellent race pace and degradation with both types of gums was manageable."

However, the soft tyres will be a big factor in the race for the choice of the strategy but I am confident and I hope that the weekend will continue."

China GP : FP1 results