“It’s fantastic out there: I love the track, I love the weather. It’s a beautiful place to be. I’m enjoying every lap I drive – and I’ve got the best view of the whole of Monaco when I’m in the car!
“I’m very happy to be here – I’m really pleased with the balance of the car and I kept out of trouble, but it’s going to be close here.
“You quickly get used to DRS and KERS Hybrid, but you’re only really on it for the pit straight and up the hill; you tend not to use it through the slower sections. Maybe I’ll find a few more places to use it for qualifying – but I’ll keep that in my pocket!
“I just love driving the car here – it’s the best thing I’ve ever done! It’s so exciting – you can’t afford to make mistakes, the car feels amazing when you’re jumping from kerb to kerb, and there’s no room for error.
“I want to win this grand prix!”
MARTIN WHITMARSH
Team principal, Vodafone McLaren Mercedes
“It always feels pleasant to be on the Côte d’Azur on a sunny day – and it feels even better when you’ve got two cars looking consistently competitive after the first day of practice at Monte-Carlo.
“I think the whole team did an extremely solid job today: both Lewis and Jenson drove very well, kept out of trouble and were able to refine their cars throughout both sessions. The engineers and the mechanics also worked faultlessly together at what is without doubt the most difficult of challenges from an engineering and logistical point of view.
“While it’s encouraging to see both cars towards the top of the time-sheets, we’re under no illusions that this will be anything other than an extremely closely fought weekend: it’s clear that Red Bull Racing, Ferrari and Mercedes GP all look very strong – and that bodes well for a very tight battle for qualifying and an extremely entertaining race on Sunday.”
