What the Drivers said after Qualifying at Bahrain

Nick Tandy – Porsche LMP Team, No.1 919 Hybrid - pole position

“In the end it was Neel’s lap in the middle of the session. I made a mistake in sector two and we thought okay, let’s try again and go for this pole because when Neel came out with this 1m39.0 we all went ‘wow’ and this was really an amazing lap. I saw the delta in the car and there were some corners I just thought “what has he done here?!”

“It is always difficult when we go into qualifying and we add in the extra downforce to the car, taking out fuel and putting on tyres. It is a great result for our last weekend to start from the pole.”

Neel Jani – Porsche LMP Team, No.1 919 Hybrid - pole position

“Everything worked out on that lap and it was really enjoyable to drive, the grip was unbelievable and I thought with these last four years with this car, and this being the last qualifying ever, I had to try and nail it and it worked. The first pole position was in Spa in 2014 with Marc (Lieb) and now with Nick so at least in qualifying we closed the circle so let us hope we can close the more important circle tomorrow.”

Gustavo Menezes – Signatech Alpine Matmut, No.36 Alpine A470 Gibson - pole position LMP2

“I hadn’t been on good rubber so far this weekend and actually getting in to the car I was actually quite shocked how good it was.  André did a great job, a really amazing lap and if he says it included some mistakes then I can learn from that as it was very good. All in all I am very grateful to the team and especially André and it was a great average time and we are very happy with that.  It is a slim chance for the championship but we will not give up to the end. We will just do our very best to get the maximum points in the race.”

André Negrão – Signatech Alpine Matmut, No.36 Alpine A470 Gibson - pole position LMP2

“I did a slight mistake in turns four and seven today but it was a good lap and enough to make the pole. I was afraid about Bruno (Senna) and Nelson’s (Piquet Jnr) pace as they were very quick yesterday.  But we are fighting, and an extra point for pole is satisfying.  It is a long shot for the title (for Menezes) but we will fight to the chequered flag.”

Davide Rigon - AF Corse Ferrari, No.71 Ferrari 488 GTE - pole position LMGTE Pro

“I am very satisfied, it was a very good lap from me and a really, really good lap from Sam.  To be honest it was a little bit unexpected because we were struggling a little bit in FP1 and this morning it was a little bit difficult to drive our car, but in the end everything was perfect.  I risked a lot to be honest and everything went well.  So I am very happy for this pole position, one point is important for me but anyway I just want to win the race.  A big thank you to Sam and to the whole team, who managed well the backstage.”

Sam Bird - AF Corse Ferrari, No.71 Ferrari 488 GTE - pole position LMGTE Pro

“This was an important pole for Davide and an important pole for the team to take a point away from the Porsche and the Ford so they don’t get closer to James and Alessandro.  It also means Davide closes up in the championship as well.  

“Honestly it was a bit of a surprise as we struggled a lot in free practice.  We thought it would be a fight between the two Astons.  But when Davide put in that lap, I knew that I needed to pull out something very special. I hadn’t had new tyres yet this weekend or anything close to low fuel, so I really didn’t know where the grip was but the car was fantastic.  Congratulations to the team and let’s try and win tomorrow.”

Pedro Lamy – Aston Martin Racing, No.98 Vantage - pole position LMGTE Am

“We’ll try to do our best tomorrow and try to win if it is possible, but we have to look for the championship and see if it is possible to take that championship which we have been missing for three years.  It is nice to have the pole and Paul did a great job as usual and his lap made it possible to get another point.”

Paul Dalla Lana - Aston Martin Racing, No.98 Vantage - pole position LMGTE Am

“It is certainly nice to arrive with the lead in the championship after facing deficits for the last few years as Pedro mentioned. But the class is getting closer and closer.  I think the top three inside of a tenth which has got to be as tight as it has been all year.  It’s going to a big fight tomorrow, so we are looking forward to it and it is nice to put the car on the front row.”