Q: Giacomo Ricci, GP2 race winner: how does that sound?
Giacomo Ricci: It sounds great: I am so happy! Everybody did an amazing job and I have to say thank you to DPR, especially to Andre Herck who keeps giving me the opportunity to drive a fantastic car. Every time it’s a great emotion for me to drive in GP2, and to be in this paddock: it’s really difficult, and to win here where everyone is so good is a fantastic emotion.
Q: You made it look quite easy: get off the line and a little fight with Jerome, and then it was done…
Giacomo: Honestly I did a little mistake at the start because I had a little too much wheel spin and that meant d’Ambrosio could catch me, but I closed completely the door on the inside and forced him to go to the outside, and from there I said in my mind I know I have a good car, this might be my only chance I have, so push like crazy and try to make a gap. And this is what I did, and then when I made a gap I just tried to save a little bit the tyres, I backed off a little bit and I had a great balance from the start to the finish, and I am just really, really happy. Thanks again to the mechanics, to the engineers, and to everybody who makes both cars so fast.
Q: I know you’re an emotional guy: what does this win mean for you, as well as for the team?
Giacomo: For me it’s confirmation on myself that when I have a chance I can go really well. But every time you have to qualify in the top ten to make this chance, and today honestly I think I had the best car in the paddock and I was not pushing, the balance from start to the end was amazing, so thanks one more time to DPR.
Q: You have a break now and then on to Spa: what are your hopes for there?
Giacomo: You know, Spa for me is a great track, and I think we can do well more or less everywhere now. We need to keep working like this, but DPR made a big step from last year, and this proves that we are fast. Also Michael my teammate was also really, really fast, but I think he had maybe a little problem at the start with something, I don’t know really, but otherwise for sure he would have been fast and maybe we would have been 1-2, which would have been even better for everybody.
Q: Christian, second race, second P2: I guess you’ve worked out how this GP2 thing works now…
Christian Vietoris: Yeah, I’m getting used to how everything works more and more, and as I told you yesterday the speed has always been there but we’ve been a bit unlucky, but this weekend everything came together: we had two good starts, good pace and rhythm all through the race, and I think the good starts were the goal for the podium finishes.
Q: It’s a funny thing in GP2 for the rookies, where it’s hard, hard, hard, and then you work it out: what has made the difference for you?
Christian: I think the hardest thing for a rookie is getting used to the tyres, which is the biggest difference in GP2: that just takes some time, how to manage them in the race and so on. But I think it’s getting better and better, and we are also getting luckier, I have to say that as well. Bad luck is not the thing we need, but hopefully we have had enough now for the season and can continue to work like this for now.
Q: You had a very good start and got past the Addax guys, then a bit of good luck for you when Jerome disappeared: what was the difference in pace between you and Ricci?
Christian: As we are always starting the second race on new tyres he was pulling away from us a bit when I was stuck behind Jerome, and then I couldn’t go for a fast time at the end as the tyres were gone already, but for sure we had a good pace and if I was in second place earlier for sure I could have gone after Ricci, but I lost my tyres behind Jerome and I need to take care of them for later in the race.
Q: Nevertheless a good performance this weekend, one of the top scorers, and now you have a bit of a break and then on to Spa: what are your thoughts ahead of that?
Christian: Of course we want more or less the same thing: we want to be able to fight for a good result, for a good qualifying and of course for the races. I am off to the fitness camp and then I will be well prepared for the next race.
Q: Davide, a very strong drive to get up onto the podium today: is this the podium you should have had yesterday?
Davide Valsecchi: No, maybe yesterday should have been a bit better! Believe me, yesterday we scored the second best lap time in the race, half a tenth to Maldonado, but the problem was we started last and he started second without the front row, so it’s much easier to be fast when you’re at the top. Yesterday my car was right to win, and the problem was that we were unlucky to stall on the grid before the formation lap. It’s a real shame because you saw the crowd, it was full of people who were all there and looking at the drivers in the front row, and we both stalled!
Q: Nevertheless you must be happy with your job today…
Davide: Yeah, and also the car was very competitive. The problem was that we made the set up to overtake the others because I start 9th, and it’s not so important to be the fastest when you are 9th, it’s important to have the feeling to overtake. So it was not fast like yesterday, although we were still one of the fastest, and it was really in a good shape to overtake the others. So we made a good effort, a good overtaking at the end, a good start and today a good driver [laughs], and I’m sorry to the team for the start on Saturday: we threw away a really good chance for a victory. Two weekends, in Hockenheim and here, we have had a good feeling, and I’m sure I’m going to win in Spa: I’m really confident to be one of the best drivers from here until the end: Maldonado won five first [feature] races in a row…
GP2 Series: You’ve got the qualy pace now, you’ve got the race pace: what can you do in Spa?
Davide: It has to happen! [laughs] The feeling is like in Asia: in Asia we won every fucking race, but here nothing! In Hockenheim a mistake in race one was a problem, but we’ve been unlucky and also some mistakes. But anyway we have come back, we are confident, we had a good race and the car is really conservative with the tyres, so the feeling is back.