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Editor/Photographer : Mark Charles

September 25 2004

Chinese Grand Prix – Saturday Qualifying

Weather: Dry Track Temp: 41 degrees Air temp: 29 degrees
Spectators enjoyed a hot and dry afternoon today for the first ever Chinese Grand Prix qualifying session to be held at the new Shanghai International Circuit. Jaguar Racing drivers, Mark Webber (28) and Christian Klien (21) both made the most of this morning’s practice session, preparing their tyres and working on balance and set-up ahead of this afternoon’s qualifying session. After a minor error at corner seven Mark qualified 11th with a good competitive time. Team-mate Christian Klien found the new circuit slightly more difficult however he still put in a good lap time that saw him finish 15th. The team has a good package and strong strategy and is looking to compete for points during what promises to be an exciting race.

Mark Webber
Position: 11th Best time: 1:35.286 Chassis: R5- 05
“We enjoyed another productive couple of sessions this morning working on tyre preparation as well as qualifying and race set-up. The team has prepared well for this weekend and this is reflected in the mileage that we are covering. I managed to do 26 laps this morning and so felt comfortable ahead of qualifying. I am relatively pleased with my lap this afternoon although I lost the rear slightly in corner seven and just managed to grab it back for corner eight. It perhaps lost me two and a half tenths but despite this I am content with my grid position for tomorrow’s race. Looking ahead to the race we will be looking for a competitive day as we have a good strategy in place and a reliable package. This new circuit is fun to drive as well as both challenging and technical and given the complexity of the first corner I think the race is going to be very interesting”.

Christian Klien
Position: 15th Best time: 1:36.535 Chassis: R5b- 06
“I was very pleased with the performance of the car this morning and managed to work through my practice programme focusing on tyre preparation as well as some aero work. The R5 was well balanced going into qualifying and I was hoping to qualify slighter higher than my 15th position. I was struggling to make the most of the car and so was disappointed not to come away with a better lap. The track is still dusty and the corners, particularly the first is demanding on both driver and car. However, we are still looking good for tomorrow as the car is good over long runs and has been all weekend. I am really looking forward to this first Chinese Grand Prix tomorrow, as I am sure that there will be lots happening on track and hopefully lots of opportunities to move up the grid”.

Dr Mark Gillan
Head of Vehicle Performance
“We have made the most of our practice sessions this morning during which we worked on our new aero package amongst other things. Bjorn tested the aero package yesterday and given the results we have now put this on both Mark and Christian’s cars. Both drivers also completed their tyre preparation work and did some good long runs focusing on balance and tyres. The set-up work was productive and we were encouraged going into qualifying. Mark, although making a minor error on corner seven, did a good lap and secured 11th place. Christian did not get as much out of the car as he would have liked on his final qualifying lap but again we are relatively pleased with his 15th position. We have worked hard in the build up to today and I am satisfied with our results. We have a good strategy in place for both cars and so we are motivated for the race tomorrow and very keen to go out there and show what we are capable of achieving”.