WTCC Marrakech - Qualifying : They said...

Gabriele TARQUINI, pole position: “I don’t know why we are so far ahead. I am very
happy with the car, it’s easy to drive and I surprised myself as I can push a lot. I saw I
had a gap so was able to save my tyres as the lap time was there. The configuration
here is much better for us than last year. If the conditions don’t change, I feel very
optimistic for tomorrow.”

Rob HUFF – 2nd fastest: “It’s a step back from last year but the car is quite hard to
drive here so I’m pleased to still be on the front row. Last year Chevrolet had the
advantage over the SEATs but we were 60kg lighter back then. With Menu crashing
out early we also had to quickly restructure out session as it’s much harder with just
two cars. Fortunately we managed to come out behind the SEATs and get in their
slipstream. There is a fairly big gap to Tarquini but from second back it’s pretty
close.”

Jordi GENÉ – 3rd fastest: “I’m very happy with the result. I made a few little mistakes
with slipstreams and set up but it’s been a good start. I hope to have two good races
tomorrow to maximise the circuits where we have an advantage over Chevrolet. This
is not a place to take risks though. I don’t want to make any mistakes like in Brazil as
there are a lot of chances to hit the wall here and I don’t want that.”

Franz ENGSTLER – fastest Independent: “I set a good lap in Q1 as the car was great
all alone on track without a slipstream. Unfortunately I made a mistake at the start of
Q2 getting on the throttle too early and ending in the wall. I then had to stay in the
pits. I am very happy to be the fastest BMW though and the team have done a great
job.”

Michel NYKJÆR – fastest rookie: “I just touched the kerb and just went into the wall.
It is another new track for me but I’m very happy to be in sixth. The team are working
hard to fix the car for tomorrow and I’m hoping I can be in the top eight in Race 1
and then see what I can do from the reverse grid in Race 2.”

Norbert MICHELISZ – fastest in Q1: “I didn’t know I was P1 as my engineer had
agreed to tell me after sector 1 so I was still pushing hard. As I went through the
chicane the car felt ok and then suddenly went sideways. It caught me off guard and
I went into the wall. The main problem was I hit the wall head on so the front
absorbed all the impact. It wasn’t very high speed but it was enough to kill the car for
the rest of the session.”