2003 United States GP Saturday Qualifying

OSRN 1

The Saturday Qualifying session for Round 15 of the 2003 F1 season at Indianapolis.

Transcript

00:00:00We're here at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway where the track has just gone

00:00:07green and the warm-up practice session for the Formula One United States Grand

00:00:11Prix weekend is beginning hello and welcome to live coverage of the FIA Formula

00:00:35One World Championship on Speed Channel well again everybody and thanks for

00:00:40joining us again the cars on the track for the final time practice session of

00:00:43the weekend usually referred to as the warm-up this is the last chance to set

00:00:47the car up before the race joining me in the booth as always are David Hobbs and

00:00:50Steve Magic but first let's check in with our pit reporters this weekend starting

00:00:54with Derek Daly well the panic that we had today was Michael Schumacher

00:00:58initially when he had the fuel pressure problem they did get that fixed but the

00:01:01second panic again was a Schumacher Ralph when he crashed this morning he actually

00:01:05damaged the right side suspension but the biggest problem was the steering rack

00:01:09needed to be changed that is a full two-hour job on the BMW Williams they've

00:01:14just got it finished however he is going to miss about the first six or seven

00:01:18minutes of this session Peter Windsor

00:01:23thank you very much indeed Derek another race going on here and that is between

00:01:26the appearing to be thousands of Colombian supporters here for one problem

00:01:31Montoya and next to them in the packed grandstands opposite the pits the Ferrari fans at the moment to say I think the

00:01:38the Colombians are winning every time a picture of Michael appears on the big TV

00:01:42screen we hear booze every time one Pablo appears massive shouting it's just a

00:01:47sensational atmosphere here in the pit lane for the US Grand Prix

00:01:51well just a moment ago when they started uh chanting down in the Colombians the whole booth here was just rocking around and Rick who comes from earthquake country said uh oh we're going through an 8.4 on the Richter

00:02:04I tell you you can feel the flags I mean there are a huge contingent of Colombian fans now let's

00:02:09listen as they listen to those fans Montoya rolls out

00:02:19now the engine drowning him out but trust me they are there well they're there they're right underneath is right now applauding for him

00:02:27now we just to clarify what Rick said at the beginning this is the last chance for these guys to set this car up for the race and that is absolutely it don't forget with the new qualifying procedures this year they can't touch the car

00:02:38after about five minutes for the qualifying session starts they have to know exactly what fuel and tires they're going to use tomorrow after the qualifying at one o'clock

00:02:48well after qualifying is over there at two o'clock here in Indianapolis they'll push the cars on the park for me won't be able to touch them again for the start of the race

00:02:55let's talk about the weather because it's very different during than during yesterday's provisional qualifying it's actually turned into a pretty nice day it was chilly this morning

00:03:01track was damp when they started the first practice session but now it's 66 degrees track temperatures warmed up to 88 which while it's not exactly up where they wanted it's still significantly better than this morning

00:03:112048 which is what it was this morning yeah exactly exactly there are some clouds on the horizon but it doesn't look like there's anything with rain in them so it looks like we should be able to get through this warm-up and this qualifying session today without moisture

00:03:23just seeing Michael Schumacher's Ferrari F2003 GA coming down the pit lane his teammate Rubens Barrichello again just doing an installation lap out and in and pushed back into the garage

00:03:37mechanics will now dive back on those cars and do their final checks before they go out in this final session

00:03:44Steve Barrichello's mechanical underneath the Ferrari they put the quick lift jack under the front took the wheels off the guy walked away and it whizzed straight up in the air the quick lift car dropped on the ground made a big bang

00:03:55everybody went into a panic and now they look they've actually taken the nose off as I look at it and they've gone underneath it Steve they're checking the mountings of the front wishbones under the under the uh the uh Monaco

00:04:07under the Monaco that is I think what Ferrari have got on this car Derek you might be able to see it better down there I think they're using a mono piece so both the lower wishbones are actually joined into one piece with two mounting bolts that go up into the carbon fibre Monaco so I wonder whether or not they've changed that bottom suspension and that bolt has not been done up or torped correctly

00:04:28the end of the end of this final 15 minute period is the only time now they have to choose between those hard and soft compounds and play with the fuel loads when this session is over they will have to declare what tires they will be using to the FIA

00:04:45all the other tires will then be taken back out of circulation and the fuel load will also be declared to the FIA and they will have to qualify and start the race on that fuel load

00:04:55it's a 15 minute session and we are already five minutes through it so there's just 10 minutes left in this warm-up before they have to make those decisions and get ready for final qualifying

00:05:06Steve tires obviously are so important here Frank Durney who is the returning engineer to the Williams team because he was there many years ago would not tell me what their decision is but he did tell me the softer

00:05:19compound tires are quite a bit quicker but when they go off they go off rapidly and he doubts that they would make that choice he wouldn't tell me but he said enough to tell me I don't think they're going to

00:05:30to take a chance with the softer compound tire and I think it's difficult for them too to make a choice today because today as we saw the temperatures in the high 60s the track temperatures 88 they're talking about tomorrow front coming through and that uh

00:05:41helps it when it rains but the temperature could be high tomorrow just over 50 and there is a possibility of rain during the race with the last forecast we saw although that could possibly change between now and tomorrow

00:05:53I think Derek uh to follow on from that point I think that's exactly what Ron Dennis was hinting at when he was saying he wanted to make sure it's absolutely

00:06:00tried before they started running so they could get a very clear and unambiguous evaluation of these softer Michelin tires before they made that choice to run them

00:06:10because if they get stuck with them after qualifying their race is going to be really compromised if they start to degrade too quickly

00:06:16now Alonzo in that last session was not nearly as fast as Yarno Trulli so it'll be interesting to see if

00:06:23they've adopted some of Trulli's settings moving over to Alonzo's car and

00:06:27enable him to move up instead of faster time

00:06:30now that uh the times you're seeing right now not truly significant the only times that we've got on the

00:06:38board are for uh Jensen Button and Justin Wilson and then the fastest in the 113 range right now so

00:06:44they still haven't gotten up to speed haven't turned any fast laps

00:06:47and Alonzo is the fastest so far but as I said right now we don't see much speed out of these guys

00:06:57we'll take a brief break we'll come back in just a moment with the final warm-up right before qualifying

00:07:02this afternoon live here on speed at the United States Grand Prix

00:07:04speed channels coverage of the United States Grand Prix is brought to you by BMW visit your local BMW center for a test drive

00:07:15BMW the ultimate driving machine

00:07:17welcome back to the final practice session the warm-up for final qualifying this afternoon live here on speed at the United States Grand Prix

00:07:28Indianapolis Motor Speedway Christiana Damata just at the fastest time now Rubens Barrichello is out there and already starting to go quicker

00:07:36looks like it took you there

00:07:38yeah

00:07:40the car is down here in the BMW Williams pit they have not got Rob Schumacher's car ready yet

00:07:48he's almost on the ground he's still on those short stands they have him in it but they're working

00:07:53still on the front of the car they don't even have the nose cone on yet boy they've only got five minutes

00:07:58left Steve how critical is it for him to go out they need to get that car they need to do an installation

00:08:03lap on that car especially as Derek said if they've put a new power steering rack they've disconnected the

00:08:08hydraulics on the car they're going to want to check that all those hydraulic connections are sound

00:08:13and safe before they make the choice on running that car and qualifying because again they're going to be

00:08:18stuck with that car for the race they will be desperate to get the car out of this session just

00:08:22to check just a systems check is all they'll need boy he must have picked up a load of time in that last

00:08:29sector the first sector was quicker at the end of the second sector he was down a ton

00:08:35and then picked it all at the end

00:08:39but they're still slower than they were this morning but now they're now they're probably

00:08:43topped off with fuel they're running pretty much well i think as well Rick what they will have done

00:08:47for this session is trimmed a little bit of the downforce off the car yesterday of course it was

00:08:51wet so it's kind of going to flow this story a little right but they would have run more downforce

00:08:55yesterday because they're only in competition against the clock the settings they're putting onto

00:08:59the car now are what they're going to have to use in the race so they're going to have to be able to

00:09:02overtake down this straight so they're going to have to trim some of the downforce off the car

00:09:06to optimize any chance of overtaking the opposition physically in the race

00:09:13well i'm down in the mclaren mercedes pit which is a haven of quiet and tranquility

00:09:18between the vociferous ferrari and bmw williams garages and of course that their fans opposite

00:09:25kimmy raikkonen i'm sure likes it that way very cool customer he's been sitting in his car just

00:09:29about to go and do his first flying lap in the car apparently earlier in the week he'd been talking

00:09:36to his mclaren guys and they've been saying kimmy you know anything could happen one public michael

00:09:39could perhaps take one another out of the first corner and kimmy stopped them there and said listen

00:09:44none of that i want to win the u.s grand prix we're not going to rely on anybody else having trouble

00:09:49kimmy raikkonen out here to win tomorrow

00:09:53because we have to get a little more speed unfortunately because he hasn't been

00:09:56at the top of the charts all weekend

00:10:00that could be a ploy doing all their race set up making sure they got everything blue yeah

00:10:06a bit 52 there but i'll give me he puts his foot down i mean this guy really really really uh

00:10:12there's a lot of talk about sandbagging that's supposedly gone on during the uh the warm-up

00:10:18sessions this year teams that have you know intentionally gone out to kind of deceive everybody

00:10:23else but what they try and do is run different fuel loads in the car because now of course the

00:10:29engineers for all the opposing teams are watching desperately trying to figure out lap times studying

00:10:33the lap times thinking about the lap times from this morning in practice how much fuel has mccarran got

00:10:38on board how much fuel has ferrari got on board then we can try and second guess them so to try and

00:10:42second guess that to try and throw a spanner in the works the guys will run more or less fuel for a

00:10:47few minutes just to try and throw the opposition off the set as you watch montoya go out boys ralph

00:10:53has just gone out about 50 yards ahead of them so both bmw williams cars are on the racetrack wow an

00:10:59absolute colossal acceleration from that bmw williams down the pit lane as soon as they hit the launch control

00:11:05kimmy reichen in second fastest behind the toyota of a little bit funny

00:11:13getting some quick laps in at the right time of day just uh again two minutes to go at this section

00:11:19maybe so much steering in book kimmy reichen has put it into this infield section i think they've just

00:11:25been feathering the downforce off this car which rick going back to what you said earlier on i think it

00:11:30compromises the car through the tight infield section between five seven and then that very

00:11:35tight eight nine ten but they'll be able to optimize and get a little bit more straight line

00:11:39speed down the long straight the only trouble is of course that when you see all that steering wheel

00:11:44input that he's doing um you know you've got to remember you've got to do that for the 73 laps of

00:11:49the race so you don't want to compromise it too much the other way they've got kimmy reichen and

00:11:56obviously bound and determined to follow michael schumacher around on his one he's gonna go one lap left

00:12:02he's gonna have to go and we've got less than a minute left in the session so this this time by the

00:12:07flag will be the last laughing that michael can do kimmy's obviously coming in oh david cooltard

00:12:14spun out on the track that must have been his flying map too

00:12:21he's uh no he's only done one flying

00:12:27oh that wet grass look at it and it is still very lucky he's kept it off the wall like a sponge

00:12:32now is this indicative that they're taking downforce off the car or is it indicative that

00:12:39more indicative perhaps that mclaren have decided and opted for that harder compound tire

00:12:43that's what we have you for could be yeah well we're all second guessing

00:12:47each other aren't we really uh oh that's a problem oh truly you are no truly well

00:12:52well at least today's provisional full sitter scheduled to go out last in this session

00:12:59is now stuck against the tire wall that is in fact at turn 10 i believe

00:13:08this could be the worst time of the weekend as we've always said the one golden rule of any warm-up

00:13:15period in formula one drivers don't shunt the car

00:13:20but they are only drivers steven well they're only human i suppose no they're only drivers

00:13:28oh yeah yeah yeah yeah yeah yeah get a spare car already boys boy that wasn't too good that

00:13:32was a solid hit it was a suspension breaker if ever i saw it

00:13:37his teammate fernando alonso has just gone fastest

00:13:42montoya second fastest to alonso alonso at a 112 079 montoya

00:13:48one twelve zero eight three just four thousandths of a second

00:13:56well michael fuhmacher only sixth fastest on his one fast line

00:14:00from ralph

00:14:16it's not turning into a great weekend for ralph

00:14:23between the headaches and the headache caused by going into the tire tires during the last session

00:14:28and the work that's had to go on in the team.

00:14:37The session is officially over now.

00:14:39It's a matter of coming in and making the decision

00:14:42as to which tires you're going to run

00:14:43and what fuel load you're going to run.

00:14:46Well, for Jarno, truly the decision is simple.

00:14:48Get ready, the spare car.

00:14:52Particularly frustrating, as we said.

00:14:54He was the fastest yesterday.

00:14:56Now let's see what happened with Ralph.

00:14:58Pretty simple, actually.

00:15:09Take another look at it.

00:15:13So the warm-up session is over.

00:15:15Alonzo the fastest, but Montoya second fastest.

00:15:18We'll take a brief break.

00:15:19We'll come back. Don't go away.

00:15:20Welcome back to Speed Channel's ongoing coverage of the US Grand Prix at Indianapolis,

00:15:30where we've just finished the very short warm-up session before official qualifying begins.

00:15:35Jarno, truly, has been having a great weekend so far, but I'm standing here in front of the Renault garage.

00:15:40Quite long faces now, because Jarno, right at the end of that warm-up, put his car into the wall.

00:15:45The good news, of course, is that because he was fastest yesterday, he's last out in qualifying today.

00:15:50So there's a lot of time.

00:15:51There's no atmosphere of panic here in the Renault garage.

00:15:54Fernando Alonzo sitting at the back of his car there.

00:15:56He was very, very quick this morning.

00:15:58Baseball cap turned to the rear.

00:15:59He looks pretty cool, pretty confident.

00:16:01But for Jarno, truly, of course, this is not the start of qualifying that he wanted.

00:16:06Less than 10 minutes to go until qualifying actually begins here at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway.

00:16:11But for Jarno, truly, he's got at least another half hour, 45 minutes before his car has to be ready.

00:16:16We'll take a break and come right back.

00:16:23Welcome back as they bring Jarno, truly,'s race car in as he switches to the spare car.

00:16:27As a result of going off, seven minutes away from qualifying beginning.

00:16:31But before we get to that, we want to talk about the fact that yesterday,

00:16:34Derek Daly was able to sit down with the big dog of Formula One, Bernie Ecclestone.

00:16:38And as always, Derek was able to ask some tough questions.

00:16:43Let's talk about the U.S. Grand Prix.

00:16:46Tony George, at the start of the contract, said one of the things he wanted to present to you

00:16:51was that Indianapolis would be a permanent home for Formula One in the U.S.

00:16:55Has it become that permanent home, do you think?

00:16:58At the moment it is, because we're here and we're the only, you know, race, Formula One race is in Indianapolis.

00:17:04So it's permanent at the moment.

00:17:05So what about when we go forward to year six, seven, eight after the contract?

00:17:11We're happy.

00:17:11If Tony can make it commercially viable for him, we're happy to be here.

00:17:16Do you think it's been a success here at Indy?

00:17:18For us, yeah, sure.

00:17:22I mean, anywhere we go in the world and we say Indianapolis, people know what it means.

00:17:28It's racing.

00:17:29When Formula One was in Long Beach, they were great days.

00:17:33That was a huge happening in California.

00:17:36Yeah.

00:17:37Do you see an event like that being attractive in America again down the road?

00:17:41You know, when you think about it, all the places where we've been, we've had good crowds.

00:17:47I mean, the only place we really was not so good was really in Phoenix.

00:17:53But everywhere else we've been, Detroit, and big, big followings.

00:17:58I mean, you think about America, same size as Europe, and you think if we only had one race in Europe,

00:18:04it's the same as we've got one race here.

00:18:06If we had ten races here, we'd be much more popular here than we currently are because there's much more exposure.

00:18:13America is a bit of an unusual anomaly in as far as we have so many sports here.

00:18:17Yeah, exactly.

00:18:18Are you conscious that you have to build an emotional audience here,

00:18:23or are you driven by the dollar, the check, the amount?

00:18:27Does that make your business decisions?

00:18:28No, I mean, the amount that we get or the teams get for competing is a very tiny part of their budget,

00:18:34so it's nothing to do with it.

00:18:35But we're a world championship, and obviously we need to be in America.

00:18:41One of the great quotes of our time, permanent for now.

00:18:45We're going to take a break.

00:18:46We're still about five minutes away from the start of qualifying.

00:18:48We'll be right back with more from the Indianapolis Motor Speedway, live on Speed Channel.

00:19:00Welcome back to the Indianapolis Motor Speedway.

00:19:02You know, we just listened to Bernie Ecclestone.

00:19:04You can watch the rest of Derek's entire interview with Bernie this Monday night at 9 o'clock Eastern Time on Wind Tunnel with Dave Despain.

00:19:11You know, in fact, also on that show, they're going to have Paul Genolozzi.

00:19:14It'll be really important to listen to.

00:19:16Dave Despain, that's right, talking all this week.

00:19:19Now, let's get into the track map, the Porsche track map with David Hobbs.

00:19:22Well, at 2.6 miles, it's one of the shorter tracks on the circuit.

00:19:26There are 73 laps here.

00:19:28It's also got the longest full throttle section from Turn 11 there, right round to Turn 1.

00:19:33They arrive at Turn 1 at about 218 miles an hour.

00:19:36As you can see, 1, 2, 3 are pretty tight.

00:19:384 goes in fast, tightens up.

00:19:41Then you've got to get a good run down that Holman Boulevard to get to Turn 8 and maybe overtake you going to there.

00:19:46So it's two overtakes plus 1 and 8.

00:19:49Final qualifying just moments away.

00:19:51We're going to take a break.

00:19:52While these guys get ready, we'll be back in just a moment.

00:19:55We're qualifying for the United States Grand Prix at Indianapolis.

00:19:58It's qualifying time at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway for the United States Grand Prix.

00:20:10The first car is on the track.

00:20:11Jasper Stoppen getting ready to take the green to go set his fast lap.

00:20:16Joining me in the booth, as always, David Hobbs, Steve Natchett, Townsend Bell,

00:20:19Formula 3000 driver extraordinaire, has joined us as well.

00:20:23Brief period as the BAR test driver this year.

00:20:28The qualifying now officially begins as Jasper Stoppen takes the green.

00:20:46Wow, you see the steering wheel from David Robb, just trying to get it into Turn 8.

00:20:52Wow, little old hands going in like one-armed paper hanger and a nail.

00:20:56I mean, creepers, creepers.

00:20:58Yeah, tell us all on the steering wheel.

00:21:02That braking zone, you're going down for like 209 miles an hour to about 56 to take Turn 1.

00:21:07And Jasper Stoppen is still waiting for the car to get it through.

00:21:10And that, the setup he's got now, is the setup he's got for tomorrow in the race.

00:21:14So he's going to be doing that for 190 miles tomorrow.

00:21:18Go on, Jasper.

00:21:20Give it some shit, man.

00:21:22Ooh, he is working hard.

00:21:24The problem is, it's such a shame.

00:21:27I mean, he's working hard, but it's all going to become normal.

00:21:30I mean, he's going to start like 18th, 19th, or 20th of 57th.

00:21:36Unless it should rain.

00:21:38I'm looking off in the distance, and I don't see any of those puppy clouds in the distance.

00:21:44I don't see any rain clouds among them.

00:21:46Jasper Stoppen ran that last corner onto the main straight.

00:21:49Now, push that Cosworth engine, Jas.

00:21:51And he's the pull man for a brief period of time, a 115.360.

00:21:58Well, this is a frantic action down at the Renault garage as the mechanics are trying to rebuild

00:22:04Yarno Trulli's car.

00:22:05We've seen them bring out a new lower suspension, the wishbones.

00:22:09Again, a mono-piece unit.

00:22:10Both sides of the left and right, wishbone molded into one piece.

00:22:14They're trying to get the race car rebuilt.

00:22:16That's right, Steve.

00:22:17I'm down here at the Renault garage as you speak.

00:22:20Alan Permain, Yarno Trulli's race engineer, talking to Flavio Briatore, looking at his

00:22:24hand gestures, he's describing what Yarno told him, which is basically just lost it.

00:22:29Yeah, you're right.

00:22:29They changed the front suspension.

00:22:30Particularly the right front was the worst.

00:22:33Obviously, the chassis is undamaged because they are trying to repair the car.

00:22:36They will repair the car.

00:22:37By the opening of the pit lane, they had to have committed to fuel load and tyre choice,

00:22:42but you can make other changes to the car.

00:22:44That's what's going on at Renault.

00:22:46Pretty calm atmosphere.

00:22:47Dennis Chevrier just standing in front of me, head of the Renault engine program, scratching

00:22:50his head.

00:22:51But no work going on on the back of the car, which is good news.

00:22:54Good news, yeah.

00:22:55Thanks, Veda.

00:22:56Three months ago, Nicholas Chiesa was just another Formula 3000 driver, hoping someday to make

00:23:01it to Formula 1.

00:23:03I was talking with him the other day, and he said, you know, he really pretty much, every

00:23:06time he thought he was close to Formula 1, he figured out he really was, and he finally

00:23:09thought, well, I'll just think about Formula 3000.

00:23:11He did.

00:23:12Formula 1 came along.

00:23:14Hey, Rick, what does just another Formula 3000 driver mean?

00:23:16Pardonne-moi, senior Formula 3000 driver.

00:23:22But he was talking about the story, he said he was having to go around to various sponsors

00:23:25trying to raise money for this Formula 1 drive without being allowed to tell him what he was

00:23:30raising the money for.

00:23:31Obviously, I think they got the hint, but he wasn't able to say, it's so I can get in a

00:23:35minute, but you were saying Minardi was running around looking for people to supply check.

00:23:41We had a phone call, yeah, but it wasn't really the kind of opportunity I'm hoping for just

00:23:48yet, but beggars can't be choosers either, so we'll see what happens.

00:23:53You look over the years, a lot of good people have gone through Minardi.

00:23:57Yeah, I mean, that point's been made.

00:23:59Flavio Briatore, of course, has brought a lot of those guys through as part of his management

00:24:03deal, but Chies is a good driver.

00:24:07He can definitely put a fast lap together.

00:24:10I've been watching, really, the performance over the race distance.

00:24:13You know, that's the big change from Formula 3000 F1 is going an extra 45 minutes into the

00:24:18much more ferocious pace.

00:24:22There are the mechanics, Renault mechanics working on Iono Trulli's car.

00:24:26You see that little frame there to the right of the shot there, supporting the upright because

00:24:30there's no spring and damper holding the suspension from fouling the car.

00:24:33number five of the moniker.

00:24:36Justin Wilson, former F3000 champion.

00:24:41Who moved up from Minardi to Jaguar, which, of course, allowed Chiesa in.

00:24:46And Paul Justin has had a lot of luck with his 1-1 career so far.

00:24:50He got taken out in that first lap from Oslo of Germany.

00:24:55Finished that race.

00:24:57He grew up in Hungary.

00:24:59So, hoping for better things here.

00:25:02Yes, they got caught out by the rain, big time.

00:25:05And his job is definitely on the line.

00:25:08He is struggling because he's matched against Mark Webber, who's probably been the revelation

00:25:12of the year.

00:25:13Him and Fred Alonso have certainly been the two fines of the year.

00:25:16And, of course, he raced against Mark Webber a couple of years ago in the Formula 3000.

00:25:21It was generally as quick or quicker.

00:25:23And I guess he thought that when he came to Jag, the same thing would apply.

00:25:25Well, unfortunately, it hasn't.

00:25:29Mark Webber's had a couple of years of experience in the Formula 1 now.

00:25:31One year with Minardi.

00:25:32Hey, fellas, as we watch the Jag finish off here, Ralph Furman has just left the pit lane.

00:25:38Just a quick tire update for those of you who are listening to us and technically oriented.

00:25:43The Michelin tires, it appears that most of the front-running teams will go for the harder compound.

00:25:50The softer one is quite a bit quicker but does not last long enough.

00:25:54However, the Williams team believe that Renault and McLaren could take a chance and run the softer ones

00:26:02because, historically, those two chassis have been able to run those softer compounds and get away with it.

00:26:09Peter?

00:26:10Jos Verstappen, a difficult day yesterday.

00:26:12You didn't even complete your lap yesterday.

00:26:14What was it like out there today?

00:26:16I mean, this morning the car felt reasonable and balanced.

00:26:19But as soon as we fitted the new engine and all the better parts,

00:26:24we had a lot of oversteer and there's not much you can do in 15 minutes.

00:26:28So qualifying was not the best run for sure.

00:26:30It's amazing, isn't it?

00:26:31You get a good car, you split it, you put better bits on and it goes slower.

00:26:35Yeah, I mean, you have to change the engine for qualifying and the race, of course.

00:26:38And maybe it's also due to the weather or maybe it's a little bit warmer, I don't know.

00:26:43Okay, thank you very much indeed, Jos.

00:26:45That's all that hand motions you guys were talking about.

00:26:48It was so evident.

00:26:49Ralph Furman about to take the green flag.

00:26:51Justin Wilson is qualified with a 113.585.

00:26:55He is fastest so far.

00:26:58Pretty even Stevens on the top speed there between Verstappen and the Minardi and Furman.

00:27:06Verstappen was actually quicker through the speed trap.

00:27:08207 miles an hour for the Cosworth CR3.

00:27:11A Verstappen's car.

00:27:12Wilson, the Jag, 205, so 2 miles an hour slow.

00:27:16Verstappen's car.

00:27:17Again, I think the idea of the Michelin runners using those harder tyres, I think that's again why we're seeing so many of them sliding around so much, David, in that 15-minute warm-up period.

00:27:36We're making that final choice.

00:27:40We really want to use the soft tyres, but they're going to give up on us.

00:27:43We can't afford to run in the race.

00:27:44I think they're taking the gamble that the weather is going to be cooler tomorrow.

00:27:47The forecast all calls for it to be cooler tomorrow, like 10 degrees cooler than it is now.

00:27:51And that will obviously give a bit more life to the softer rubber.

00:27:56But once you start sliding it, it's a spiral downhill.

00:28:02Ralph Fuhrman, who had to miss the last two races after an incident, is now qualified for the U.S. Grand Prix, second fastest behind Justin Wilson.

00:28:12So Baumgartner filled in for the last two races.

00:28:15Ralph feeling much better.

00:28:16In fact, he said, really, it was only about last week and he started to really feel back where he belonged.

00:28:19Just a brief lock-up.

00:28:33Not too much frantic work going down in the Ferrari world.

00:28:37Nice and calm.

00:28:38In fact, we were talking about how casual everybody is out here between sessions.

00:28:42I was watching Montoya between practice and warm-up.

00:28:47Sitting back, feet up.

00:28:49It didn't look like he had a care in the world.

00:28:51Jack Newtown takes to the track.

00:28:55And of course, we have new specification i-revving engine, 19,001.

00:29:02Quickest through the speed trap so far, quickest of the day.

00:29:05And again, indicative, I think, of the horsepower revs that this Honda engine is going to be pulling here.

00:29:11Remember, they have the push-to-pass button.

00:29:14We'll confirm that story whether or not Honda engineers are happy with the vibrations passing through the block and the crank that they'll race that engine.

00:29:23And whether or not they've got that push-to-pass facility for an extra 200 RPM during the race tomorrow.

00:29:29But already quickest through the speed trap of the day.

00:29:31Chapter 11 hadn't done too badly in the two previous races here.

00:29:37He came fourth and fifth.

00:29:39We had that incredible out-breaking maneuver that you saw him do at the end of the straight.

00:29:45And that was in 2000.

00:29:46He was going for podium.

00:29:49Unfortunately, he didn't get it.

00:29:50It's a good bit quicker so far than Justin Wilson.

00:29:52But incredibly disappointing top speed there at 336 Ks.

00:29:58You would have thought with a high-revving engine that he'd have been able to crank a bit more speed than that.

00:30:04Jacques Villeneuve is the fastest qualifier right now ahead of Justin Wilson and Ralph Furman.

00:30:11Canadian fans happy to see a good lap.

00:30:13We'll take a brief break.

00:30:14Come back in just a moment with more in the United States Grand Prix Qualifying.

00:30:24What is perfection?

00:30:28Webster's defines perfection as the person or thing that is the complete embodiment of some quality.

00:30:34Complete in all respects.

00:30:36Flawless.

00:30:37100%.

00:30:38When it comes to qualifying at Indy, Michael Schumacher is perfect.

00:30:42In three previous attempts here, Michael has secured the pole position every time.

00:30:47But this season, new rules threaten Schumacher's chances at the pole.

00:30:51Will Michael be able to keep his streak alive?

00:30:54Or will a rival put together the perfect lap?

00:30:57And on this day, be the one who is perfect.

00:31:00Qualifying for the United States Grand Prix is next.

00:31:02Right now, Jacques Villeneuve is the fastest driver.

00:31:09But remember, we have a long way to go.

00:31:11And Nick Heitfeld and Sauber out there trying to qualify for the U.S. Grand Prix.

00:31:15Don't forget to join us tomorrow at 1.30 Eastern Time.

00:31:21We'll bring you live coverage of the fourth annual United States Grand Prix at Indianapolis.

00:31:26As always, we'll kick things off at the Acura Pre-Race Show featuring Peter Windsor and Derek Daly's famous gridwalk.

00:31:32Up-hit reports, post-rape interviews, and analysis you do not want to miss.

00:31:36The United States Grand Prix.

00:31:38Coverage starts at 1.30 Eastern Time.

00:31:40Only here on speed.

00:31:45Heitfeld now taking the green, starting his actual qualifying lap.

00:31:52It's that tight turn one you can see there, that great aerial shot.

00:31:55Very wide track here.

00:31:56They've got plenty of road to play.

00:31:58It's still very difficult to overtake on any of these infield corners.

00:32:03Townsend, you've watched the single lap qualifying this year.

00:32:07What do you think?

00:32:07Like it, dislike it?

00:32:08If you were out there, would you prefer this or not?

00:32:10Well, as a spectator, I think it's fantastic.

00:32:13I like watching one car on the whole lap for comparison against the others.

00:32:18I think in the past, there's been some comments one way or the other on qualifying.

00:32:22You know, some people prefer the old world.

00:32:24But for me, I like to watch one car the whole way around and get a sense of where everybody stands.

00:32:28During the news conference on Thursday with the drivers, there was Montoya, there was Schumacher, there was Alonzo, there was Villeneuve.

00:32:37There was Kimi Räikkönen, and they all pretty much said, and the demand have said, yeah, I guess we like it.

00:32:41It's okay.

00:32:41It's better for the driver market, too, really, because it puts more pressure on the drivers.

00:32:45And ultimately, it puts more of the result back in the driver's hand because they're under pressure to perform over one lap.

00:32:50And I think that helps emphasize the importance of the driver.

00:32:56That's what Heifeld does as he crosses that line.

00:32:581.13, good enough for two.

00:33:00He was the fastest in the first second pass of the day, 22.660.

00:33:06Heifeld and Sauber, C22 chassis up to second spot.

00:33:10I was kind of surprised when Kimi Räikkönen said he liked it, being the guy who got bit by it twice this year.

00:33:16It ended up going to the back of the pack with spins, and as a result of having to give him a spin in qualifying, starting at the back of the grid.

00:33:24A lot of noise about this team and their new wind tunnel, and I'm excited to see what they might be able to produce in the next few years with that new facility.

00:33:32Peter Winders with Jock Villeneuve.

00:33:34Jack, how did the track conditions today compare with this morning?

00:33:38Oh, the track's conditions were really bad.

00:33:40The series that was running before us, because we didn't put any rubber on the track with all the rain, and their rubber doesn't work with ours.

00:33:47So now the track is getting quicker every time a car goes out.

00:33:51What's the general feel and balance of the car like?

00:33:53It was undrivable all weekend.

00:33:55We changed the car for warm-up.

00:33:57It was a little bit better, and then we decided to change it again for quality, which is normally a crazy thing to do.

00:34:02But it worked out. The car was a lot better.

00:34:04I found a lot of grip, and I was just trying to get used to the new limit of the car, so there was still a good chance back there.

00:34:09We look forward to seeing you tomorrow. Thank you.

00:34:10Thanks.

00:34:12Watching Panisse here in the first of the Toyotas, half a second up in this sector here.

00:34:17His teammate, meanwhile, is in the spare car.

00:34:20They could not repair that engine blow-up that we witnessed here on Speed Channel Live earlier.

00:34:24So DeMata, and I don't care, David. You know this.

00:34:28No matter how alike you try to make a chassis, seldom do they ever feel exactly the same.

00:34:33Wow. A good, a tremendous second sector there.

00:34:39Nearly a full second quicker than Villeneuve.

00:34:42Don't forget, of course, this is now the battle of the Asian Giants.

00:34:45Toyota and Honda duking it out nose-to-nose in Formula One.

00:34:50Look at that. 1.1 second.

00:34:53That's an 11.9.

00:34:54That is the quickest lap Christiana DeMata has done here.

00:34:57Well, actually, I say that. It's almost exactly the same as you did yesterday.

00:35:03It's two hundredths of a second quicker.

00:35:05His trap speed going down into Turn 1, just fractionally slower than Villeneuve.

00:35:09207.9, so Panisse pretty much 208 miles an hour.

00:35:12Remember, Villeneuve's 209.1, so a little bit slower.

00:35:16It puts some more grip in her and the wing-up a bit for the race.

00:35:20Could well have done.

00:35:22Meanwhile, the work continues in Jarno Trulli's garage.

00:35:24Panic rising in the mechanics.

00:35:27I was going to say, you know, we're now 20 minutes into this qualifying effort,

00:35:32and they're starting to get closer in terms of having to make the decision

00:35:36whether they can repair that after the spare car.

00:35:38We were talking about the fact that Jarno Trulli told me yesterday

00:35:41that they're running a new spec engine.

00:35:42They weren't running it yesterday, but they did run it today.

00:35:45I'm curious if they have the new spec engine in the race car,

00:35:48but not in the spare car.

00:35:50Could well be, Rick.

00:35:51They may have just one of these new spec engines.

00:35:53I don't know what the change of the specification is.

00:35:55Like you, they're very reluctant to put that out into the public domain.

00:35:59The other problem is as well that they will want to get the race car repaired

00:36:02if they can because, remember, they haven't actually got out in the spare car.

00:36:06Look at the situation that happened with Michael this morning.

00:36:08It'll actually guarantee that the spare car will work.

00:36:10It could have a last-minute electrical glitch,

00:36:12and then you'll have to jump into the other car anyway,

00:36:14so the team will automatically, desperately try and get two cars ready,

00:36:17so you've always got a backup.

00:36:18How'd that look, Townsend?

00:36:24Mine said it was working that wheel.

00:36:26That's what you call a big wiggle.

00:36:27I've seen a lot of cars in that one place on the track

00:36:30have quite a bit of oversteer,

00:36:32and most of the Bridgestone runners seem to really be sliding around there.

00:36:35It's one of the strange things when I did the BAR test

00:36:43was that the steering didn't self-center,

00:36:45so you really feel oversteer,

00:36:48the back of the car sliding around with the seat of the pants, as they say,

00:36:52not so much with the feedback from the wheel.

00:36:54So if, say, in an Indy car, the car went sideways,

00:36:57the steering wheel would actually countersteer automatically in the BAR.

00:37:01It didn't do that.

00:37:02So it was a real reset, if you will,

00:37:06from my head on what oversteer felt like.

00:37:13Heinsherald Frensen, who is working the wheel so hard,

00:37:16will qualify fourth behind his teammate,

00:37:19Heinsherald Frensen, or Heinsherald Frensen, Nick Heinfeld.

00:37:21Just a hair, a real hair, ahead of Justin Wilson.

00:37:30Boy, that sounds weird, that the steering doesn't self...

00:37:33No, it is odd.

00:37:35And the other thing was that, you know,

00:37:36all the throttle linkages are fly-by-wire in Formula 1,

00:37:40so I didn't realize how much you feel the car off the throttle pedal, too,

00:37:43and have that disconnected, not a mechanical connection,

00:37:46and just sort of a remote-controlled car, you know, electric throttle.

00:37:49It was very strange as well.

00:37:51So all of the inputs that I was used to for feeling the car had changed.

00:37:55It's why having three days in the car on a, you know,

00:37:58no-pressure environment is a great opportunity to learn things.

00:38:01Well, we can tell you that David Richards reported that the team that was out,

00:38:05the test team that was out with you reported back,

00:38:07you did a great job there.

00:38:09I was going to dinner with David Richards the other night,

00:38:11and he was saying, yeah, I heard great things about everything he did.

00:38:13He says, ultimately, it's a simple job.

00:38:14He says, but you can screw it up.

00:38:15He says, he did a good job.

00:38:18So Michael Schumacher suiting up there,

00:38:20which is something you don't usually see this early in the qualifying session.

00:38:24He's usually one of the last people to run.

00:38:27There's going to be eight people after, Michael.

00:38:29So he's getting ready to run.

00:38:31Put on the pole here.

00:38:33Every year so far.

00:38:35And the track is actually, air is actually cooling down right now.

00:38:38It was about 66.

00:38:39Now it's down to about 64.

00:38:41So the temperature is beginning to drop through the session.

00:38:44Well, the cloud covers well and truly come over.

00:38:46I don't think it's going to rain.

00:38:47It looks a bit showery off to our north there.

00:38:52We're all Fisichella's time through the speed trap.

00:38:55204.1.

00:38:56He is the slowest car through the speed trap.

00:39:00Fellas, quick update on the Renault.

00:39:02A Giorno Trulli who crashed at the end of the session this morning.

00:39:06There is no complete front suspension on the car yet.

00:39:09They have two wishbones on.

00:39:10They're working on the push rod.

00:39:12No upright that I see.

00:39:13New nose cone is lined up.

00:39:15Interestingly enough, there is nobody working on the spare car.

00:39:18So they obviously believe they can get this fixed in time

00:39:21to put Giorno Trulli back into a potential pole winning car.

00:39:26Fisichella behind Wilson just ahead of Ralph Furman.

00:39:30So he edged his teammate.

00:39:31This is where a mechanic earns his earnest money down there, Steve.

00:39:35Cranking away and getting it done as quickly as humanly possible.

00:39:38Yeah, absolutely.

00:39:38You'll probably find that the spare car crew,

00:39:41that Derek says there's no one working on the car,

00:39:42they'll all be working on the race car,

00:39:44fetching and carrying things or fettling things in the back of the garage

00:39:46just prior to refitting new uprights and everything.

00:39:50They're happy that the spare car is ready to go,

00:39:52set up for Giorno Trulli.

00:39:54They can leave that for the time being.

00:39:56Yeah, I mean, normally the crew would be a three-man crew on the car

00:39:59and one guy for the hydraulics.

00:40:00As you can see, there's basically two car crews working on that.

00:40:03Two front-end guys talking to each other in the agency,

00:40:06hold this, fetch that.

00:40:07You know where that pod is in the back.

00:40:09So all these guys working in unison now.

00:40:10There's John Wheatley, the chief mechanic overseeing it

00:40:12and on the radio, I think, talking to the engineers,

00:40:15giving them an update of how long they're going to be

00:40:17before that car's ready to go.

00:40:18I've always been amazed at, you know,

00:40:21you'll hear, oh, it takes, you know, an hour to change this

00:40:23or two hours to change that.

00:40:25And yet when, you know, when the chips are down

00:40:27and they are working flat out,

00:40:28it sometimes boggles my mind

00:40:30how quickly I've been able to see engine changes,

00:40:33gearbox changes, suspension changes,

00:40:35just because you have to do it.

00:40:37It's true exactly what you say, Rick.

00:40:39You could spend a week back at the factory

00:40:41rebuilding the car, ready to race.

00:40:43And yet if you shunted the car today,

00:40:44it'll be turned around in six hours ready to race.

00:40:46Cristiano de Mata out on the track right now in the Toyota.

00:40:48Peter's with his teammate.

00:40:50I am indeed. I'm with Olivier Panis.

00:40:51Your teammate Cristiano is out at the moment.

00:40:53Olivier, it looked like a great lap from you.

00:40:55Yeah, I think it's quite a great light

00:40:56when I compare with the track I have.

00:40:59I think the track is very simple this afternoon

00:41:01but looks really competitive.

00:41:02Why is it so slippery?

00:41:03Is it the support race practice to get?

00:41:05I don't know. It ran a lot last night

00:41:07and it's probably not too bad

00:41:09and the warm-up is a little bit worse

00:41:10and qualifying also

00:41:12because I think the cool temperature

00:41:13don't help the grip of tyres.

00:41:16Where do you think you'll qualify on the grid?

00:41:18I have no idea.

00:41:18I imagine I'm top 10.

00:41:20Very best of luck to you. Thank you.

00:41:23And Cristiano de Mata, his teammate,

00:41:25comes across the line second fastest.

00:41:27So right now it is the two Toyotas

00:41:29who are first and second.

00:41:31But I have a feeling, gentlemen,

00:41:32this is not going to last.

00:41:34We'll take a brief break from Indianapolis.

00:41:36Return with more with qualifying

00:41:38from the U.S. Grand Prix.

00:41:54Back at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway

00:41:56and it's cooling down

00:41:58because look at those dark clouds

00:41:59that are starting to move in.

00:42:01It doesn't look like they're raining out there

00:42:03but the temperature's dropped

00:42:05by about three or four degrees.

00:42:09Cristiano de Mata was saying Thursday,

00:42:11he said, you know,

00:42:11this championship ultimately could be decided

00:42:13by a few degrees of temperature.

00:42:16Which one favours the Michelin?

00:42:18Which one favours the Bridgestone?

00:42:19It could certainly be decided by the rain.

00:42:24There's no doubt about that.

00:42:26The Bridgestone Intermediate

00:42:27is a vastness of the Michelin's offering.

00:42:29And Mark Webber was saying

00:42:32he wouldn't mind dry and cold

00:42:34or really wet.

00:42:35He just doesn't want something in between.

00:42:37I'm hearing that the Michelin dries,

00:42:40the slicks or the dry weather groove tires,

00:42:41whatever you want to call them,

00:42:43have a far wider operating range

00:42:45than the Bridgestone dries.

00:42:48But if it does start to pour

00:42:50in just mild amount of rain,

00:42:52you're going to get Bridgestone the knot.

00:42:53All right, Jensen Button out there.

00:43:00Wow, look at those clouds.

00:43:01You saw them in the top of the shot there.

00:43:03As Button comes down into turn one.

00:43:07Boy, that cloud.

00:43:08Look at it there.

00:43:09If it just sprinkles a bit.

00:43:12Hey, boys,

00:43:13I've lived here for almost 20 years.

00:43:16And at the Speedway,

00:43:17I've heard many times

00:43:17it's raining in Terre Haute.

00:43:20When it does,

00:43:20it makes its way up here.

00:43:22But I see blue sunshine

00:43:23and off to the west it is clear.

00:43:25I don't think we're going to have any trouble.

00:43:27But remember what they say in Indiana.

00:43:29If you don't like the weather,

00:43:30just hang around for half an hour.

00:43:31It'll change.

00:43:32We don't have half an hour.

00:43:34We only have the next half hour for qualifying.

00:43:37We want it to change now.

00:43:43Jensen Button just about to finish his lap.

00:43:45And next, after Button,

00:43:46the first of our world championship contenders,

00:43:48is Kimi Räikkönen,

00:43:50who's out on his warm-up lap right now.

00:43:52Button pretty well off the pace.

00:43:54Yeah.

00:43:55He's going to end up still with his teammate.

00:43:58I would say.

00:43:59Well, his sectors look pretty good against Villeneuve.

00:44:01I think he's going to be a little quicker.

00:44:03Yeah.

00:44:06Comes across the line.

00:44:08Third fastest indeed.

00:44:10Behind both of the Toyotas.

00:44:12So you've got two Toyotas and two Hondas at the moment.

00:44:15For the moment.

00:44:16For the moment.

00:44:17And the moment is about to change.

00:44:19Is that like permanently now?

00:44:23Permanently for the moment.

00:44:25For the moment.

00:44:25According to Bernie Eccleston.

00:44:26David Richard was talking about how when Jensen Button had the testing action,

00:44:34the first thing he did was called him up and said,

00:44:36you know,

00:44:36David,

00:44:36I am sorry.

00:44:38I have just written off a car.

00:44:41I know we didn't want this to happen.

00:44:43Sounded like it was a pretty nasty accident.

00:44:45That was Jerez.

00:44:46Yeah.

00:44:46In Southern Spain.

00:44:48He used the test circuit.

00:44:50Now Kimi Räikkönen.

00:44:51We haven't seen a lot of him this weekend.

00:44:53But he went very quick.

00:44:54Very close to the wall.

00:44:55That's getting close to the wall.

00:44:57Isn't he?

00:44:57Looking at it.

00:44:58Bit of a jinx to the right there.

00:45:00Steady lad.

00:45:01He has been low-key all weekend.

00:45:05But as you say,

00:45:05this is one of the three contenders

00:45:07for the 2003 Formula One World Championships.

00:45:12Fastest in the speed track.

00:45:14That's a little steering input.

00:45:15That looked pretty good.

00:45:16That looked pretty good.

00:45:18Last year he qualified sixth.

00:45:20The year before that 11th.

00:45:21And he shall receive.

00:45:22I shall look at the steering input.

00:45:24There it is.

00:45:24He's got steering input.

00:45:26And he's faster so far.

00:45:27But remember,

00:45:28only faster than Olivier Fanny.

00:45:30Well, he is faster

00:45:31in the first section of the day.

00:45:34But you're right.

00:45:35Fastest in the plan is 22.348.

00:45:38Räikkönen speed track time.

00:45:40211.4 miles an hour.

00:45:43And here's the man

00:45:44who could potentially win

00:45:45a World Championship this weekend.

00:45:47Michael Schumacher.

00:45:48Depending upon what happens

00:45:49with Kimi Räikkönen

00:45:50and Juan Pablo Montoya.

00:45:53Coming up to the end of that second.

00:45:54All very well.

00:45:56A little bit quicker.

00:45:57But not much quicker

00:45:58than Olivier Fanny.

00:46:00But he's going to pick up a lot

00:46:03through here, I think.

00:46:04Again, fastest in the second sector.

00:46:06Kimi Räikkönen 29.411.

00:46:08He must have taken

00:46:09a little bit of downforce off.

00:46:10What is he going to do

00:46:11in this third sector?

00:46:12Kimi Räikkönen in the McLaren.

00:46:15First.

00:46:15Fastest by a quarter of a second.

00:46:17The first of the

00:46:18World Championship contenders.

00:46:20Kimi Räikkönen

00:46:21now the fastest man out there.

00:46:23But right behind him qualifying.

00:46:24He's going to be the man

00:46:26he's trying to beat.

00:46:27Michael Schumacher.

00:46:29Just a couple of tenths

00:46:31as he was this morning.

00:46:32So that would indicate

00:46:34he's got a bit more fuel on board.

00:46:36Well, a bit more fuel

00:46:37that would possibly

00:46:38trim the wing off

00:46:39a little bit

00:46:39to try and optimize

00:46:40that straight line speed

00:46:41which would have compromised him

00:46:42in the infield section.

00:46:45But nevertheless,

00:46:45that is going to be

00:46:46the benchmark

00:46:47for Montoya

00:46:48and Michael Schumacher.

00:46:50Räikkönen 1.11.

00:46:516.7.0

00:46:53is the time to beat.

00:46:54Now remember,

00:46:54Michael, if you missed it

00:46:55this morning,

00:46:56went out for the

00:46:57first practice session

00:46:58and the car stopped

00:46:59immediately

00:47:00as a result of a

00:47:02fuel problem,

00:47:03fuel pickup problem.

00:47:04He did not turn

00:47:05a single lap

00:47:06and they worked on it

00:47:07throughout most of the

00:47:08second one.

00:47:08He didn't even get out

00:47:09until the second half

00:47:10of the second practice session.

00:47:12Michael Schumacher

00:47:15has been very,

00:47:16very good

00:47:16at this single lap

00:47:17qualifying this year.

00:47:18There's no doubt about it.

00:47:19And he's been very good here.

00:47:21He is the only man

00:47:22who's ever sat on the pool

00:47:24for the United States Grand Prix.

00:47:25Look at the way

00:47:26he's working that wheel.

00:47:27Michael Schumacher's

00:47:28fastest through the speed trap.

00:47:30Michael Schumacher's time

00:47:31214.2 miles an hour.

00:47:33He is quicker

00:47:34through the speed trap

00:47:35than Kimi Räikkönen.

00:47:36Räikkönen's time

00:47:36211.4.

00:47:38But he's still down on time.

00:47:40He had two big

00:47:41two big baubles there

00:47:42in the first two corners.

00:47:43It's going to be tough

00:47:44to make up.

00:47:45Very tough.

00:47:46He must have now,

00:47:47he must have trimmed it out

00:47:48even more than that.

00:47:50Looking at the rear wing,

00:47:51David,

00:47:51he seems to have

00:47:52the same configuration,

00:47:53those two elements

00:47:54that Derek and Peter

00:47:55were pointing out

00:47:56to us down

00:47:57at the pit lane

00:47:57earlier on.

00:47:58So very similar

00:47:59looking aerodynamic package

00:48:00on the back of the car

00:48:01than what they were running

00:48:02in practice.

00:48:07Remember,

00:48:08of course,

00:48:08down by almost

00:48:09half a second

00:48:10off of Kimi Räikkönen's time.

00:48:15Michael Schumacher

00:48:16who leads

00:48:17the world championship

00:48:18comes around

00:48:19the final corner

00:48:20to qualify

00:48:22for the U.S. Grand Prix.

00:48:23Remember,

00:48:23he's the only guy

00:48:24who's ever sat on the pole.

00:48:25Can he do it again?

00:48:27No,

00:48:27not even second fastest.

00:48:28He is third fastest

00:48:30behind Olivia Benes

00:48:31and the Toyota.

00:48:32Wow.

00:48:33That's going to be

00:48:34a bit of a shock

00:48:34for the Ferrari team.

00:48:36Now,

00:48:36again,

00:48:37the big question,

00:48:38Factor X,

00:48:39how much fuel

00:48:40has Ross Braun

00:48:41ordered the engineers

00:48:42to put in that chassis?

00:48:44We can feel

00:48:45up here

00:48:46on top

00:48:46of the Grandstand

00:48:47in the booth.

00:48:48The booth is rocking

00:48:49because of those girls

00:48:50and guys right there.

00:48:51The Colombian crowd

00:48:53feel they have a chance

00:48:55for a pole right here.

00:48:56Absolutely ecstatic

00:48:57that Michael Schumacher

00:48:58did not get the pole.

00:48:59Here we see

00:49:00what Townsend

00:49:01was talking about.

00:49:02That car just looked

00:49:03loose to me.

00:49:04I wonder if the Bridgestones

00:49:06weren't quite warm

00:49:06in the back

00:49:07because the first couple

00:49:08of corners,

00:49:08the back end

00:49:09was sliding around.

00:49:10I'm going to blame

00:49:11that more

00:49:11on a handling imbalance

00:49:12than a fuel load

00:49:13right now.

00:49:14Now,

00:49:14here is another

00:49:15contender for the pole.

00:49:16Think about this.

00:49:17His teammate yesterday,

00:49:18Jarno Trulli,

00:49:19was fastest.

00:49:20Today,

00:49:20Fernando Alonso

00:49:21was running

00:49:22the newer spec engine.

00:49:24He's obviously

00:49:24been able to take

00:49:25whatever was done

00:49:26to Trulli's car

00:49:27potentially

00:49:28in terms of those

00:49:28settings.

00:49:30He was fastest

00:49:30in the warm-up.

00:49:33Alonso's tying

00:49:34through the speed track,

00:49:35209.2.

00:49:38This car's working well.

00:49:39But look at that.

00:49:41One, two, three, four,

00:49:42five.

00:49:43He manages to pick up

00:49:44all the time

00:49:45he lost

00:49:46in that speed track.

00:49:47Yeah.

00:49:47Now,

00:49:47this is what has been

00:49:48happening all weekend.

00:49:49We've been saying

00:49:50that this Renault chassis

00:49:51and the aerodynamic

00:49:52package working

00:49:52superbly

00:49:54through the infield

00:49:55section.

00:49:56Now,

00:49:56what are they going to do?

00:49:57Run very light

00:49:58on fuel,

00:49:59see if they can get

00:50:00ahead of the field.

00:50:01If they manage

00:50:01to put the car on pole,

00:50:02they will be off

00:50:03into that infield

00:50:03section.

00:50:04And really,

00:50:05that compromise

00:50:06that they have

00:50:06on the straight line

00:50:07section and the loss

00:50:08of speed down

00:50:09the straight line

00:50:09may not become

00:50:10a factor.

00:50:11And he's slower

00:50:12through the second

00:50:12sector,

00:50:13and that's where

00:50:13this team has been

00:50:14going fast up

00:50:15until now.

00:50:15Fernando Alonso,

00:50:18can he knock

00:50:19Kimi Räikkönen

00:50:19off the pole?

00:50:20Remember,

00:50:20Kimi Räikkönen

00:50:21is fastest,

00:50:22Olivia Fanny

00:50:22in the Toyota

00:50:23is second fastest.

00:50:25Fernando Alonso,

00:50:26who won one race

00:50:27this year,

00:50:28no,

00:50:29finishes third.

00:50:30But he knocks

00:50:31rival Schumacher

00:50:32down to fourth.

00:50:33Well,

00:50:33that's significant

00:50:34in its own right.

00:50:35Michael Schumacher

00:50:35now down to fourth

00:50:37spot on the grid.

00:50:39Second row,

00:50:39and of course,

00:50:40we've got another

00:50:40couple of three

00:50:41really quick runners

00:50:42to come.

00:50:43His brother,

00:50:44Ralph,

00:50:44Juan Pablo Montoya,

00:50:46and his teammate,

00:50:47Rubens Barrichello

00:50:48and Jano Trulic.

00:50:49So he could end up

00:50:50on the third

00:50:52or fourth row.

00:50:52And it's not just

00:50:53significant for this race,

00:50:54we're talking

00:50:55the championship.

00:50:56Every position

00:50:56he moves back

00:50:57makes it more

00:50:58difficult to win

00:51:00the championship.

00:51:01As you watch

00:51:01David Coulthard

00:51:02warm up here,

00:51:03the Colombians

00:51:03are going

00:51:04absolutely ballistic

00:51:05because the people

00:51:06who can challenge

00:51:07their man

00:51:07are beginning

00:51:07to fall

00:51:08by the wayside.

00:51:09Quick update

00:51:10on Trulic.

00:51:11They are bleeding

00:51:11the brakes.

00:51:12However,

00:51:12Steve,

00:51:13they have just

00:51:14gone to the spare car

00:51:15to tape up

00:51:15the body panels,

00:51:17the joints

00:51:18on the body section

00:51:18just in case.

00:51:20Just in case,

00:51:20Derek.

00:51:21Absolutely.

00:51:21As we said before,

00:51:22the team will be

00:51:23desperate to get

00:51:24two cars ready.

00:51:25You could have

00:51:25a last-minute

00:51:26electronics glitch

00:51:27in the garage

00:51:27or hydraulics

00:51:28and that car

00:51:29wouldn't even

00:51:29get out of the pits.

00:51:30Kimi Räikkönen's

00:51:31teammate is out there.

00:51:32David Coulthard

00:51:33right now

00:51:33has had trouble

00:51:34all season long

00:51:35with the single car

00:51:36qualifying,

00:51:37but if he's ever

00:51:38going to put it

00:51:38together and help

00:51:40out his teammate,

00:51:40now's the time

00:51:41to do it.

00:51:42slightly slower than his

00:51:43teammate Coulthard's

00:51:45tie through the

00:51:45speed track

00:51:46to 10.9,

00:51:47pretty much

00:51:48to 11,

00:51:49but Räikkönen

00:51:49fractionally quicker,

00:51:50211.4 miles an hour.

00:51:52He's got a lot of

00:52:00second sector.

00:52:03A lot of action

00:52:04on this second sector.

00:52:05Quite a long

00:52:06straight there

00:52:06to Hulman Boulevard.

00:52:08Now,

00:52:09half a second

00:52:09off,

00:52:10about a half a second

00:52:11significantly slower

00:52:13now.

00:52:14Once again,

00:52:15he needs to get up

00:52:16there to help

00:52:16out his teammate.

00:52:18Officially,

00:52:18no team orders

00:52:19anymore,

00:52:20but there's no

00:52:20question that

00:52:22everybody has a

00:52:23teammate and they're

00:52:23hoping the teammate

00:52:24will be able to

00:52:25help him.

00:52:28David Coulthard

00:52:29will qualify

00:52:29fifth behind

00:52:30Michael Schumacher

00:52:31ahead,

00:52:32Christiana D'Amata.

00:52:36Kimi Räikkönen

00:52:37is fastest right now.

00:52:39Big surprise

00:52:39with the Toyota

00:52:40Lillipani,

00:52:41who is faster

00:52:42than Fernando

00:52:43Alonso

00:52:43and Michael

00:52:45Schumacher.

00:52:45Well,

00:52:47the McLaren team

00:52:47have been high

00:52:48all weekend.

00:52:49They said right

00:52:49from the Thursday

00:52:50when we arrived,

00:52:51we could win

00:52:51this race

00:52:52with Kimi.

00:52:54Boom.

00:52:55That's what

00:52:55happened to his

00:52:56time.

00:52:57Ah,

00:52:58but next up,

00:52:59after we take

00:53:00a brief commercial

00:53:01break,

00:53:01the stands

00:53:02are going to

00:53:02start shaking

00:53:03again.

00:53:04The Colombian,

00:53:05Juan Pablo Montoya

00:53:06is up.

00:53:08Can he take the

00:53:08pole?

00:53:09We'll find out.

00:53:09Back at the

00:53:16Indianapolis Motor

00:53:17Speedway,

00:53:18and Juan Pablo

00:53:19Montoya has

00:53:20taken the track,

00:53:21and once again,

00:53:22the stands are

00:53:23shaking.

00:53:24He's on his

00:53:24warm-up lap.

00:53:27Kimi Räikkönen

00:53:28has the pole right

00:53:29now.

00:53:29Michael Schumacher

00:53:30is fourth fastest,

00:53:32and Montoya has

00:53:33a serious shot

00:53:34at taking the pole

00:53:35and potentially

00:53:36taking an edge

00:53:37in the championship.

00:53:38If he gets the

00:53:38pole,

00:53:39I think I'm going

00:53:39to vacate the

00:53:40booth immediately

00:53:41in case the

00:53:41whole thing

00:53:42collapses.

00:53:43We are rocking

00:53:44up here.

00:53:45We're just joking

00:53:45with Townsend.

00:53:46He's from

00:53:46California.

00:53:46You know this

00:53:47feeling.

00:53:47It's about a

00:53:486-5 we just

00:53:49had.

00:53:51Every time that

00:53:52the fans start

00:53:53screaming downstairs,

00:53:54the whole stands

00:53:55start rocking.

00:53:56Earlier,

00:53:56between sessions,

00:53:57they would show

00:53:59Montoya,

00:54:00and everybody

00:54:00would scream and

00:54:01cheer, and then

00:54:02they would show

00:54:03Ross Braun for a

00:54:04brief time on

00:54:05the big screen

00:54:05out here,

00:54:06and the

00:54:07Colombians would

00:54:07boo, and then

00:54:08they'd show

00:54:09Montoya again,

00:54:09and they'd cheer.

00:54:15Tensions rising

00:54:16now because this

00:54:16is very bad

00:54:18for Michael Schumacher.

00:54:19He's going to be

00:54:20starting way down

00:54:21on the grid,

00:54:21and it looks like

00:54:22his two main

00:54:23protagonists could

00:54:23even start

00:54:24from the front row.

00:54:25A mistake here,

00:54:26and the championship

00:54:26could be over by

00:54:27Juan Pablo Montoya.

00:54:28He's got to nail

00:54:29this one.

00:54:35350 clicks.

00:54:41Boy, that BMW

00:54:42engine's got

00:54:43some enormous

00:54:43grunt.

00:54:44350 clicks,

00:54:45that works out

00:54:46in old money.

00:54:47217.6 miles an hour

00:54:50for Montoya

00:54:51and the BMW P83

00:54:53engine.

00:54:54Look at that.

00:54:55He's faster so far.

00:54:56Very much on the

00:54:57goods.

00:54:58I'll tell you what,

00:54:58he had talked about

00:54:59steering it,

00:55:00but this car

00:55:00looks really,

00:55:01really smooth.

00:55:04But remember,

00:55:04one mistake,

00:55:05one mistake,

00:55:06you spin off,

00:55:07you go to the

00:55:08back of the grid,

00:55:09and your championship

00:55:09hopes are locked.

00:55:11He has to be fast,

00:55:12and he has to be

00:55:13dead on this entire

00:55:14lap.

00:55:15The main thing is,

00:55:17I mean,

00:55:17he's going to be

00:55:17up there somewhere.

00:55:18What he does not

00:55:19want to do is make

00:55:20a mistake and get

00:55:20to the back.

00:55:21That's the key.

00:55:22Guys, looking at

00:55:23this car compared

00:55:24to the Ferrari,

00:55:25it's amazing how

00:55:25stuck the back

00:55:26of the car is.

00:55:27It's really hooked

00:55:28up.

00:55:28Now, he's lost about

00:55:29a quarter of a second

00:55:30now in the second

00:55:31sector,

00:55:32but once again,

00:55:33this is the place,

00:55:34full throttle,

00:55:35where he could

00:55:35potentially make it

00:55:37up.

00:55:37Coming on to the

00:55:39front straightaway,

00:55:40Juan Pablo Montoya,

00:55:41can he take the

00:55:41pole?

00:55:43No, he doesn't do

00:55:44it.

00:55:47Kevin Raikkonen

00:55:49right now has the

00:55:50pole, however,

00:55:51Montoya is still

00:55:52two spots ahead

00:55:54of Michael Schumacher,

00:55:55and now his

00:55:56teammates going out.

00:55:57The job is to get

00:55:58between Montoya

00:55:59and Schumacher.

00:56:01Well, I am amazed.

00:56:02I thought he'd

00:56:03pick it up on that

00:56:03last sector with

00:56:04that power.

00:56:07To be honest with

00:56:08you, if you had

00:56:09asked me yesterday

00:56:10or even this

00:56:11morning, if McLaren

00:56:12and Kimi Raikkonen

00:56:13would be on the

00:56:13pole, I would have

00:56:14been shocked.

00:56:15It just didn't seem

00:56:16to be in the cards.

00:56:17Well, I'm pretty

00:56:20impressed with Toyota

00:56:20as I sit here right

00:56:21now.

00:56:22Second year in Formula

00:56:22One, they're really

00:56:24holding their own

00:56:24here with the

00:56:25frontrunners.

00:56:26And this will be

00:56:26the worst they could

00:56:28qualify right now.

00:56:29Let's see.

00:56:29The worst they could

00:56:30qualify is going to

00:56:31be fifth.

00:56:34The worst they could

00:56:35qualify would be

00:56:35sixth.

00:56:36Their best ever was

00:56:37fifth in Australia.

00:56:39Ralph, a bit

00:56:40chilled at running

00:56:40time.

00:56:51Almost identical

00:56:52to his teammate

00:56:53in top speed.

00:56:55Just two tenths of

00:56:56one kilometer an hour

00:56:57down on his teammate.

00:56:58Right up to the

00:56:59draft there.

00:57:00Montoya was quickest

00:57:01in the first sector,

00:57:02quickest of the day

00:57:03so far in sector one

00:57:04Montoya.

00:57:05Remember,

00:57:06Ralph Schumacher's

00:57:08out of it as far as

00:57:09the championship is

00:57:10concerned.

00:57:11But he can still

00:57:12play the role of

00:57:13the spoiler and

00:57:14help his teammates

00:57:15significantly.

00:57:25That's where he

00:57:25went off his morning.

00:57:29And the new

00:57:30steering rack

00:57:31put into that car.

00:57:32Two hours of work

00:57:33to change that steering

00:57:34rack in these cars

00:57:35just to the tight

00:57:36confines of the chassis.

00:57:38Extremely difficult

00:57:39to get in there

00:57:39and take the thing

00:57:40out.

00:57:41Half a second down.

00:57:43Is he going to pick

00:57:44it up in this last

00:57:44and final sector?

00:57:45This is where

00:57:46the BMW power

00:57:47really comes

00:57:47with his own

00:57:48as they leg it

00:57:49around those two

00:57:49very fast sweeps.

00:57:51The big question

00:57:51is whether he will

00:57:52be ahead of

00:57:53Michael Schumacher.

00:57:53Schumacher's fifth and

00:57:58he will be behind his

00:58:00teammate Montoya right

00:58:02now is third.

00:58:02Ralph is fourth.

00:58:04Then it's Alonzo.

00:58:04Then it's Michael Schumacher.

00:58:07Michael Schumacher right

00:58:08now is sixth fastest.

00:58:10Boy, he is on the

00:58:11third row.

00:58:12Pan is still in second

00:58:14which means he will tie

00:58:16his best ever qualifying.

00:58:19If anybody else

00:58:20pushes him down

00:58:20he goes to the

00:58:22fourth row

00:58:22and he goes to the

00:58:23wrong side of the track.

00:58:24He goes to the wrong

00:58:24side of the track

00:58:25first on the dirty

00:58:27side and then he

00:58:27goes to the next row.

00:58:29Two more guys that

00:58:29could qualify quicker

00:58:31than him, Barrichello

00:58:32and Truly.

00:58:32And the temperature's

00:58:33beginning to warm up

00:58:34and we can see it on

00:58:35the track temperature.

00:58:36It's up another

00:58:36two, three degrees.

00:58:37We get a little more

00:58:38sunshine on the track.

00:58:39That big dark cloud

00:58:40that we saw for a while

00:58:41has kind of broken up hard.

00:58:43We've been kind of

00:58:43ignoring Mark Webber

00:58:44which we probably

00:58:45shouldn't have done

00:58:45because he rose third

00:58:46quickest yesterday.

00:58:48He just hasn't been

00:58:48that fast today.

00:58:56Yesterday he was joking

00:58:57with Justin Wilson

00:58:58qualifying early

00:58:58and him qualifying late.

00:59:00If weather became a factor

00:59:01then they got a car

00:59:02both into the grid.

00:59:03Somebody ought to

00:59:03to go.

00:59:06He could actually

00:59:07well, you know

00:59:09we ignore him

00:59:10at our peril

00:59:11but not very quick

00:59:12down the straight.

00:59:13Let's see how he

00:59:13does in his first sector

00:59:14though.

00:59:17A lot of effort

00:59:17to get in that car

00:59:18to react.

00:59:20Yeah, big moment

00:59:21there.

00:59:22The same right-hand

00:59:23corner that it all

00:59:24went to the track.

00:59:27Again, Webber

00:59:29down on power

00:59:30even in comparison

00:59:31to Verstappen

00:59:32Webber through the

00:59:33speed trap

00:59:33206.4

00:59:35think back to

00:59:35Verstappen's time

00:59:36207 miles an hour

00:59:39through the speed

00:59:40trap.

00:59:40So, again,

00:59:42I'm wondering

00:59:42whether or not

00:59:42they've been

00:59:43suffering with

00:59:44horsepower

00:59:44seen those

00:59:45unreliability problems

00:59:46with the Ford

00:59:47engines

00:59:48and the last races

00:59:48and I wonder

00:59:49whether or not

00:59:49they'll detune them

00:59:50a little bit

00:59:50to keep that

00:59:52reliability

00:59:52to the end

00:59:53of the season

00:59:53now.

00:59:54And he is well

00:59:54off the pace

00:59:55in terms of

00:59:56those frontrunners.

00:59:58He is highly

01:00:00unlikely about

01:00:01qualifying

01:00:01Michael Schumacher.

01:00:02So Schumacher's

01:00:03still set for the

01:00:04third row

01:00:05but his teammate

01:00:05has just taken to

01:00:07the track

01:00:07and he has been

01:00:09qualifying well

01:00:10this year.

01:00:1212th last.

01:00:12And by doing that

01:00:14Toyota now has

01:00:15its best

01:00:16qualifying ever

01:00:17even if they

01:00:19get no better

01:00:20than this

01:00:20even if the

01:00:20next two guys

01:00:21Trulli and

01:00:22Barrichello

01:00:23go faster

01:00:23here Olivier

01:00:25will be

01:00:25fourth fastest

01:00:26which is

01:00:27Toyota's

01:00:27best qualifying

01:00:28since Olivier

01:00:30qualified

01:00:31fifth

01:00:31at Australia.

01:00:34I'd say

01:00:35a very good

01:00:35chance that

01:00:36Penny's going

01:00:37to wind up

01:00:37on the front

01:00:38row here.

01:00:40Just a question

01:00:41of whether

01:00:41Rubens Barrichello

01:00:42had, remember

01:00:42Rubens Barrichello

01:00:43was faster than

01:00:44Michael yesterday

01:00:44hasn't had the

01:00:45problems that

01:00:46Michael had

01:00:46today.

01:00:48The big

01:00:48question mark

01:00:49is Yarno

01:00:49Trulli and all

01:00:50the work that

01:00:50had to be done

01:00:51in the last

01:00:51hour.

01:00:52Be interesting

01:00:53to watch

01:00:53the rear grip

01:00:54on Barrichello's

01:00:55car.

01:00:56If Michael's

01:00:57reported any

01:00:58suggestions back

01:00:59to try to help

01:01:00him out to get

01:01:00further up and

01:01:01we'll see if

01:01:02they're able to

01:01:02compensate at all.

01:01:06Ferrari number

01:01:06two, the guy

01:01:07who won the race

01:01:08last year and

01:01:09that somewhat

01:01:09shall we say

01:01:10slightly

01:01:10controversial

01:01:11finish.

01:01:12It's a dead

01:01:13heat.

01:01:14Depending upon

01:01:15who you were

01:01:16looking at at

01:01:16the time.

01:01:17Significantly

01:01:17down on

01:01:18Montoya

01:01:18for the speed

01:01:19shot, 345.7

01:01:21there's the

01:01:21ground lead.

01:01:23214.8

01:01:26miles an hour

01:01:27for Barrichello.

01:01:31Wow, look at that

01:01:32first sector.

01:01:34Obviously,

01:01:35this can't

01:01:35have your

01:01:36wrist.

01:01:39Remember, he

01:01:40qualified second

01:01:40fastest here

01:01:41last year.

01:01:42Michael Schumacher

01:01:51needs a teammate

01:01:53ahead of

01:01:54Montoya and

01:01:56ahead of

01:01:56Raikkonen.

01:01:57We're just

01:01:58back together

01:01:58for the second

01:01:59year in 2000,

01:02:00retired in 2001,

01:02:01and of course

01:02:01won it last

01:02:02year.

01:02:02Yes.

01:02:03The crowd and

01:02:04support meant

01:02:04anything you'd be

01:02:05on the ball by

01:02:05for our

01:02:06and it's an

01:02:06enormous

01:02:07supporter for

01:02:07you.

01:02:08It's fantastic,

01:02:09it's really nice

01:02:09to see how many

01:02:10people here.

01:02:11We're doing the

01:02:12best we can.

01:02:14I think we've got a

01:02:15good race tomorrow.

01:02:16But with the tire

01:02:17choice, we believe so

01:02:18many cars are going on

01:02:19hard, probably the

01:02:20Williams.

01:02:21Does what you see on

01:02:22the grid represent

01:02:22what you might think

01:02:23could happen tomorrow?

01:02:24not really.

01:02:27We'll see.

01:02:28I don't know what's

01:02:28going to happen tomorrow.

01:02:29It's very difficult to

01:02:30say.

01:02:30Thank you, Juan.

01:02:32Ruben Barrichello

01:02:33now qualified second

01:02:34behind Kimi Raikkonen,

01:02:36so he's put a Ferrari

01:02:37on the front row

01:02:38ahead of Juan Pablo

01:02:40Montoya and beside

01:02:42Kimi Raikkonen,

01:02:44at least for the time

01:02:44being, with one

01:02:46qualifier yet to go,

01:02:47Jarno Trulli.

01:02:47And there are no team

01:02:49orders in Formula One.

01:02:50If you'd have said to me

01:02:52that Kimi Raikkonen's

01:02:53going to be on the

01:02:53pole, I wouldn't

01:02:55believe you.

01:02:56We're just reading

01:02:56the last McLaren

01:02:59pole at a United

01:03:00States Grand Prix

01:03:01with Senna back in

01:03:03Phoenix in 1991.

01:03:04That's how long it's

01:03:05been.

01:03:08Now the big question

01:03:09though is Jarno

01:03:10Trulli and the work

01:03:11that was done.

01:03:15Now, Jarno Trulli

01:03:16has qualified second

01:03:18four times in his

01:03:19career.

01:03:20He has never had a

01:03:21pole, and this season

01:03:23he has had to watch

01:03:24his teammate, young

01:03:26Fernando Alonso, get

01:03:27one, not one, but two

01:03:29poles.

01:03:30And a win.

01:03:32Slower down the

01:03:33straight into that

01:03:34foot in that first

01:03:35sector.

01:03:35How's his time?

01:03:36Stack up.

01:03:38But this is where he's

01:03:40got to be faster, right

01:03:41here.

01:03:42Let's see what he can

01:03:43do in the second

01:03:43sector.

01:03:44He's been fast all

01:03:45weekend in this second

01:03:46sector.

01:03:46I asked him yesterday

01:03:48I was talking about

01:03:49the pole.

01:03:49I said, well, you know,

01:03:49you've finished second

01:03:50four times in qualifying.

01:03:52How important is a

01:03:53pole?

01:03:53Most drivers say, yeah,

01:03:55not critical, you know,

01:03:55just a career, whatever.

01:03:57I really want a pole.

01:03:58He really wants

01:03:59this.

01:04:04Going through the

01:04:05second sector.

01:04:06Can he gain anything?

01:04:06He really had to get

01:04:10out of the throttle and

01:04:11turn seven.

01:04:12Of course, that car had

01:04:13that big derangement just

01:04:14before the session, so

01:04:15we're not quite sure.

01:04:16It may not be fully

01:04:17squared up.

01:04:17So the question is,

01:04:18where will he end up on

01:04:19the grid?

01:04:20Not likely on the pole,

01:04:21but will he qualify ahead

01:04:22of Michael Schumacher?

01:04:23Let's see as he comes

01:04:25across the line.

01:04:26Schumacher's seventh.

01:04:27No, Jarno truly is

01:04:28tenth.

01:04:31That means Olivier

01:04:31Pani is third.

01:04:32The front row will be

01:04:33Kimi Räikkönen in the

01:04:35McLaren.

01:04:35And Rubens Barrichello

01:04:37in the Ferrari.

01:04:39And third, Olivier

01:04:41Pani is in the Toyota.

01:04:42What a fantastic run

01:04:44for them.

01:04:44Montoya in fourth.

01:04:47Montoya in fourth.

01:04:48Schumacher in fifth

01:04:48with no practice this

01:04:49weekend, wasn't it?

01:04:50Alonzo in sixth.

01:04:52Montoya starting on the

01:04:53second row on the

01:04:54outside.

01:04:55Well, on the offside.

01:04:57For Michael Schumacher

01:04:58in seventh spot.

01:05:03And I have to say,

01:05:04this is a shocker.

01:05:04I just did not expect

01:05:06these guys to be here

01:05:06doing this.

01:05:08But you've got to

01:05:09congratulate them.

01:05:09Kimi Räikkönen has the

01:05:10pole for the U.S.

01:05:11Grand Prix at the

01:05:12Indianapolis Motor

01:05:13Speedway.

01:05:14One flying left.

01:05:15It did it.

01:05:16We'll be back with more

01:05:17in just a moment.

01:05:18back at the Indianapolis Motor

01:05:28Speedway qualifying for the

01:05:29United States Grand Prix is

01:05:31over.

01:05:32And we're just saying this

01:05:33grid is a bit of a shock.

01:05:35This grid is not what we

01:05:36expected to see.

01:05:37Kimi Räikkönen on the pole.

01:05:38Kimi Räikkönen currently

01:05:39line third in the championship

01:05:40just seven points away from

01:05:42Michael Schumacher who

01:05:44qualified down in seventh spot

01:05:46which puts him on the fourth

01:05:48row.

01:05:49And this is only the second

01:05:50pole ever for Kimi Räikkönen.

01:05:54It's most unusual.

01:05:55And we're thinking back to

01:05:56Michael Schumacher having

01:05:57had those problems.

01:05:59Came out straight out of the

01:06:00box when they finally got the

01:06:02fuel pump problem sorted and

01:06:04was quickest on his first

01:06:05opening lap.

01:06:05So I just don't think there's

01:06:07anything wrong, fundamentally

01:06:08wrong with the setup of the

01:06:09car.

01:06:09how much fuel is in Michael

01:06:12Schumacher's car.

01:06:13That is factor X for me right

01:06:14now trying to get to grips with

01:06:15this grid.

01:06:16I'll tell you what must be

01:06:16alarming for everybody too.

01:06:17Kimi Räikkönen was on the

01:06:18pole in the European Grand Prix

01:06:19earlier on this year in June.

01:06:22And he absolutely just walked

01:06:25away from the field.

01:06:26If his engine hadn't blown

01:06:28towards the end of the race he

01:06:29would have won it by a country

01:06:30mile.

01:06:32And again for Montoya there

01:06:34sitting in fourth spot.

01:06:35It is an absolutely topsy

01:06:37turbo.

01:06:38There's an awful lot of

01:06:39unknown factors gone into

01:06:42this and it's going to make

01:06:43for a very exciting start of

01:06:45the race tomorrow until we see

01:06:46what these fuel strategies

01:06:47play out like.

01:06:49Well think about the

01:06:49spoilers up there.

01:06:50I mean you've got Räikkönen

01:06:52who's a part of the

01:06:52championship, Barrichello who

01:06:54is a teammate to one of those

01:06:55going for the championships,

01:06:56Olivier who's not a part of

01:06:57it all, Montoya who's in the

01:06:59middle of it, Ralph Schumacher

01:07:00who could be a spoiler who's

01:07:01got a teammate involved, Alonso

01:07:03who could be a spoiler as

01:07:04nobody involved.

01:07:05And then finally when you

01:07:06get all the way back to

01:07:07seventh you've got Michael

01:07:08Schumacher, the man who's

01:07:09leading the championship and

01:07:11needed quite frankly to

01:07:12qualify better than this.

01:07:13And alongside him, well

01:07:14boy I'll say, and alongside

01:07:15him is David Coulthard and

01:07:16the McLaren launch control

01:07:18seems to be better than the

01:07:19McLaren so he could easily

01:07:20get at the Ferrari.

01:07:22So Coulthard could easily get

01:07:24in front of Schumacher when

01:07:26they go into turn one.

01:07:27But he is on the dirty side

01:07:28of the track course, Coulthard.

01:07:29Now think about this, Michael

01:07:30Schumacher is lining up behind

01:07:32his brother, Ralph Schumacher.

01:07:33Now I'm not going to say that

01:07:35anything would go on there, but

01:07:36a Williams in front of a

01:07:38Ferrari.

01:07:39By the way, we're waiting for

01:07:40Peter Windsor in the press

01:07:41room where all the drivers are

01:07:43going in right now.

01:07:43We'll hear from them in just a

01:07:45moment as soon as they get

01:07:46assembled.

01:07:46Peter Windsor is there.

01:07:49Let's listen in on the news

01:07:50conferences.

01:07:51In just a moment, we understand

01:07:53they should be talking.

01:07:55And this is the lap that did it

01:07:57for Kimi Raikkonen.

01:07:59And look at that hand, steady on

01:08:00the wheel, hardly any, certainly no

01:08:04sudden steering input.

01:08:05Look at this, smooth, minute

01:08:07correction there, very minute

01:08:09correction, looking very good through

01:08:11that long, long, 180 degree

01:08:13left-hander, had to turn six.

01:08:17Good grip, staying close into the

01:08:19apex, keeping himself well over to

01:08:20the left-hand side of the road for

01:08:21this right-hander, so he can come

01:08:23out of here with good speed and get

01:08:24himself down that Holman Boulevard

01:08:26into turn eight.

01:08:29So looking very smooth there.

01:08:31Yeah, absolutely.

01:08:33So how much fuel has he got in

01:08:34there?

01:08:34Oh, I don't know.

01:08:35Remember, they didn't go out in that

01:08:36first session this morning because of

01:08:37it being wet, but it didn't seem to

01:08:39bother McLaren at all.

01:08:40They were on a very, very carefully

01:08:42controlled tyre program, and it

01:08:44seems, judging by that, to have paid

01:08:46off enormously so far.

01:08:49Now let's listen in with Peter

01:08:51Windsor and our news conference, the

01:08:52top three qualifiers.

01:08:53From the United States Grand Prix

01:08:55to Indianapolis, a warm welcome to our

01:08:56fastest three qualifiers.

01:08:58Third quickest for Toyota, their best

01:08:59ever qualifying result, Olivier

01:09:01Panis.

01:09:01Second fastest for Ferrari, Rubens

01:09:03Barrichello.

01:09:05And on the pole for West McLaren

01:09:06Mercedes, championship contender, Kimi

01:09:08Räikkönen and Kimi almost seem to

01:09:10come from nowhere.

01:09:11You seem to have a very quiet,

01:09:12disciplined run into this qualifying

01:09:14session.

01:09:15Did it feel like a qualifying pole lap?

01:09:18It doesn't matter how it feels as

01:09:19long as it's on the first row in the

01:09:21first place, but no, we haven't got

01:09:24much running this weekend.

01:09:25It has been bad weather on the

01:09:27try only half an hour yesterday and

01:09:29then one session today.

01:09:31I wasn't very happy with the car at all

01:09:34yesterday and today, but we just got it

01:09:38right for qualifying and had a normal

01:09:41good lap and was enough.

01:09:44Well, obviously you're in championship

01:09:45contention.

01:09:46Your two main rivals are obviously behind

01:09:48you.

01:09:49Talk us through your feelings going into

01:09:50the race tomorrow.

01:09:52Of course, it's much better position now

01:09:54than maybe last race, but the race is

01:09:57long and I still think that we have a

01:10:00good strategy for the race and I'm

01:10:02pretty sure we should have a strong

01:10:04race and I don't know, we will see

01:10:07really what happens tomorrow.

01:10:09Are you approaching this as just

01:10:10another race weekend?

01:10:12Yeah, pretty much because we don't

01:10:15have much to lose, but I think so we

01:10:17have more to win than lose and just

01:10:20need to do our own best and hopefully

01:10:23enough to win the race.

01:10:24Rubens, problems for Michael today, but

01:10:28you're on the front row for the sixth

01:10:29time this year.

01:10:31Yeah, I was actually hoping for Paul.

01:10:33I think the car looked good for the

01:10:35whole time, the whole weekend.

01:10:38On the warm-up, it felt a little bit

01:10:39different due to the wind, but I think

01:10:41everyone felt the same.

01:10:43The times were not as competitive as

01:10:45they were this morning.

01:10:47But having said that, it still was a

01:10:50good lap.

01:10:50It was a little bit of a compromise on

01:10:53the set-up because of the warm-up, the

01:10:56car was really lose everywhere, but the

01:11:00compromise paid out a little bit.

01:11:02The car didn't feel as this morning, but

01:11:04it's still good.

01:11:05In the context of the championship, you

01:11:07find yourself in a very interesting

01:11:08position now.

01:11:09I mean, I love the challenges, so I think, you

01:11:13know, they all come to me in a way.

01:11:16I think it's such a good championship

01:11:17because you would say last race that the two

01:11:21main containers were Montoya and Schumacher, and

01:11:25then all of a sudden you see Kim Jong-po and the

01:11:28other two guys behind.

01:11:29So it is quite open, and it's going to be very

01:11:33funny tomorrow.

01:11:34And what role are you going to play in it?

01:11:36Hopefully to win the race.

01:11:37I think that's the first plan right now.

01:11:42Olivier, I think it's your best ever dry weather

01:11:44qualifying performance.

01:11:45A great result for Toyota.

01:11:48Did you feel as if it was going to happen coming

01:11:49into this race?

01:11:50Well, I think, to be honest, during all weekend,

01:11:53we were very competitive.

01:11:54When I started yesterday morning, I'm already on the

01:11:56top five, and I feel really good with the car.

01:11:59It's a really tough season for us, but I think

01:12:02every Grand Prix we work really hard between two.

01:12:05I mean, we improve the car step by step, and in the

01:12:08end, it looks really competitive.

01:12:11And sure, to be here, I'm quite happy today because

01:12:13it's a long time.

01:12:14I don't be here, and I hope we continue like this.

01:12:18And you've got championship contenders around you

01:12:20as well, obviously.

01:12:21Well, but this for me don't make any sense.

01:12:23You know, I don't play anything on the championship.

01:12:25I need to do my best for Toyota.

01:12:26I'm sure I try to do it tomorrow because we're not too far

01:12:30to be there in Jaguar to fight for the fifth place

01:12:32on the championship.

01:12:34It's quite really important for us.

01:12:36But for me, definitely tomorrow, I have different

01:12:39race, but I want to be good.

01:12:42Now if we could have some words from you in your own

01:12:43language.

01:12:44That's Olivier Panisse's best qualifying since 1999

01:12:48in the French Grand Prix.

01:12:50He qualified third.

01:12:51Then he's qualified now third three times.

01:12:54But the big story is Kimi Räikkönen on the pole.

01:12:58And of course, as Panisse said there, you know,

01:12:59they want to try and bring their team up into that

01:13:01fifth spot.

01:13:02Rubens Barakatlo said it's very simple.

01:13:04He wants to win, and that's the way he can help

01:13:06his teammate the most.

01:13:07Absolutely.

01:13:09Kimi Räikkönen on the pole.

01:13:10Olivier Panisse in third.

01:13:12Montoya in fourth.

01:13:13Boy, I really thought Montoya would get the pole.

01:13:16Ralph Schumacher there in fifth with very little running.

01:13:18Alonso in sixth.

01:13:19Down in seventh.

01:13:20Michael Schumacher alongside David Coulthard in eighth.

01:13:23Obviously, very close times.

01:13:24Cover these first eight people.

01:13:27But, you know, that first corner is awfully tight.

01:13:30Cristiano Di Marlo having a pretty good run there in the

01:13:32second of the Toyotas.

01:13:33Jano truly must be very disappointed with that tenth spot

01:13:36having been quickest pretty much all weekend.

01:13:38And Button and Villeneuve.

01:13:39Button again out qualifying his teammate just.

01:13:41Giancarlo Fisichella, Ralph Fuhrman, and the Minorities.

01:13:45Kind of back to normal here.

01:13:46Back to the back row.

01:13:47The way we're used to seeing them.

01:13:50Good or bad.

01:13:50Well, that about does it for our coverage from Indy for today.

01:13:53Don't forget to join us tomorrow at 1.30 Eastern time

01:13:56when Speed Channel will bring you live coverage

01:13:58of the fourth annual United States Grand Prix

01:14:00from the Indianapolis Motor Speedway.

01:14:02We'll start things off with the active free race show,

01:14:04and we'll stay straight through to the final interviews.

01:14:07Again, that's at 1.30 Eastern time.

01:14:09We're 12.30 if you're here in Indy.

01:14:11So for David Hobbs, Steve Madgett, Derek Daly, and Peter Windsor,

01:14:14I'm Rick DeBrule.

01:14:14We'll see you tomorrow for the United States Grand Prix.

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