Sebastian Vettel claimed his eighth win of the season in Italy, beating Jenson Button and Fernando Alonso...
Red Bull:
Sebastian Vettel: "It was an emotional win today. This circuit means such a lot to me and is very special. I had my first win here, so when I crossed the line I remembered every single bit of it. The podium is absolutely unbelievable here; when you stand up there you feel blessed, as it doesn't happen to many people. There are so many people underneath and you can see them all coming, even from Curva Grande - it's just unbelievable. This circuit has been tough for us for the last two years and so... to come back this year and win! The car was amazing in qualifying yesterday and in the race today it was even better. The start was not that good, Fernando was suddenly there and I didn't know where he was coming from - it took me a while to see we were three going into Turn 1. I kept second place and then after the restart, I was able to pass Alonso. He didn't give me much room there, but it was just enough, so it was very enjoyable. It was a great race for us. As it's 150 years for Italian Unity also, I think it makes it special for every one here, so thank you to all the fans."
Mark Webber: "I didn't get the best start, me and Jenson were together, so I lost a few spots there. I think also Sebastian didn't either, so there were a few different starts going on. Fernando made a phenomenal one. Then there was the restart after the safety car; I got a good one that time and managed to pass Jenson straight away. Then, on the next lap, I was lining up Felipe, breaking around the outside for turn 1, trying to get the inside line for turn two. I probably wasn't quite far enough to get completely inside, but when I tried to come out of the move the kerbing on the inside is obviously pretty high; as soon as I touched that I unfortunately made contact with Felipe and that was that. I then tried to get back to the pits, trying to lose the minimum time possible, the car wasn't too bad for the first part of the lap, but at some stage the wing got caught underneath, so I couldn't turn the car or brake. I went straight out of Parabolica and that was the end of my race."
McLaren:
Jenson Button: "It's nice to have fought my way back through to second - but it's frustrating to have had a problem at the start with the clutch, because it cost me dearly. I dropped back to sixth, then, at the restart, I had no way of keeping Mark [Webber] back, because his straightline speed was so strong, so I slipped to seventh. Obviously, that enabled the leaders to get a long way out in front, and I was delayed by a further four or five seconds when Mark and Felipe [Massa] tangled in front of me at Turn One. After that, I was able to get my head down and passed Lewis and Michael [Schumacher] within the space of about five corners, which was really satisfying. After that, I set about closing down Fernando [Alonso], it was great to be able to secure second because we got some good points for the team. On the whole, the team's done a great job this weekend, but it's the little problems that are frustrating: if you have one of those, then you're not going to beat Red Bull and Sebastian [Vettel]. Hopefully, we'll have no problems at the next race because if we can get everything together then we can challenge for a win."
Lewis Hamilton: "It was a good race: I finished and I got some points, so I can't really complain. At the restart, Michael [Schumacher] was on my outside; I was looking at him in my mirrors, then, all of a sudden, the guys ahead had gone, so I missed an opportunity to slipstream Sebastian [Vettel]. So they caught me napping. We were a little bit slow on the straight today, which meant it was hard to get past Michael, who was faster along the straight even when I had my DRS activated. I had to really fight Schumacher, but the fact that I finished ahead of him meant everything was okay. That's racing. The support we've had in Italy - the weather, the fans - has all been incredible and I'm really looking forward to coming back here again next year. I doubt it's still possible to beat Sebastian for the title, but we'll keep pushing. For now, I'm looking ahead to the flyaways - they're going to be exciting and I'm really focused on getting some more wins for the team."
Ferrari:
Fernando Alonso: "Returning to this magnificent podium wearing the Scuderia race suit is always very exciting. I said it yesterday: a podium place is within our grasp. We knew we needed to get a great start and we managed it, partly down to a great preparation job done with the engineers over the past two days. The start was really a magical moment, like in Barcelona, although we knew this was not our true position and that sooner or later we would have been passed. However, it was still very nice to see our fans cheering during those laps at reduced speed behind the Safety Car. There was nothing we could about Vettel, he was much quicker than us and passed me easily. The situation was better up against the McLarens: with the Softs, we could defend well, but on the Mediums they still have a significant advantage and I think that if the race had gone on a few more laps, I would have been off the podium. Having said that, I am happy with this result: we were better in the race than in qualifying, but that has been a constant factor since the start of the season. Sure, it would have been fantastic to do the double after 2010, but we must stay cool and concentrate and try to reach targets that are within our reach: today we did just that. It's true the title has gone now, but there is still great motivation: we want to win races and try to defend the position I have just reached in the Drivers' Championship."
Felipe Massa: "I can only be disappointed with this sixth place, because today I could definitely have fought for a place on the podium. Unfortunately, the incident caused by Webber cost me too much time and I dropped to tenth place. That meant I had to pass so many drivers to try and catch up to the leaders again, but by then it was anyway too late. The collision with Webber did not do any damage: he hit my wheels and that pushed me into a spin when we were at the second corner. I braked slightly late, taking the inside line and, going round the outside, he would never have got past. I am really disappointed, becau
Mercedes GP:
Michael Schumacher: "It was an exciting race today, both for me and I think for all of our fans, and that is why I am happy. The fighting against Lewis was big fun, and my mirrors seemed to be very small at times. We are both known for driving on the limit, and that is what we did. I had to make my car as wide as a truck, and had to stretch the possible as much as I could, but in the end, as expected, he was still faster. The start was ideal, I held back on purpose at first in order to use the grip perfectly afterwards, and then the left side was all free. To make the most of your possibilities is the maximum possible at times, and that is why I had fun today, especially knowing that there is more to come in the future, with all the support we have from Mercedes."
Nico Rosberg: "It was a disappointing race for me today in Monza. I had a difficult start on my prime tyres but still managed to gain a place at the first corner, so it was quite good. Then Liuzzi flew like a torpedo over the grass and put me out of the race. It's a pity because I had a strong strategy and, as Michael's good result showed, our car was very strong this afternoon."
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