F1 Japanese GP: Kimi Raikkonen wins from 17th on the Grid

Narain Karthikeyan, Jordan, 16th: “I made a good start but I got it a little bit wrong in the first corner because it was the first ever lap for me on these race tyres due to my problems on Friday afternoon and the grip level was not perfect. After the safety car went in I was able to hang on behind Massa until my first stop. After the stop the front tyres were graining a lot and after the second pit stop, I have really struggled with the car balance, as it was understeering a lot. Near the end of the race, I had to change my right front tyre, which unfortunately cost me some time. In general, it was an average race.”

Adrian Burgess, Jordan Sporting Director: “We brought both cars to the finish again which is good. Narain had an imbalance with the car, which damaged his front tyres, and eventually he locked up once too often and flat spotted one. We decided to change it for precautionary reasons, as it could have become too dangerous for him to carry on. Tiago had a good race again from the back and finished 14th. Now we are heading to the final race in China next week and try to finish with a good result.”

Christijan Albers, Minardi F1, 17th: “I was having a really good battle with the Jordans and had a faster car, but unfortunately, I made a mistake when I overshot the marks during my second pit stop. That led to a refuelling problem and the fire, which effectively put paid to my race. Apologies to the team, and in particular, to the front jack man, Sandro Parrini, and the refuellers”.

Jarno Trulli, Panasonic Toyota Racing, DNF: "Sato tried a manoeuvre that was obviously impossible. He just tried to overtake me but instead he hit me and pushed me off. There was no reason to try that move so I don't know what he was thinking. He's been causing problems for a long time and the FIA has to take action to stop it. The race had been going okay for me until then. We started from the pit lane to try a different strategy but we never had a chance to see it through. I'm obviously disappointed with how the weekend has gone but I knew that these last two races would be hard before I arrived. The new car has been difficult for me all weekend. But we'll carry on and hope to get something more out of Shanghai."

Juan Pablo Montoya, McLaren DNF: “What a disappointment for me and my team. I got off the line well but it was a bit crowded at the first two corners and I think and Kimi and I gently touched but fortunately nothing happened. However then Villeneuve missed the chicane and pushed me off the track and that was the end of my race.”

Antonio Pizzonia, WilliamsF1, DNF: “I spoilt my race just making a mistake really. I hit a kerb on the inside, which I shouldn’t have done and lost the rear of the car. That was it, really. All I can take for me is the experience of learning the track and putting another race under my belt. Unfortunately it didn’t end the way we wanted.”