Saturday: Chilton allows Marussia to outpace Caterham

Max Chilton – 21st and 19th [18th on the grid]:

I am so happy to have finished ahead of both Caterhams in qualifying for the first time since China. Beating one of them would have been a good result, but beating both Pic and van der Garde is truly incredible and shows just how fiercely we’re all fighting at this crucial moment in the season. It hasn’t been the most straightforward weekend for us on track and leaving the garage after the red flag, with only 3 minutes remaining in Q1, seemed like a tough ask. The track conditions were no longer the same, and the wind had made things more difficult in the first sector, that’s for sure. I gave it everything I had, and my lap was as good as I could have asked from myself. I am looking forward to my first Japanese Grand Prix at Suzuka and hope to continue this momentum in the race tomorrow. A big bravo to everyone on the team.

Jules Bianchi – 22nd and 22nd [21st on the grid]:

« It’s a great achievement by the team to bring the car to a point where we are able to outperform the Caterhams on merit, so it’s positive news for the remaining races. As for Suzuka, I’ve struggled a bit since the beginning and with only 33 laps covered so far – most of them this morning – we haven’t had the opportunity to get back to where we started so well on Friday morning, plus we had to focus on the race. Qualifying didn’t work out for me. We planned to do only one stint on mediums but because of the red flag my flying lap was done on more worn tires rather than new ones. The race will be difficult as well because there’s a lot of work to do from the last row. On a positive note, the team has done a fantastic job to build the car and allow me to be so close to Van der Garde and that’s an achievement in itself. I hope to build on this tomorrow and have a better race. »