'I Was Faster Even Than Räikkönen' says Heidfeld

By BMW Sauber F1 Team
March 21 2007

Following third place in qualifying and fourth place in the race, Nick Heidfeld was among the most successful drivers of the Australian GP weekend. Accordingly, his evaluation of the first race of the season is very positive.

"I am very satisfied with fourth place," Nick said following the Australian Grand Prix in Melbourne. In qualifying, the German had already laid the foundation for the promising race result at the "Albert Park Circuit". He recorded the third-fastest lap time of all drivers. Additionally, the BMW Sauber F1 Team ace delivered an outstanding performance at the start of the race, which temporarily even took him to second place.

"I had hoped we would have a slight advantage at the start of the race as we did last season," Nick commented. "I was faster even than Kimi Räikkönen ahead of me but I wasn't able to catch up with him. I just managed to slip past Fernando Alonso and I had hoped that would be decisive for the race outcome. However, over the full distance McLaren was simply too strong."