July 10, 2005

Team McLaren Mercedes driver Kimi Räikkönen won the inaugural Turkish Grand Prix at Istanbul , taking his fifth victory of the season. Starting from pole position Kimi took the chequered flag after 58 laps 18.6sec ahead of Fernando Alonso (Renault). Juan Pablo Montoya, who had been pushed into a spin by a lapped competitor three laps from the end whilst lying second, came home third after holding second place for much of the race. This is the 40th Grand Prix victory for Team McLaren Mercedes. The team holds second place in the Constructors' Championship with 121 points, behind Renault on 130. Kimi is second in the drivers' rankings on 71 points, 24 points behind leader Alonso on 95.

The start : Kimi Räikkönen started the race from his fifth pole position of the season. He lost first place to Giancarlo Fisichella (Renault) at the first corner, but retook at turn nine and completed the first lap at the head of the field. Juan Pablo was fourth, retaining his qualifying position.

The race: After the pit stops of Alonso (lap 13) and Fisichella (lap 14) Kimi retained the lead ahead of his team-mate. Juan Pablo came in for his first stop on lap 21 and resumed after 7.9sec, remaining second. Kimi stopped one lap later (10.0sec) without losing his lead. On lap 39 Juan Pablo recorded the fastest lap of the race in 1m 24.770s. Two laps later the Colombian came in for his second refuelling stop while running second (7.7sec) and kept his place behind Kimi when he resumed. The Finn pitted on lap 45 in 6.2sec and crossed the finishing line to take his fifth win of the season. Juan Pablo looked on course to finish second when on lap 55 he was hit from behind as he lapped Tiago Monteiro (Jordan-Toyota) and was spun off. He recovered quickly to keep his second place ahead of Alonso, but lost his position one and a half laps later with an off caused by diffuser damage.

COMMENTS

Kimi Räikkönen: “I'm very happy to win the first ever Turkish Grand Prix. We arrived here with a strong basis thanks to the work put in back at base which definitely made our weekend a lot easier. I didn't make the best of starts as I had bit of wheel spin which allowed Fisichella to pass. However he ran wide later on the first lap which allowed me to re-take the lead. I was pushing as hard as I could, but we knew our strategy would work, so really after the first pitstop I could be safe. As a team we were a little bit unlucky today with what happened to Juan Pablo. At the end of the season two points can make all the difference.”

Juan Pablo Montoya: “I'm obviously disappointed to lose second place so close to the end of the race to Alonso. I had lapped Monteiro in the Jordan , but I think he must have locked up under braking and went into the back of me. The car felt OK for the first couple of corners after this, but when I came back to the pits after the race I could see that my entire diffuser at the back of the car had been destroyed. I then ran wide in turn eight which allowed Alonso to pass. I'm a bit disappointed as my car was very quick and the strategy was right, so second place would have been fairly easy. I had a bit of an incident in my first pitstop when the fuel nozzle got stuck, but that didn't really cost me too much time. I'm sad for the team because a one-two would have been really good for the Championships.”

Ron Dennis, Team Principal: “A very good race for the team and an excellent result for Kimi who drove a consistent and disciplined race. He made sure that he didn't get involved in any incidents. Our strategy proved to be superior, and two podium places are a good reward for the team's efforts. Regarding Juan Pablo's incident it should be noted that somebody who has been lapped already twice should make certain that he leaves enough room. The damage caused by the accident and Juan Pablo's off at Turn eight prevented us from achieving a one-two.”

Norbert Haug, Vice President Mercedes-Benz Motorsport: “Congratulations to Kimi on a convincing victory and an outstanding performance. We saw a super race at the inaugural Turkish Grand Prix and a good speed of our package on this technically demanding circuit. Unfortunately a twice lapped competitor who ran into the back of Juan Pablo – certainly not on purpose – prevented the team from scoring a 1-2 victory today. However we are pleased with the performance of both Kimi and Juan Pablo and the car on one of the most demanding circuits on the calendar. We are now looking forward to the rest of the season and will work hard to maintain our competitiveness".