“Kovalainen had a horrible race. You need to be realistic: he did almost everything wrong. I think everybody was watching on TV. I don't need to protect anybody. It was rubbish. What can I say? If I tell you it was good, I am a complete idiot. Of course he's a rookie but so is (Lewis) Hamilton so in these two weeks before the next race he needs to change his attitude and try to do better, because he has the capability to do it. Nothing went right today.”
-Renault boss Flavio Briatore on Kovalainen’s first ever F1 GP in 2007 where he finished 10th
“It has been a rollercoaster year for me, and it was like that again this weekend. We took a risk with the set-up yesterday, hoping for better conditions and when we got up this morning and saw the rain falling, we didn’t expect to have a fantastic afternoon. But it just goes to show that no matter how bad you think the situation is, you never give up. The strategy worked perfectly today, and the team deserves at least one podium today!”
-Kovalainen after securing his first podium at the 2007 Japanese Grand Prix