F1 Madness

Tag: autodromo jose carlos pace

  • 2019 Formula 1 Brazil Grand Prix: Post Race Press Conference

    2019 Formula 1 Brazil Grand Prix: Post Race Press Conference

    DRIVERS

    1 – Max VERSTAPPEN (Red Bull Racing)

    2 – Pierre GASLY (Toro Rosso)

    3 – Lewis HAMILTON (Mercedes)

     

    TRACK INTERVIEWS

    (Conducted by Rubens Barrichello)

     

    Q: What a great race Max. You looked unbeatable today. Did it feel like, driving, that if you had been on any tyres you would have been unbeatable?

    Max VERSTAPPEN: Well, Lewis was very quick, so I had to keep pushing. All the time with the strategy he pitted one lap earlier so we had to be really on top of our pit stops. But yeah, two times we had a good move with him, so all the time that brought us back into first and yeah, from there onwards I could control the race with the tyres I had. Unbelievable. It was a lot of fun out there and of course great to win the race.

    Q: With the speed, whenever you overtook the Ferrari onto the last corner, did you think you had that speed to overtake Lewis at the same time?

    MV: Well, I was behind so I was pushing flat out on my our lap to try to be close to him and it was my only shot. Because of that I was close into the DRS. We knew that we had great top speed the whole weekend already, so yeah, then still of course it’s a guess but very happy to get past.

    Q: Well done to you and Honda, it’s a great achievement. Lewis and Pierre, how was this final move. Lewis, when you went to the inside, did you think that you had the gap to go, that you had the speed to get past him on the straight?

    Lewis HAMILTON: Honestly, I didn’t, but he did a great job, he was very fair with where he positioned the car. I massively apologise to Albon. I went for a move… the gap was kind of there, but obviously it closed right at the end and completely my fault. But still, a great race. Max did a fantastic job today. They just outclassed us in terms of overall performance. We couldn’t keep up with them on the straights. Honestly, I raced my heart out,. I gave it everything. I left nothing on the table and I took a lot of risks today, as you saw.

    Q: As you always do. The Brazilians love you. When you are here it’s always pure racing, so we saw pure racing today. [With] Max, do you think any strategy would have done the case with him today. He looked unbeatable today?

    LH: We threw everything and the sink at it. Honestly, we could keep up with them in the corners but they were outshining us on the straights, therefore I don’t think there was anything we could do.

    Q: Well done. Hey, Pierre! After a tough season, is it good to be back on that podium, the podium that you deserve since a long time ago?

    Pierre GASLY: It’s my first podium in Formula 1 and yeah for sure I will never forget it. It’s such a special moment, I don’t know what to say. It’s so emotional and also to get it with these guys, with Toro Rosso; they gave me a fantastic car since I came back and I’m just so happy for Honda, for Toro Rosso, it’s amazing day.

    Q: I know it’s your first [F1] podium but I meant that because you’ve been on the podium for so long in your career that it’s good to be on the podium in Formula 1 isn’t it?

    PG: I’ve been many times on the podium and you kind of forget it and that’s what I love about motor sport – these emotions, the fight. I just kept believing until the end. I saw they were battling and I tried to push as much as I could and the opportunity came to us. A great finish with Lewis as well. I was like trying to get low in the car, trying to get each Kp/h I could, but no, to these guys just a big congrats and a big thanks.

    Q: Well done to you and to Honda. To hold on to that last straight, that corner alongside Lewis must be…

    PG: I was strained. I told me engine to give me everything it had and I think without the progress have made it would have never been possible. I am just so happy; I don’t know what to say.

     

    PRESS CONFERENCE

     

    Q: Max, can you just explain to us what happened there. It was an inch-perfect race from you. How do you sum it all up?

    MV: Err, long summary! A lot of things happened. I think the start was good enough. I was happy about that. Then, the first stint everything looked quite good. Towards the end of that stint, yeah, just the tyres started to wear off a bit and then I had the traffic with the Williams cars and Lewis of course pitted that lap. It was not very nice. Actually, I did my pit stop and I came out also Robert came out and he almost took me out, I went into the wall. I had to brake there…

    Q: Did you lose any time there?

    MV: yeah, I almost caught the anti-stall, so yeah, it was very close. Then my out lap: luckily for me Lewis got stuck in the middle sector with Charles, so I pushed up to them and luckily I could get by Charles into Turn 12 and then I still had the tow and the DRS of Lewis and yeah, I was on full power and DRS open and I could get Lewis into Turn 1. From there onwards in that stint we managed the tyres quite well. I was waiting for Mercedes to react again but luckily we had enough of a gap to go one lap longer, so we did that. Good pit stop from the guys as well. I think it was 1.9 seconds, so that was incredible. And then on the medium tyre Lewis was pushing hard and I think we were quite closely matched and I think if there wouldn’t be a safety car it would have been a good fight towards the end of the race. But of course then the safety car came out and I think there the team did a really good job calling me in again for soft tyres. At the time I was a bit like, ‘is there going to work, I’m not sure’. But immediately in the re-start I had a good tow off Lewis and went around the outside. We had a good battle in Turn 1 and again in Turn 4. And then you could see that the tyre advantage really helped me of course and we could stay in first and control the race.

    Q: How much did you enjoy your battling with Lewis today?

    MV: Yeah, it was good. If you can battle against the world champion it’s always better than battling someone for P10 or whatever. I think it was a good battle and we gave each other enough room, just enough but I think it was cool.

    Q: Can you just talk us through that last re-start as well, because you got on the power very late?

    MV: Yeah, it was just the way I wanted to do it, so it worked out well. I immediately had a gap so it was good.

    Q: Is that something you learn in karting?

    MV: Yeah, I guess so. You do many re-starts in go-karting. Many things happen all the time. F3 as well, I guess. In F1, you know, we have done so many, not even you being the guy in the lead, but you are in the group. There are always things you can do better, things you can learn.

    Q: Pierre, first podium, just give us your emotions.

    PG: It’s just the best day of my life. As a kid you dream about being in Formula One, and then when it happens it becomes the best day of your life and then after you dream about your first podium. To be fair, I didn’t think this would happen, coming back with Toro Rosso during the second part of the season. I just kept working on myself, tried to push the team as much as I could, telling them, OK, we need to make the best out of all the opportunities we have until the end of the year. And today it just came to us. We had a really strong race before that in P7, behind the top teams, and then, when they started to battle. First the Ferrari, and then I was like: ‘OK, this looks quite similar to Bahrain 2018, in P4’, and then after I knew Lewis would try something. And then yeah, we just managed to get past the two and yeah, quite intense finish and just incredible to get my first podium in Formula 1.

    Q: What were your expectations coming into the race?

    PG: Starting in P6, I felt good in the car the whole weekend. I think we managed to get the car exactly where I wanted. I said OK, if we finish best of the rest again in the race, this will be amazing for us. So, that’s what we were doing. The whole race we had good pace. I was controlling the gap with the guys behind but we always had quite a safe margin. I could push quite nice. Even at the beginning of the race I could see that Albon and Charles weren’t pulling away so much, so I think the car was working really well. With all the safety cars it was like: ‘OK, let’s see what happens,’ and just tried to stay there and get the best out of what happens.

    Q: Can you just describe the view from up on the podium?

    PG: It’s crazy. These guys are used to it. You get used to being on the podium in the lower series, and then after coming into Formula One, it’s a feeling you miss. I was really missing it. My last podium was in Formula 2 when I was champion in 2016. And then, it’s something you want to experience, especially in Formula 1 and yeah, today, to be in the middle, in second place between Max and Lewis, my first podium in F1 is just… yeah, just insane, and amazing and really emotional for me.

    Q: Lewis, coming to you. Such an eventful race for you. Talking about your pace specific to Max, is there anything you could have done differently, strategically or otherwise, that you think could have led to you being faster than him today.

    LH: No, I don’t think so. Firstly congratulations to Max and Pierre, it’s really awesome to see, especially through the experience and journey he’s gone through from being in one team then to the next. To come through is really awesome. We had a close battle right to towards the end. Ultimately, it was a very tough weekend for us, a really tough race, trying to keep up with Max. The Red Bulls have had great race pace, particularly the second half of the season, which is often the case each year. So, fighting him, staying consistent, trying to stay on his tail through the race was… I was giving it absolutely everything. And then obviously we got him through the pitstop and then I got caught up behind a Ferrari and then he just blitzed past me on the straight and there was nothing I could do. Then we had another scenario. But at the end it was kind of… it was impossible at the end with the tyre deficit that we had. I made the call to pit, as they said, I’d only lose one position and it ended up being two. So, I gave it everything. I took a lot of risk at the end and I apologise to Alex. Obviously had no intention of coming together. It’s probably the first time I’ve come together with someone for a long, long time but I saw a door open and I kind of went for it, and it closed very, very quickly. I went straight to him after the race to apologise. Nonetheless, I think it was a great race and it’s great again to see the youngsters coming and driving so well. I’m battling as hard as I can to stay in the mix.

    Q: And Lewis, if you had, for example, put the Medium tyre on instead of a second set of Softs at that first pit stop, do you think it could have been any different?

    LH: I don’t know. I’d have to think about it. Strategy-wise, I think the team did a really, really good job with the strategy and, again, it wasn’t their decision at the end, they offered it as an opportunity for me, and I didn’t think losing one place, it would be so bad considering I’d only come out having lost one place and give me a chance to quickly get past Albon – but it wasn’t the case obviously. I think, when I came out of that first stop, I thought to myself I should have been on the Medium because it generally was a relatively easy overlap – but again, he would have just overtaken me on his out-lap anyway, so I would have still got stuck up by the Ferrari. And it probably would have been hard to have kept up with him with the pace of the Soft. We gave it everything, we threw everything we could at it, and we live to fight another day and I hope we have more great races like that.

     

    QUESTIONS FROM THE FLOOR

     

    Q: (Frederic Ferret – L’Equipe) Question to Max. As you drove earlier the Toro Rosso and Pierre was your team-mate at the beginning of the season, how did you rate this podium. And question to Lewis and Pierre: how was the battle between the two of you?

    MV: How I rate Pierre’s podium? Incredible. Of course, he anyway already had a great race. I think you were best of the rest, right? That’s already a good result and then yeah, you just stay out of trouble and other people, of course, make mistakes and you profit from that. I think it’s great to see Pierre up here. Now it’s also the second podium for Toro Rosso already this year, so I think they are very happy with this, and yeah, like I said, I’m very happy to see Pierre up on the podium. I always knew he was a very quick driver. I think this year in the beginning maybe didn’t work out the way it should but, as you can see, I think Pierre is very strong and, at Toro Rosso again, he regrouped and he had already before this race a lot of good results. So, this is even, I think, a bigger motivation.

    Q: Pierre, your battle with Lewis.

    PG: Intense. You see your first podium coming together and then you’ve got the World Champion behind you pushing you to the limit. I tried to defend the best way I could, and coming out of the last corner, just flat out and hoping that the engine can give you every single horsepower it can get. I was pressing the overtake button, trying to get low inside the cockpit and I could see his front wing and I was like: ‘please don’t pass me on the light’ ‘cos I’m going to be so pissed off if it happens. I really wanted to keep that second place. And yeah, I must say Honda have been improving so much over the last few months. And then yeah, without this progress it would never have been possible to hold that second place to a Mercedes. Just insane. I think the only thing we have to say is a big congrats and a big thank you to Honda today.

    Q: And Lewis?

    LH: I was very much the same. I was ‘snucking’ down, trying… he did a fantastic job. He put the car in the right place in every section of the track, was very fair and didn’t make any mistakes. So, hat off to him. He did a fantastic job. The Honda’s obviously made some big steps and it’s great to see another manufacturer as strong as they are now. It means that hopefully next year we’re going to have a serious three-way, four-way battle and that’s great for Formula 1.

    How was your car handling after the contact with Alex Albon?

    LH: I’ve had worse! It was OK. I didn’t really seem to lose anything. I never like to see damage on my car, I never like colliding with other drivers and so, naturally for a youngster like Alex, who’s been driving fantastically well, it’s not easy to be a team-mate for sure, of a well-experienced driver like Max but he’s been doing great and I can assure you I know exactly how he feels right now. And I can assure you, it’s not intentional, that’s why I went to apologise to him – and I’m sure I’ll see him shortly after this.

    Q: (Scott Mitchell – Autosport) To Lewis and Max, I don’t know if you’ve seen the incident between Charles and Seb but the two Ferraris colliding was obviously another big story from the race. You two have both got experience of what it’s like when you’ve got an intense fight with your team-mate but one which is usually respectful – but sometimes goes over the line. With what’s going on with Seb and Charles this year, have you seen that as a weakness within that team and are you surprised that it has eventually come to blows like it has today?

    MV: I think it’s always difficult to comment on that when you’re not inside the team. You don’t know what happened because you don’t know all the details. I think it’s very difficult to comment on that. I also haven’t seen the footage so I can’t comment on the incident itself.

    Q: Lewis?

    LH: I’ve not seen it. Naturally it’s never a great one between team-mates. I’ve experienced it first hand. It’s never a great thing for a team. I’m sure it wasn’t’ intentional but naturally you’ve got to… the burden is that there’s so many people behind you, it’s not just about you. When all those people are relying on you to do your job, and something like that happens. It’s not a great feeling. As I said, I haven’t seen it.

    Q: (Gianfranco Papini – MomentoGP) Lewis, you’re surrounded by promising drivers, two young stars. You were young 12 years ago…

    LH: Hey man, I’m still young.

    Q: (Gianfranco Papini – MomentoGP) You had intense battles with other fellow colleagues like them. What is your opinion about this new generation of F1 drivers?

    LH: Well, naturally when you get older you look down on the younger drivers and you think… you point the finger at the… no, I’m kidding. No, it’s inevitable that the youngsters are going to come through. There’s often a wave of young talent that manages to make its way through to Formula One and as I said, I think Formula One’s got a lot of new young blood with a lot of potential and they really are the future of the sport. And as I said, I think fortunately I feel that whilst the number shows a little bit higher, I feel like I’m able to still kick it with these guys and so I’m excited for the future racing with these guys and as I’ve said, if we can get these teams to be closer then we’re going to see more awesome battles like today and I think that would be great.

    Q: (Lars Van Soest – De Telegraaf) Max, how would you rate this weekend comparing it to all your other wins and other good weekends?

    MV: You can never compare weekends but it’s been very positive and I’m just very happy with the progress we have been making I think in the last few races. Just having a whole clean weekend I think is what we are always after and I think that’s what happened this weekend. Of course it’s great at the end of day to also win the race and yeah, it’s promising also for next year. I think we’ve learned a lot of stuff in the last few races so hopefully it’s a good sign to have put a start to next year.

    Q: (Marcelo Teixeira – Reuters) Lewis, how do you see your move on Albon late in the race? Did you think it was not the right time to try it or just a racing incident?

    LH: It’s always a big question, when is the right time to try it. We only had a lap and a half, I think it was, to go. An opportunity came, I was quicker through turn nine and I was within shooting distance so I gave it a shot. Ultimately, in my mind, I’m trying to catch Max… it was highly unlikely but that was the goal. I think I’ve got a penalty so I totally accept the blame as I was coming from behind, and as I said before, it’s not naturally an intention, you don’t hardly ever see me do that, collisions with anyone so… In hindsight, I could have waited, to come across the line but hindsight’s always a great thing. I will live to fight another day. That won’t be the last time that he’s in the position for a podium and he’ll have many more great races so I hope that as hard as it is a pill to swallow, I hope that he can learn from the experience also.

    Q: (Velimer Veljko Jukik – Avtofocus) Max, we have seen quite an advantage in this race, beside your driving skill. Can you attribute this to management of tyres, tactics or was it just pure power?

    MV: It’s a team effort today, I think. The car was working well, I was trying to be as consistent as I could be and the guys did a great job in the pit stops and strategy so I think all that together gave us the victory today. Power was very good, like I said it was a team effort and Honda is part of the team.

    Q: Lewis, can we please just get your reaction to the five second-penalty?

    LH: I just answered it. I fully accept the responsibility. I fully accept I was coming from behind so I’m the one that touched him, not the other way round. I’ve not seen the incident so I don’t know how bad it was but as I said, it looked like there was an opportunity so I went for it and it didn’t quite work out and I apologise to Alex and put my hand up and move forwards.

    Q: (Dario Coronel – Granpremioweb.com) For Max and Pierre;  it’s the first one-two for the Honda engine in 28 years. How do you feel?

    MV: Yeah, I always get reminded with the stats. The pole was the last time in 1991 here in Brazil and then… I think it’s a good time to start doing these things again. We keep relying on the results from the nineties. I think Honda is definitely on a very good way like Pierre said before. Throughout the season they have been improving massively so just very pleased with it.

    PG: Yeah, a similar comment. I think all the work, not only this season but since they came back into Formula One, they have had some tough times and they just kept developing, kept working hard and bringing the upgrades, some things worked, some other things didn’t work but at the end of the day, they are the ones who have improved the most. The attitude and the work they are putting in is just unbelievable and they have been supporting me since quite a few years now, since I was in Super Formula and to be part of the journey with them is just fantastic so today I think I am really happy to be P1 and P2 with Max and really happy we can give them this result.

    Q: (Frederic Ferret – L’Equipe) Pierre, when did you begin to start thinking you could be on the podium? Before the Ferrari accident, before the Albon?

    PG: No, no, I’m not a crazy guy you know. I’m objective. At that time I was like… after Valtteri (retired) we were P6, I knew that we had the pace to stay there so I was like OK, I’m going to see if I could try something at the re-start but in terms of pace I knew that that’s where we were at the time and of course the Ferraris came together so we were in P4. I thought OK, I might have a chance to try something again at the re-start. Actually Lewis, I think… yeah, you pitted so I think I was third. I must say at that time I was hoping the safety car could last slightly longer, I was like I would not mind if we cross the line behind the safety car. And then after we went again and of course I knew Lewis with fresher tyres would try to go for the win and would try to pass quickly so I just thought OK, if I try to stay close, if an opportunity comes I’ll take it. Sometimes things work out the way you want and you need to be… so yeah, we were second and yeah, during that last lap, I saw Lewis was behind whereas we had a gap behind so I knew there was a podium on the cards. I was happy with that but I really wanted to hold on to that second place.

  • 2019 Formula 1 Brazil GP: Friday Press Conference

    2019 Formula 1 Brazil GP: Friday Press Conference

    TEAM REPRESENTATIVES – Toyoharu TANABE (Honda), Otmar SZAFNAUER (Racing Point), Christian HORNER (Red Bull Racing), Frédéric VASSEUR (Alfa Romeo), Mario ISOLA (Pirelli)

     

    PRESS CONFERENCE

     

    Q: Mario, if we could start with you please. Cast our minds back a couple of weeks please, to Austin, when the 2020 tyres were tested by the teams. The feedback was mixed, what did the teams tell you, and what’s the plan going forward with these tyres?

    Mario ISOLA: Yeah, as you said, the feedback was mixed. I believed that we had quite difficult conditions in Austin. It was very cold and the new tyres are designed with a different philosophy. So the plan now is to test them again in Abu Dhabi where we have a two-day test planned specifically for testing the new construction and new compounds, so we will have a comparison that is more reliable compared to Austin. We tested this new construction during the year with the teams and with their cars and we found an improvement in terms of overheating, in terms of compounds with a wider working range – but mainly the new construction was designed because every year the performance of the cars is increasing and obviously we have to follow this increase in performance. If we don’t change the construction, the only possibility is to raise the starting pressure – and raising the starting pressure is making the overheating worse and the behaviour of the tyre in general worse. So, the new construction has been designed with the target to keep the pressure as low as possible, according to the improvement in the performance of the cars. So, I hope that we can have a test in Abu Dhabi that is more representative. I fully understand during the race weekend all the teams are focussed on the race weekend itself, so they cannot adjust the set-up of the car – the aero-balance of the car – and the new tyres have a different profile. They are wider, especially on the rear, and this has an impact on the downforce of the car, as well as the balance of the car. So, we need a bit more time to test them properly on long runs, to understand if we achieve this target. After that, obviously we are very happy to accept any… not accept any decision but to discuss the result of the test and to see what is better for the sport.

    Q: Looking further ahead, the 18-inch tyres for 2021 were tested by McLaren at Paul Ricard recently. What feedback did you get from the drivers and the team?

    MI: It was positive feedback. They said that the 18-inch tyres were better than expected. They are more reactive, we confirmed some results that we had with Renault at Paul Ricard in September. So now we are finalising the 2020 test plan. Obviously we will have another 25 car-days of tests but I’m very positive. And in any case, what we have developed for the 2020 tyres, we have some concepts that we can transfer to the 18-inch tyres. So, it’s useful to keep this direction for the future.

    Q: Fred, coming on to you. We’ve asked you this question for a while now and you’ve finally got an answer for us: Alfa Romeo have re-signed Antonio Giovinazzi. Can you tell us your reasons for that?

    Frédéric VASSEUR: I think he did a very strong second part of the season, he improved a lot. He is now matching Kimi in quali and I think the issue is not on the driver side. We have to stay focussed on this and keep a consistent line-up, and it will be the best thing to do.

    Q: You say the issue isn’t with the drivers. Let’s turn our attention to the team. How well has this year gone for you and what are your plans for the team in 2020?

    FV: The plan is to do a better job next year for sure. We started pretty well this season, we were P4 after five or six races and then we started to have an issue. Different issues, not always the same, but we didn’t score a point in the second part of the season – or one or two points – but it’s not an issue always with the pace and, at the end of the day, we are doing too many mistakes collectively and this is the big issue.

    Q: Otmar, Checo told us in the press conference yesterday that 2019 has been a difficult and disappointing year for Racing Point. Would you agree with him?

    Otmar SZAFNAUER: Well, it’s not what we wanted. We definitely wanted to be a little bit further ahead. We’re just one point ahead of Toro Rosso and 18 behind Renault, so yeah, we were hoping to be fifth or fourth this year, so from that regard, it’s a bit disappointing. However, having looked back at what happened the year before this, when this year’s car was in development, we were in a bit of turmoil, especially financially, so it’s not surprising – although as a team we always want to do better.

    Q: As you say, you’re 18 points behind Renault, two races to go. How do you fancy your chances of catching them and even beating them?

    OS: Well, we’ll do our best. If we can mind the weighbridge and not start from the pitlane, that should help. Collectively, if we do a good job… but I think it’s not just up to us. I think we’ll need a bit of luck to be able to catch them – but we’ll do the best we can.

    Q: Tanabe-san, has this been a better first season with Red Bull than you expected?

    Toyoharu TANABE: So far, after 19 races in this season with Red Bull, we achieved positive results compared to previous years. And then two wins, one pole position and then, additionally, both teams on the podium in German Grand Prix. We made considerable good progress in the year. We want to do our best in the rest of two races in this season and then we want to carry over this positive progress and the momentum for next year.

    Q: As you say, lots of progress but has it been better than you expected, coming into the relationship?

    TT: In terms of the relationship, I think very good. And then, so far the results of the race depends on the performance compared to other competitors. It’s not easy to say good or bad. As a result, as I said, we got wins and a pole position. It’s good progress in the relationship.

    Q: Thank you. Christian, perhaps I could bring you in on this. How would you sum up progress with Honda during this first season together?

    Christian Horner: I think it’s been really positive. It’s been a great relationship. The two companies are working really well together. In our first year we have achieved seven podiums to date, two grand prix victories, two pole positions – albeit that we only started from pole once – but yes, the progress that has been made with the introduction of each engine has been great to see. Reliability has been strong. This year was always going to be a transitional year in this first year of this new partnership but it feels like momentum has built through the year and with stability of regulations in all areas for 2020, we’re really looking to take the positive momentum from RB15, the current car, into RB16, which will be our 2020 contender.

    Q: Better than expected?

    CH: I think in many respects, yes. I think if you look at… there were a lot of questions as to why we had made the move to Honda. I think very quickly, at the first grand prix, we achieved a podium. We’ve scored more points than we had at this time last year. All around, reliability has been strong, performance has been getting better and better. I think on the chassis side we were affected more than we thought going into the year by the front wing regulation change and Honda have certainly exceeded our expectations in all areas. So, it has been a really very positive start to this partnership.

    Q: Christian, just one more question for you. You’ve re-signed Alex Albon for 2020. Just your reasoning behind that?

    CH: Obviously Alex has done a very good job in his first year in Formula 1. He started the year at Toro Rosso and we then took the opportunity at the summer break to promote him into the senior team. The reason behind that was to have a look at him within our own environment. And since stepping into that seat he’s finished in the top six at every grand prix, sometimes having to start from the back of the grid or even the pit lane. So, he’s driven exceptionally well. He’s given great feedback; his pace is improving and improving, at many circuits at which he’s never been to before or countries he’s never been in, like here in Brazil this weekend. He’s earned the seat on merit. We’re excited about his potential for the future. It was a relatively straightforward decision to come to, to extend his relationship with the team as the partner for Max in 2020.

     

    QUESTIONS FROM THE FLOOR

     

    Q: (Scott Mitchell – Autosport) Christian, on Alex: he’s had a pretty rollercoaster 12 or 13 months from thinking he’s racing in Formula E to getting his F1 opportunity, driving an F1 car for the first time just before pre-season testing in the shake down and then obviously the Red Bull call–up. Now he’s going to be going into next year in a car you hope is going to be fighting for the title. Have you ever seen a turnaround like this in someone’s career and how well do you think has Alex handled that? 

    CH: What it demonstrates from Alex’s side is great tenacity. Originally he was part of the junior programme, he was released from that early on in his career and he really had to fight to retain a career in motorsport and rely on his talent, tenacity and never-give-up attitude. And the way he applied himself, you know, driving for Fred’s team in Formula 3, he pushed Leclerc hard that year. Formula 2 he graduated to and he had a strong career in Formula 2 and then, as you say, he was off to another discipline and then, ironically, trigged by the events created by Daniel’s decision to leave to Renault created this opportunity for him to join Toro Rosso and then very quickly you could see that he had a decent talent and great race craft and that’s continued and grown. And then the opportunity came for us to have a look at him within Red Bull Racing. It just shows that if you have the right commitment, the right attitude then things can turn around and talent does always rise to the top.

    Q: As a follow-up to that, can you compare and contrast Alex with Pierre Gasly?

    CH: I think that obviously for Pierre it was very tough for him coming into the start of the season off the back off two accidents in pre-season and that I think definitely affected his confidence and of course being the team-mate to Max Verstappen is a very tough job to have, having that reference point. For Pierre, it was a difficult first half of the season for him. Obviously we felt that with the pressure building on him, the public pressure, the media scrutiny, it was right to remove him from that and put him into the slightly less pressured environment of Toro Rosso. And since that switch I think he has driven again exceptionally well. You can see his confidence is growing. He’s driven some very strong races and his pace is getting better and better. He looks happier in that environment, which is good to see.

    Q: (Jesus Balseiro – Diario AS) Christian again, also about your drivers. Carlos Sainz used to be a Red Bull driver. What’s your opinion about his performance this year. And also, at any point did you regret losing him, just considering him as a good option for the second Red Bull this season?

    CH: Well, I think it’s been good to see Carlos get into a good car this year and he has done a very good job. He has done a very good job. He has driven well. He has very much been the best of the rest after the group of the top three teams and he’s driven some very strong races this year. We elected to go our different ways but we are still proud that we gave him the opportunity to come into Formula 1 and that he’s managed to use that opportunity to carve himself our a career, albeit now with another team.

    Q: (Marcel Teixeira – Reuters) I would like to know from the three team bosses how useful was this first session, because of the climate conditions, of course? It seems we’re going to have wet weather again this afternoon.

    OS: We didn’t do much running so… We did a little bit of running on the intermediate tyres so it was useful to do that. We gained a bit of understanding and a bit of data on what to do here on the intermediate tyre but we’ll see what the rest of the weekend holds. I believe tomorrow and Sunday will be dry.

    CH: Well, for us it was quite an expensive session. It started good. Alex, first time in Brazil, first time on the track, went fastest on the intermediates and then as the circuit looked like it was starting to get dry, I think there were ten cars that went out on slicks and Max went off at turn two – but on his own this time…

    OS: On his own last time too, by the way!

    CH: And Alex unfortunately, with cold brakes, he locked up into the last turn and did a bit of damage so it’s dented the mechanics’ lunch break to get the car ready for the next session.

    FV: For sure it’s not an easy session, it was much less expensive for me than for Christian, but he has much more money also. But no, at the end, the evolution of the track was so huge that it was difficult to do comparison. You had some cars on track with slicks, with wets, with inters [so] I’m not sure it was the best session of the season.

    Q: (Emerson Furkim – Car Magazine) I would like you to talk a little bit about the new regulations for the 2021 season, so I have two short questions. The first one: do you think that the budget cap will really close the gap between the teams? And the second question is will the fans really see more overtakes on track with the new cars?

    TT: For the PU manufacturers, we don’t have a budget cap. In the regulations, we have a testing time limitation, big reduction required and in terms of the teams, I need to hear from the other people. Also that area of chassis development required (for more overtaking) we will see. From a PU point of view, we try to make a strong PU and then make the race more fun.

    OS: Well, the budget cap… we’re going to be nowhere near it so it will not have a big impact on us but some of the bigger teams that will have to perhaps downsize I’m sure it will have an impact in the short term and then they’ll hit some type of equilibrium where they’ll continue to be strong but I think it will have an impact at the beginning. Will the new regulations help overtaking? I can’t predict that. We thought that the new front wing this year was going to do that and it didn’t so I’m unsure. Hopefully the work that’s been put in with creating a different wake of the leading car will have an impact on the following car but whether it allows more overtaking, I can’t predict that.

    CH: Well the budget cap question… what you have to remember about the budget cap is that it’s fixed for a five year period so for certainly the top three teams it’s a considerable challenge to get into a position to obviously get under that cap for 2021 onwards. And then obviously once we are there we have to stay there for five years, so whilst there may still be some divergence between the smaller teams and the larger teams over a period of time and hopefully as revenues continue to grow within the sport with the plans that Liberty… and the growth that they expect to see during the next five years I think things will naturally converge. I think the frustration about the regulations are it makes next year very expensive because we have effectively three things going on: we have the current car to develop, we have tyre testing on behalf of Pirelli with a sort of an interim car and then we have the development of a new car to a new set of regulations, so next year is a big challenge. And in terms of the outcome to the rules, do they achieve the target? Only time will tell. I think the intention is great in what they are wanting to achieve with this high wake concept. Whether that’s achievable only time will tell. The cars are going to look a lot different, it’s very much a clean sheet of paper, the regulations, so with that you tend to get divergence rather than convergence and obviously the cars are a little simpler, there’s not as many aerodynamic influencing elements all over the car so it’s certainly going to be interesting and hopefully the intention is to get it to be more driver influenced which I think is only a positive thing.

    FV: Yeah, the situation is a bit different compared to the teams but for sure the budget cap won’t affect at all the six or seven teams on the grid. It will affect the top teams but on the other hand they will have more resources to develop the new car next year as Christian said before, but the most important thing for me is the stability of the regulations of other period but if we change the regulations another time in ’23 or ’24 but it will be very difficult for the small teams to have an advantage on this. And then on the overtaking, I think the target is clear but the FIA and the FOM worked pretty hard to reduce the wake of the cars and to have a better understanding of this but now we will see only in Melbourne ’21 what is the situation.

    MI: To reply to the question, we are not subject to the budget cap. About the regulations, I want to be positive because if it is true that the cars that are following are losing a lot less downforce, obviously this is a big help for the tyres not to overheat and to keep the performance and this should help overtaking, then obviously we will know in Melbourne 2021 but I want to be positive. I think we are taking the right direction.

    Q: (Scott Mitchell – Autosport) Christian, you mentioned Alex’s off in FP1. Obviously the conditions were quite a significant factor in that, so can you just sort of brush this one aside or has he got a little bit of a nasty habit of this, because we’ve seen a few times in practice this year he’s had quite costly accidents?

    CH: I think today wasn’t… you can’t put on Alex’s account. I think maybe we were a little bit too optimistic getting out there, trying to get him laps in on a track that was still pretty damp in the middle sector. Max, as I say, he had a moment at turn one, turn two. There were other cars that were running wide so I don’t think today we can blame that on Alex but he has had a few little incidents this year. Thankfully they’ve all been on Fridays and Saturday mornings. When it’s come to it in qualifying and the race he’s absolutely delivered.

  • F1 2019: Brazil GP – Friday Practice Round-Up

    F1 2019: Brazil GP – Friday Practice Round-Up

    Free Practice 1

    Alex Albon, newly re-signed at Red Bull for 2020, was the quickest in the first practice session ahead of Sunday’s Brazilian grand prix.

    It was a erratic session for Albon as he also ended the morning’s wet running in the barrier on the exit of Jun Cao. The opening practice session of the weekend was dampened, literally in this case, by a downpour. It didn’t deter cars from venturing out on the famed Interlagos circuit though. The rest of the weekend is expected to be dry but various teams took the opportunity to run checks and constant-speed aero tests.

    Valtteri Bottas was second quickest for Mercedes while Seb Vettel and Charles Leclerc rounded out the top five for Ferrari. Leclerc has incurred a ten place grid penalty for Sunday’s race after fitting a new internal combustion engine to his car.

    Towards the end of FP1 several drivers declared the circuit nearly ready for slick tyres. However, it was just out of the window for running on slicks as Daniil Kvyat, Max Verstappen, and as previously mentioned, Alex Albon all found out.

    Free Practice 2

    With improved conditions for FP2 teams were eager to get out and get some laps in dry conditions. This was not the case for Robert Kubica who opened the session by crashing at T3 in the early stages of the session. After having to sit out of FP1 to make way for Nicolas Latifi, he had to sit out FP2 as well.

    The session, however, belonged the Ferrari’s with Vettel topping the time sheets with a 1:09.217 and Leclerc just 0.021s off the German as second fastest. Vettel, who began the session on the medium tyres, was fastest on the harder compound as well. Ferrari are once again looking strong on one lap pace. Their race pace has them wanting.

    Verstappen was third fastest for Red Bull 0.134s off Vettel’s benchmark. The Dutchman did not seem too concerned saying that the car was working well and that he feels they will be stronger in the race.

    The Mercedes pair were fourth and fifth with Bottas ahead of Hamilton who was a little more of the pace than his Finnish team mate.

    A surprise sixth fastest was the Haas of Kevin Magnussen ahead of Renault’s Daniel Ricciardo in seventh and Alfa Romeo’s Kimi Raikkonen in eight.

    A tough session for Albon saw him ninth fastest with Carlos Sainz in the McLaren rounding out the top 10.

    It was a session to forget for the Toro Rosso team as both their cars retired from the session with engine issues. Pierre Gasly’s engine gave up the ghost 20 minutes from the end of the session while Daniil Kvyat’s engine gave up with around 5 minutes left in the session. That brought a premature end to FP2.

     

     

    Photo credit: Scuderia Ferrari Mission Winnow
  • 2019 Formula 1 Brazilian Grand Prix: Thursday Press Conference

    2019 Formula 1 Brazilian Grand Prix: Thursday Press Conference

    DRIVERS – Romain GROSJEAN (Haas), Daniel RICCIARDO (Renault), Valtteri BOTTAS (Mercedes), Sergio PÉREZ (Racing Point), Robert KUBICA (Williams)

     

    PRESS CONFERENCE

     

    Q: Robert, if we could start with you, please. You finished second here in 2009. Could you just give us your thoughts on being back at Interlagos and your hopes for the weekend ahead?

    Robert KUBICA: Yeah, it has been a long time ago actually. It is difficult to say about expectations, you know. We have been struggling all year, so… although 2009 it has been very surprising for me to finish on the podium as it wasn’t a great year with BMW, but I would say it’s nearly impossible this time that we will be able to fight for anything higher than what we have been doing all year. Although, Interlagos is a bit special and anything can happen, but you have to have the pace. The weather is playing quite an important role. There have been many races, thrilling let’s say races here around this track due to the weather but you have to have pace and that is what we are lacking all year.

    Q: You say you’ve been lacking that all year but we’re now at race 20 of 21, when you look at the bigger picture can you just reflect on your comeback season for us?

    RK: Well, it’s definitely not the easiest season and not the season we were hoping for. I think every member of Williams is not happy with what we have seen this year. The team is working hard but it is not an easy season. There are many things which we could probably handle better. But there are also things which I think that although the season has been difficult we have handled in a good way. I think the guys on track always did a very good job with what we have, especially in the beginning of the season it wasn’t easy and the group stayed strong, united and very, very positive, which is good to see in such a difficult period. But, you know, it’s the kind of situation where the people on track they cannot make your car going one second faster. They can make you car going slower, but not faster. And definitely we need to improve what we get, the pace of the car, and then everything will become easier. And also for the guys on track the work will be more easier; more fun. Of course this will not happen with me, as I’m leaving Williams, but I hope this team will improve their situation for the future, especially because the guys they deserve it. They are really good people and they are working hard, so I hope good times, or better times, will arrive soon for Williams.

    Q: And Robert, what about your own performance this year behind the wheel?

    RK: I think the general picture is massively hidden by what we went through this season and many things did not help and actually did influence in a negative way what I was able to do. But, you know, coming back to a competition sport, as Formula 1 is, on the highest level of motorsport, after a long time and with my limitations a lot of people did not even think I would be able to race. I heard many stories that in Turn 1 that will not be able to react to situations and probably the opening lap is one of the things, which I managed well this season. I heard rumours that I would not be able to race in Monaco, and probably Monaco was one of my best drives during this year, although I was still far behind. But feeling-wise it was positive. I’m leaving this season, of course not happy with the general performance, but pretty happy with how my body, my mind and my brain reacted to the difficult challenge I had this year.

    Q: Thank you Robert and good luck this weekend. Romain, you haven’t finished in the points since Germany. Can you just describe how difficult the season half of the year has been for you and the team?

    Romain GROSJEAN: Yeah, good morning all. Well, yes, it’s been a rough season generally. We had a very promising winter testing and got to Australia and things were looking good until the pit stop and that pit stop was kind of a bad curse for the whole season and then we had good quali pace and race pace was more difficult. And yeah, I think we are doing the best we can and honestly on-track and off-track the boys are working very, very hard. And honestly there is not much to say about what we could do better with what we have got but as Robert mentioned I think we’re in a little bit the same position at the minute. The car is just not good enough and everything we do is not reflected on track. Germany, it was good to be in the points. It was a bit of a crazy race and the idea was to finish the race and we did and that was positive but yeah more recently it has been complicated to fight also for the points, but again not the fault of the team – the work is good; it’s just the car we have is not good enough to fight for good points. So I guess the focus was very early on into 2020 and make sure that next year we get a better tool to work with.

    Q: So if this year’s car isn’t good enough, what does the team need to do to ensure it doesn’t have a repeat of 2019 next season?

    RG: I think that’s a good question for Guenther. I think the team knows what needs to be done. There have been a lot of discussions; there has been a lot of, how can I say, I don’t find the word in English, but just the way we operate, the race team, it’s great and many races I think we perform better than we should. You know, being in the top 10 in Russia, in qualifying in Suzuka, not far from the top 10 in America, in quali it just shows that we are outperforming when we can, on new tyres. The race always unfortunately brings back the truth. I know that Guenther has been working very hard with all the boys, our chief engineer, Ayao Komatsu, and make sure that we react well for next year. I think everyone sees that – our partners, like Richard Mille just announced that they are going to carry on with us for one year, so everyone believes that the team is going to do good this year.

    Q: Would you say that this is your most frustrating season in Formula 1?

    RG: It’s been a tough season and obviously when you come to the race and you know that the chances of fighting for a good position is hard, then it’s not easy. But I’ve know that in my career. 2013 was a really good season and then 2014 was very difficult and we didn’t have a good car but then the team, at the time, in Enstone reacted well and 2015 was good again. It’s the same thing as Haas – 2016 was a good start, 2017 a bit more complicated and 2018 really good. So, I’ve got confidence that we can bounce back. Yes, it’s frustrating and I must be a bit crazy, because I’m always looking forward to come to a race and very happy to be in Brazil. Maybe on Sunday when we’ve done 71 laps and we haven’t been able to challenge it’s a bit of a different feeling but it doesn’t matter, we’ll still be happy to go to the next one.

    Q: Thanks Romain and good luck this week. Sergio, you’ve scored in six of the last seven races. At the summer break you set the team the target of having the fourth fastest car at the end of the season. How close to that target have you got?

    Sergio PÉREZ: Yeah, I don’t think we have achieved what we wanted this year. It’s been a disappointing season in a way. We knew it was not going to be great since the beginning but we kind of expected to be a bit more competitive by now. I think in the second half of the season we’ve been strong, in different circuits, different places, which is always positive. I think McLaren, in that midfield, has been very consistent, very strong, but I think we have been in the mix with all the others and we’ve scored a good amount of points since the summer break, so I think there are a lot positives to take, but the general picture is, yeah, it’s not where we want to be.

    Q: You haven’t reached Q3 since the Belgian Grand Prix. How much has the car’s lack of qualifying pace compromised your races?

    SP: Yeah, it does. I don’t think we have quite the pace in quali but then come race day we seem to be on the stronger side. Good strategy also from the team. I think the team has been tremendous in that regard. They are always maximizing the maximum, especially in the last couple of races – outsmarting other teams with the strategies, with everything we possibly can. So hopefully we can keep going. There is still tomorrow and a lot to play for. We are in a big battle in the Constructors’ with Toro Rosso at the moment, so hopefully we can finish ahead.

    Q: Just one point the gap to Toro Rosso, but you are only 18 behind Renault. Do you have enough in your armoury to challenge Renault for P5?

    SP: 18?

    Q: Yes.

    SP: Well, it’s not over until it’s over, so we’ll try our best!

    Q: A knowing nod from Daniel Ricciardo. Sergio, thanks for that. So, Daniel, Renault has hit a bit of form. You’ve scored points in the last couple of races and drove a particularly strong race in Austin. Have you found some consistency in the car?

    Daniel RICCIARDO: I think so. Like, on Sundays it certainly seems to show a bit more now. The qualifying – we’ve still had a good run of Q3s but we’re not always there, but comparing to, as Sergio says, comparing to McLaren who have been our midfield target this year after their form, it seems like qualifying most weekends they’ve still got a good buffer but come race day we are able to, if not beat them, then get much closer to their pace. We are starting to get some consistency with the car, which is good. I think as well for me, naturally, the more races I do and the more familiar I am with the car, the more I start, just myself, to get consistent; make fewer errors and this and that. But yeah, it’s been a good run of races for sure. What was it, sixth in Austin? It’s like sixth is a big deal and that was quite exciting. Yeah, we’re not spraying champagne on the podium but there is still a lot of satisfaction to take from a sixth place for us.

    Q: You say a good run of races, but what about the season as whole? How do you reflect on year one with Renault? Because there were some people who questioned your move from Red Bull to Renault.

    DR: Yes. I knew they would and I knew all this was going to come but I was very, I guess open-minded for the season. Firstly, I was excited to have a fresh start and a change. I’ve made the mistake in the past of setting to high an expectation and left disappointed, so I more came into the season excited for something new and a new challenge. I didn’t really expect the world from this season. I expect a lot from myself but I knew it would take time to get the team to where we want it to go. We’re still not there but I think in the second half of the season we have had a bit more consistency. That’s been more positive. So looking towards what we are really trying to achieve next year it looks better. We’ll start to expect more – not only from myself but also from the team come 2020. But I think we have learned a lot. Personally I have. The results haven always been what we wanted but I definitely don’t see it being a year to forget or anything like that, far from it.

    Q: So what are you really trying to achieve in 2020?

    DR: Champagne. I mean really, when I signed with the team, 2020 was the target to finish on the podium, at least once. That’s really the target. Yeah, we’re still a little bit away from that but McLaren are proof of the pudding that you can really make a big difference in one season, so I think with a strong off-season it’s not impossible for us to have a chance to fight for that. I think ultimately whether it’s champagne or not we want to closer to the top three and actually be in the fight with those three teams more consistently next year.

    Q: Valtteri, there have been a few celebrations in the UK since the last race, talking about Mercedes’ celebrations obviously, how proud are you of your role in the team’s success this year?

    Valtteri BOTTAS: Yeah, we had nice celebrations at the factory last week. Actually, when you go there and see all the people and all the smiles and all that you actually realise what we’ve done together as a team. So, that’s always a very, very nice moment, with so much good energy and happiness. So, for sure it means a lot to me, to be part of this team, breaking records, being one of the team members of many who make it possible. And yes, it’s been a much better season from my side than last year, so it’s been nice to contribute properly to the achievements we’ve got as a team. So… yeah. One of the many proud team-members, for sure.

    Q: You say it’s been a better season than last year. Would you say this has been your best season in Formula 1 from a driving point of view?

    VB: I believe if I look at it overall, the season yes, it’s been my best so far in Formula 1 but still not a season that I’m aiming for. Still need a bit more consistency, fewer mistakes but the thing that gives me good feeling and confidence for the future is now actually really starting to see the work we’ve been doing with the engineers and what I’ve been doing with myself and driving-wise, and being really able to target many of the weaknesses I’ve had, and been able to improve my pace in different circumstances quite a lot. So that’s very satisfying to see and makes you want more.

    Q: And now that both championships have been sealed and you’re guaranteed second place in the Championship, can we expect a change in approach from you coming into this weekend or Abu Dhabi?

    VB: I don’t think so. I think it’s the same approach. There’s still two opportunities to win a race and that should be the only goal for me. There’s very positive momentum for me and I want to keep that going – and then continue from there next year. So, look forward to the last two ones.

     

    QUESTIONS FROM THE FLOOR

     

    Q: (Frederic Ferret – L’Equipe) Question to all drivers. What kind of memories do you keep from Ayrton Senna and what kind of legacy do you think he left to Formula 1?

    RG: Ayrton has been incredible for the sport. He’s been an icon in Formula 1. I started watching Formula 1, the last few years of Ayrton, fight with Alain Prost. And obviously being French, you wanted to support Alain – but also you couldn’t not support Ayrton, so it was a bit of a hard decision to pick up which one I wanted to support the most. But yeah, Ayrton has been an incredible driver. 25 years later we’re still remembering him as if it were yesterday. We still know what you were doing that day – if you were born – in May ’94. It’s a big, big name in the history of Formula One.

    DR: He’s certainly left a legacy bigger than anyone else really, I think, in terms of the name is still so common 25 years on. Our hotel is – and I know we’re in Brazil – but still it’s filled with Senna memorabilia, artwork. They still hold him very close to their heart and it’s nice to see that. And for me as a driver, and as a kid watching him, and I guess following him, my admiration was his ability to be so loved off track and have, not only Brazil but nearly the whole world behind him, but then on track he was as ruthless as they came, y’know? That competitor in him was amazing but then to have that softness off the track. I would say that was pretty admirable.

    VB: For sure he left a massive mark and legacy. Time goes pretty quickly but his memory is not getting any weaker, for sure, so he’s always going to be on everyone’s minds. For sure here in Brazil, massively, but also all around the world. I think his career, he’s motivated so many young kids, like me and I think all of us, to be better racing drivers. I’m really out of words, he just left a massive mark and it will always continue like that.

    SP: A tremendous character out of the car. What he did for his country, how proud he was. You can see these days how much they still love him. Not just in Brazil, all around the world, and what he did on track was spectacular. Those races where him, purely as a racing driver, made all the difference. I’ve never seen something like that in my career. He definitely left a big mark in the sport and he’s a big hero for all the generations. Especially our generation.

    RK: Yeah, I think as everyone’s said, big name, big historical name. I think it’s impressive that, after 25 years since he passed away, it says everything that we are still talking about his human aspect. We concentrate a lot about the driver but I think he was really a hero of humanity, and that’s why he is still loved and has such respect after 25 years.

    Q: (Dan Knutson – Auto Action / Speed Sport) Robert, where do things stand now regarding you finalising plans for next year?

    RK: They stand pretty well, I would say. Of course, time is running and the clock is going ahead but I’m pretty confident things are looking good. Of course, every week something is happening, in positive and negatives, but it’s moving. So, I’m pretty relaxed and working, as I always said, since Singapore when I was asked. For me, racing is something which I’m looking forward and working on this and probably also combining different programmes.

    Q: (Emerson Furkim – Car Magazine) Question to all drivers. With the new regulations for the 2021 season. All the teams have limited budget, they spend less money than they used to. Do you think this is going to be indeed the key point to make Formula 1 more competitive; to bring more teams and driver to fight for the championship?

    VB: I think that is one of the good things for the regulations. I think having a bit less of a difference between the budgets of the different teams… obviously there will still budget differences between some teams, but less than in the past. I think there’s lots of other good things as well, that look really interesting with the new regs. If actually, physically, the cars will behave aerodynamically as it says on paper, I think the racing is going to be very close, very tough. Definitively closer between the teams and, also, with quite a few restrictions on the aero side with the design of the cars. Already from that, we’re going see less of the big differences between performance. I think there are lots of good things that I really look forward to finding out. And then eventually getting to drive the car and seeing how it feels and how the racing is going to be. Obviously we’ll find out but I think those are good steps in the right direction and I really hope it will encourage some new teams to arrive in Formula 1, because I always think the more cars we can have on the grid, the more fun we’re going to have racing, so that should be nice.

    DR: Yeah, I really agree with everything Valtteri said. The last point he touched on is an important one. It reminded me of 2008, we raced together the first race of the season in Spa. I think there was 48 cars, or something, and the grid only held 42 so not everyone qualified. But to have a grid so big and full of cars and competitors, that in itself was really exciting. If these changes do encourage more cars, more teams to get on the grid, not only does it give more opportunity to other drivers to get a seat in Formula One but yeah, the more competition in the field and as a spectacle, I think that’s pretty cool. Yeah, hopefully it has positive change in many ways.

    RG: Yeah, I guess I’m the same line. It’s a first step in a good direction. Is it going to be enough or not? Only the track and the 2021 season will say. I guess some teams wanted less budget cap, some teams wanted a stronger budget cap. I think maybe 2021 is not going to be the first season to judge, because 2020 is where you’re going to develop the car, but 2022 and onwards, let’s see what it brings. I think it can only be positive. As I said, I believe it’s a first step and then maybe fine-tuning can be made. But generally, yes, it’s good and if we can get more people involved in Formula One and more teams and so on, it just would be better. Also to bring the young drivers in and have more competition, and not always seeing the same one winning. Not that they’re complaining about it – but we do a little bit.

    SP: Always when there’s a big regulation change it always tends to change a lot the team order, in terms of competition. So that can be very positive for the sport. I think on paper it’s looking a lot more competitive. It’s looking like the field can be very tight and competitive and it’s something I’m looking extremely forward to. When you look at the midfield – how competitive and fun it is to come to a race and you don’t know who is going to come out on top – it’s a feeling that I’m missing a lot. In the whole field, hopefully by 2021 it can be there.

    RK: Yeah. I think we have to split two things. One is closer racing, or the cars which opens up better racing. I think this is looking promising and I hope really Liberty and the FIA can achieve it, what they show us. I think this will definitely make races more exciting for drivers – but also for the fans. Regarding different teams winning. I have my opinion, which often I think we’ve forgotten about talent of the people who are working within the teams. It’s true that money helps but the talent makes the difference. I hope it will put teams closer together – but I have some doubts about it. As we have seen in Formula 1, there has always been domination, or years where one team was winning – and we also see it in Formula 2, Formula 3: the cars are the same but in the end the talent of the people who are operating the cars is even more powerful. We will have to wait and see – but definitely if the cars will open up better racing, this will be something big and everybody is looking forward to this.

    Do you think the driver salaries should have been included in the budget cap?

    RG: Of course!

    DR: What do you think? Let’s throw it back at you?

    Q: Do I think they should have been? Yes! I think they should have been. What do you think?

    DR: I haven’t thought that far ahead – 2021. What’s going to happen tomorrow?

    Q: (Julien Biliotte – AutoHebdo) Valtteri, you always say that you don’t want to play mind games and cross the yellow line when fighting for the title, but when you look at what Nico Rosberg managed to do in 2016 against Lewis by getting under his skin, would you be ready to be more aggressive or political when it comes to racing your teammate?

    VB: Very honest: I’m already slightly bored about that question because every driver is individual. I’m me. I’m not Nico. For sure, I always have plans, finding the different ways how I want to achieve my goal which is ultimately the championship and that obviously requires me to beat my teammate but also many other drivers. I’ve always preferred to do the talking on track and if I can keep up my performances and focus all my energy that I have into my own performance I think that’s going to be the best bet for me. If I start wasting energy elsewhere, it might take my mind off the driving and what really matters, and if I can then perform at the level I want to; normally that tends to upset the other side of the garage a little bit and I know that being on the other side as well, it can lead you to mistakes and so on. I have a plan for next year and I’m not really willing to share it so we will find out.

    Q: (Cezary Gutowski – Prezeglad Sportowi) Question to Romain, Daniel and Valtteri, it seems that amongst you guys only Racing Point and Williams are committed to staying in Formula One past 2020, so my question is, are you worried about the future of Formula One and what you will do if one of your teams or all of them quit?

    RG: Well, if three of the teams leave, then I guess we’re going to play petanque or boules or bowls or whatever it’s called in Monaco. No, I honestly hope that in 2021… I think 2021 is a good step, good direction and I’m hoping that the teams will stay and we’re more on the positive side, not thinking what about if they leave but can we get more teams joining Formula One. Let’s be positive and think that it’s actually going to attract more people.

    DR: Yep, I’m at the positive end of the spectrum. I have faith that everyone will continue in good spirits and keep things going. I won’t think about if not. I like singing but I’m not good enough to make it as a career so yeah, I’ll be struggling.

    VB: Yeah, I’m on the positive side as well. I feel the change is in the right direction, as I said before, so I’m not too worried about the future of Formula One at the moment. Obviously we never know and you never know the case of individual teams but if something happens, then you always need to find something else but I’m pretty relaxed and pretty positive about the future.

    Q: (Andreas Lopez – Motorlat.com) Daniel, what expectations do you have for these last two races?

    DR: I think to keep the momentum going. Until we finally had a few races in a row with good results… you know that was one of the challenging things this year for us. One weekend would go good and we’re ready to go the next weekend and then we don’t get the result that we think we should have got – sometimes through some misfortune, other times maybe we didn’t read the situation as well but yeah, I think now we have some momentum and I think more importantly… I think hopefully… I don’t want to say our position in the championship is secured but we look OK to hold onto the fifth (place) but I think more importantly to bring that momentum through the winter for the factory, for the team who’s going to then put the effort in to get the car on track next year. I think finishing strong has more of an effect than on that part of the championship than the actual position itself for this year, if you know what I mean, so for me personally, to keep going, I prefer finishing sixth than twelfth so I’m going to try and keep finishing well in the points and see where it gets us after Abu Dhabi but as I said, more importantly for everyone to just finish the season with their chin up and a spring in their step and happy to work through the winter with a positive mindset that the following season’s going to be better.

    Q: (Stewart Bell – Maxim, Australia) Obviously Formula One is talking to Rio, potentially for 2021. What does it mean for you to race here at Interlagos and the quality as a race venue?

    RK: I know very little about Rio, I have never ever been there. I think opening up new tracks is something which all drivers look forward to, new challenges and driving on new tracks. Although it’s a short lap here, I still enjoy driving around here and the races have always been quite exciting here for whatever reason. I have no really big thoughts about (Rio).

    SP: I’m always happy for new venues, especially if it can be a good circuit where the racing can be good and interesting. As Robert says, here, for any reasons the Sundays are normally very entertaining and always a lot of things tend to happen. Quite open to it and if that happens, then I guess it can be a good venue for Formula One as well.

    VB: I think this is a very iconic track. It’s been a part of Formula One for a long time, very legendary races so for sure it would be a shame not race here again but at the same time, at least there would still be a race in Brazil which I think should be a part of the Formula One calendar with all the support and all the passion the fans have for the sport here. Then, on the other hand, a new track would be welcome as well but it would be a shame to leave Interlagos.

    DR: I think going to Rio would be cool enough. I’ve never been and a chance to see another part of the world and yeah, I guess to race in another city. I think the important thing is that Brazil keeps a Grand Prix. I think it has such a strong history in the sport so yes, for the locals here it might be a bit upsetting but I think globally for Brazil just to still hold a race I think that holds enough power and Rio is a massive city – never been, but I’ve heard it’s a massive city, I think everyone knows that, and I’d like to check it out and yeah, new challenge, new circuit, that could be fun so I wouldn’t be against it.

    RG: Yeah, Interlagos is one of my favourite circuits so I would greatly miss it if we don’t come here any more but you never know what Rio’s going to look like so why not? I guess, as the guys say, the key is that we still come to Brazil.

    Q: (Carlos Costa – motorsport.com) Continuing on the topic of the Brazilian Grand Prix, I would like you to rank Interlagos in comparison with other tracks on the calendar that we have in F1?

    RG: It’s in the top three. I love it. Suzuka, Spa and Interlagos.

    DR: I like it. It’s a lot like my local track in Perth (Barbagallo). I wish it had more corners. It’s a bit short so the lap’s over very quickly. I would have loved an extension – I don’t know if they’ve got the room – but a few more corners would have made it a bit more exciting. I think to have a real high-speed corner; I think that’s what the circuit misses. I think it’s got a lot of technical low speed – turn one, two is fun but even Turn 6, the right hander, it’s actually not that fast so I wouldn’t even classify that as a high speed corner. For me that’s something which it misses is a corner where you can really – I don’t want to say make the difference – but a bit more of a challenging corner because the rest are kind of mostly – well, they’re not all hairpins but anyway… So yeah, it’s somewhere in there.

    RG: So what’s the final ranking, then?

    DR: It’s alright.

    VB: I like the track. Obviously it is short but it makes it super close in qualifying and always makes good races. I think also the local support here makes it a really unique Grand Prix: always a place to look forward to come to race again. It’s difficult to say the exact position on my list but definitely on the better side of the top ten. It’s good fun; I enjoy it.

    Q: Daniel, would you say top ten?

    RG: Top twenty, he says.

    Q: Checo?

    SP: Yeah, it’s a cool track, very small. I would like it to be a bit longer, more corners, the lap is very short. There was a year when Kimi tried an extension of the track –  somewhere else! I don’t know that part of the circuit but it’s definitely very enjoyable and the racing tends to be very good. The fans are very enthusiastic so it’s a great place. Top five. Top ten! We have too many good circuits.

    DR: Yeah, that’s true.

    RK: I think it’s a bit unfair to rank it. I think it’s a good track and good racing and as the guys have said, it’s short but it’s still challenging and it’s good. It’s exactly the same as it was when I was here for the first time in 2001, not a lot of people remember that I was racing here when I was 16. It’s exactly the same, apart from some of the run-off areas but maybe that’s why we still like it because modern tracks sometimes they are too perfect and here is still quite challenging. Ranking? Politically, top ten.

  • 2018 Brazil Grand Prix: Post Race Press Conference

    2018 Brazil Grand Prix: Post Race Press Conference

    1 – Lewis HAMILTON (Mercedes) 2 – Max VERSTAPPEN (Red Bull Racing) 3 – Kimi RÄIKKÖNEN (Ferrari)

    TRACK INTERVIEWS

    (Conducted by Paul Di Resta)

     

    Q: Max, can you tell us what happened?

    Max VERSTAPPEN: I don’t know what to say, I mean, you do everything well, you go through the field, we had a great car, and then by such an idiot you get taken out while he is being lapped. I have no words.

     

    Q: What a fight it was. I don’t think anyone quite expected that after yesterday. I mean, the moves you were making early on, very bold into Turn 1, pushing your way through and using everything you had.

    MV: I think it was better than expected today. The car was working brilliantly today. The team also gave me the right strategy, we could be going quite well on the supersoft, so we did quite a long stint. But, yeah, I don’t know what to say. Still I’m happy with second, but we should have won today.

     

    Q: Yeah, like you say, it was almost back-to-back victories, does it give you confidence going into next year that something is going to come of this machine?

    MV: Well, we should have more power, so we’ll be even better.

     

    Q: All the best. Kimi, late pressure from Daniel coming in, but a good race from you?

    Kimi RÄIKKÖNEN: Yeah, it was good. Not easy, but there was some battling, so it was fun. Obviously we hoped for better but not the easiest.

     

    Q: Ferrari’s tyres choice didn’t look like it worked out in the end, these guys looked very strong at the beginning, certainly Max on the supersoft. Do you think that was wrong?

    KR: I don’t know. My tyre was good, but it was difficult to pass and it took too long to pass. You cannot replay on other tyres, so we don’t know.

    Q: Lewis, that’s 2018 Constructors’ champion as well. And you can see what that means to Toto Wolff – the barriers have fallen over twice here in Parc Ferme, which is unusual. Lewis, what does that mean to the team?

    Lewis HAMILTON: Honestly, these guys have worked so hard the last six years and it’s been an incredible journey for them. This is what everyone works for the whole year, you know. Everyone wakes up and goes to work every day and tries to bring the best out of themselves and they really pull together as a unit. I’ve always told you how much of an honour it is to drive for them, and this was the best style we could do it, because we were struggling. We had problems with the engine. Also he passed us like we were a sitting duck at one stage, but obviously they made a mistake and that brought us back into contention. I’m just so proud of everyone. Everyone back home, thank you so much for your continued efforts. For all our partners, for all our sponsors, who without we would not be here, powering along to a win in Brazil. So, God bless you, thank you.

     

    Q: What goes through your mind when you see Verstappen spin? Did you know he was going to be back on a charge and coming strong?

    LH: I saw it happen and it wasn’t something that… I wasn’t surprised by it or anything like that. I saw them racing but they weren’t racing for the same position. In my mind, I would have been in a different frame of mind. Fortunately he was able to keep going, no one got hurt, and they kept going, it’s a racing incident I guess. Max is that go-getter guy and every now and then it bites you. But I’m really, really proud; I don’t care about anyone else.

     

    Q: I’ve got one last question for you. Big credit to you, that’s 49 wins in the turbo-hybrid era of Formula 1. That’s 50% of all the races. A lot of that’s owed to you, isn’t it?

    LH: I keep telling you, I’m just a chink in the chain. They give me the tools and I try to do the best I can with it. I’m proud that I’m able to sometimes bring a little bit more than is needed or that it’s capable of, but that’s what I live for.

     

    PRESS CONFERENCE

     

    QUESTIONS FROM THE FLOOR

     

    Q: (Scott Mitchell – Autosport) Max, I can only imagine the frustration, the emotions at the end of the race for you. Can you just explain what happened between you and Esteban after the race? We saw your altercation. Did he do anything to antagonise you and will you try and speak to him at once when emotions have settled down later on?

    MV: I don’t really have a lot to comment on that, except that he was being a pussy.

     

    Q: (Rodrigo Franca – Revista VIP) From a drivers’ point of view, how do you see the future of Formula One to attract a young audience as self-driving cars and electric cars are being developed so quickly? And if you see a future better between Formula E and Formula One?

    LH: It’s a difficult one because I’m conflicted. The gasses that we emit with our cars are not particularly helpful for the climate and for the world, so on one side that’s a concern for me but on the other side, as a racing fan, I’m a petrol head and I will always be a petrol head. There will never be a time when I’m an electric head. I hope, at least, in my period of time, it’s always going to be a fuelled car with at least some sort of V-shaped engine, with some sort of sound. I think it’s great what Formula E are doing and it’s a great start, it’s great to see all the top brands  – Audi, BMW, Mercedes – are all getting heavily invested because, particularly on the roads – just coming here, for example – you see the traffic every single day, there are thousands and thousands of cars on the road. There’s the same in every country you go to so the sooner we can get rid of the majority of those cars and then turn them into hybrids, then I think that would be a massive difference, but there are a lot of other things we can do around the world with businesses to help with those emissions. But I don’t think you are ever going to compare Formula One and Formula E. Maybe in five, ten years maybe, but the technology that we have, it’s quite far advanced compared to what they would be having and they’re slower than Formula Ford at the moment so they’ve got a long way to catch the speed of a Formula One car. I don’t know if that’s their target but I think it’s really impressive. I’ve been watching their cars on social media and they look pretty cool, so I wish them all the best and looking forward to seeing it progress.

    MV: I think the boss clearly said of Formula E already that they don’t want to compete or be seen competing against Formula One so I guess that says enough. It’s just a different category. It seems like it’s getting more interesting, of course, with all the big car manufacturers joining in but at the moment I’m happy where I am and I will probably be one of the last people in the world to try and buy the last barrels of oil.

    KR: Nothing to add, really. Formula E looks nice but…

     

    Q: (Livio Oricchio – Globoesporte.com) Max, you have more of an opportunity to talk about the incident with Ocon in a more extended way. Do you think that just one stop and go of ten seconds, against the work of 900 people in your team, that this punishment is enough?

    MV: I think at the end of the day it doesn’t really matter what penalty he gets. I already have the penalty of not winning the race so even if you disqualify him, give him two drive-throughs or whatever, it’s not going to make a difference to our race. I don’t know what the right penalty would be but, like I said, of course they have the right to unlap themselves but you have to be careful. I think that has always been the case.

    Q: Max, can you just tell us how badly damaged your car was after the incident with Ocon?

    MV: So, you know all the cut-outs you have on the side of the floor, that whole area, so I guess that’s this wide(about 15-20cms) that was completely gone so it was pretty bad. I lost a lot of downforce. I had to lock a lot of tools on the steering wheel but that was still not enough. But still the car was quick. We could have been much faster, for sure.

     

    Q: (Dario Coronel – Gran Premioweb) Lewis, today your celebration was very emotional. Why?

    LH: I think it was probably an explosion of the last race in Mexico winning the World Championship… I didn’t really feel the celebration there because I knew that we still had another championship to win and I really needed to remain focused for the team and I really came here, to build up to here, just really focused on making sure that I could deliver for them. Naturally the will to want to win is so high for everyone and the stakes are high. Ultimately, you could make mistakes and all these different things but we didn’t or I didn’t on the track, for example, so to come in and see my guys who I’ve come along this great journey with and we’ve had a lot of success but we’ve still remained fierce and competitive and I think our relationship is better than it’s ever been so just that bond, it was just a great great moment, plus it was a really hard race. I was constantly, like, talking to the car: ‘come on, keep going, keep going’ because we had this engine problem and I knew I could see  Max just in my mirrors so I was doing qualifying laps every lap to keep him behind, which is how racing should be really anyway. Unfortunately that’s not the case a lot of the time this year but… We’ve just won the World Championship for the fifth time so that’s real history in the making for the team and if I was to stop today, for example, Mercedes would always remember this day and that I was a part of it, and that’s cool.

     

    Q: (Arjan Schouten – AD) Max, over the last days, you’ve told us a lot of times that this is not a circuit for Red Bull, winning was not an option. Ending 1.6s from the winner, with a spin, what does that say about your chances in Abu Dhabi in two weeks?

    MV: I don’t know, because this was much better than expected to be honest. I expected to be good in the race but not this good. We will have to wait and see.

     

    Q: (Mattheus Sacramento – ESPN Brazil) Max, there was a similar incident – not exactly the same – but in 2001 in Brazil with Jos Verstappen and Montoya. You’re too young, I’m not sure if you ever heard of it. Montoya was in first place and Jos was 16th I guess and they had a crash. I just wanted to know if you knew that or if that came back to your mind in some ways, that impacts the way you saw Ocon?

    MV: Well, I think that was completely different but yeah, that happens. I don’t know what you want me to say, it’s always bad when you get taken out from the lead.

  • 2018 Brazil Grand Prix: Thursday Press Conference

    2018 Brazil Grand Prix: Thursday Press Conference

    DRIVERS – Brendon HARTLEY (Toro Rosso), Kevin MAGNUSSEN (Haas), Lance STROLL (Williams), Marcus ERICSSON (Sauber), Stoffel VANDOORNE (McLaren)

     

    PRESS CONFERENCE

    Marcus, if we could start with you. It’s been a busy couple of weeks for you since Mexico. You’ve announced your plans for 2019, in IndyCar. Is that farewell to Formula 1 or do you see IndyCar as a stepping stone back to Formula 1?

    Marcus ERICSSON: I don’t really know the answer to that question; I think that’s what the future will tell. I go to America fully committed to doing a great job over there. I see myself as being there for quite some time. But then in the future you never know what will happen. I’m just super excited to go there. I met the team and it felt really, really good. I think IndyCar, from the outside, looks like a lot of fun, so I can’t wait to get started.

    Q: So that means your Formula 1 tenure is over, at least for now. How do you reflect on the last five years?

    ME: It’s been amazing, I’ve really enjoyed it, but it’s also been tough. Most of the time I’ve been running in back-of-the-grid teams and cars and that’s always tough, especially when you’re used to growing up through the junior ranks and you always fight for wins and podiums and you always go in with that mindset to a race weekend, and then the last five years that’s never been realistic and that’s been the tough part of it. That’s why also I’m so excited about next year, that I can actually be back racing for wins again. I bring a lot of experience and a lot of good memories from these five years, for sure.

    Q: Let’s just finish by talking about the on-track performance of you and your Sauber. You had your sixth points finish of the year in Mexico. How confident are you of repeating that here at Interlagos?

    ME: We are confident that we can be competitive here. I’ve scored points now two weekends in a row and I’m aiming to continue that. I think the car at the moment is competitive. We know it’s very tight there in the midfield but we’ve done a good job all year to improve all the time and we continue to do that and I’m sure we’re going to be in the fight this weekend as well. I feel really good, feel really confident so I’m sure we’re going to be there and fight for those points on Sunday.

    Q: Thank you, Marcus. Stoffel, you’re another driver who has announced plans outside of: is it farewell to Formula 1 or do you see Formula E as a stepping stone back into Formula 1?

    Stoffel VANDOORNE: It’s a bit hard to tell. I’m starting a new challenge, which I’m really looking forward to, with HWA in Formula E. I don’t really have a break this winter, so I’m going straight into that and that will also be… my mindset is to do the best job there. So whatever happens in the future, it’s difficult to tell at the moment. You know, the driver market this summer has been a little bit crazy and no one could have really expected what has happened. Things like that can happen in the future and who knows what is going to happen. But for now I’m just focusing on Formula E and trying to do the best job there.

    Q: So how do you reflect on your couple of seasons with McLaren?

    SV: Definitely it’s not been the best two seasons. I’ve had a great time with McLaren through the junior series and they’ve supported me a lot to make the step into Formula 1. But the two years I’ve had in Formula 1 have been good in terms of experience but I would have much preferred to fight higher up. The timing was right to get to Formula 1 and I think I was with the right team, the right support, but I think just the competitive we’ve had over those two years have not been great. It would have been nice to fight a bit higher up.

    Q: Well, we saw you back in the points in Mexico last time out, where you finished eighth. Just talk us through that result: what changed on the car, did you make a breakthrough, because you were more competitive?

    SV: Nothing changed. That weekend we just looked a little bit more competitive in general. From my side that weekend went really well from the start. Qualifying wasn’t maybe the best for us but we were a little bit closer to the group in front, which usually means on race day we are a little bit better than them. It turned out to be that way. I think the tyre degradation helped us quite a lot there to be a bit more competitive and to make a bit of a difference. It was nice to finish eighth and get some points on the board and also quite important for us for the Constructors’ Championship.

    Q: Thank you. Brendon, we’ve been speaking to these guys about 2019. Any update on your plans for next year?

    Brendon HARTLEY: Pretty much the same stance I’ve had for the last races. It’s probably not worth going into. I’m still very much focused on my own performance, what I can do to get the most out of the weekend, working with the team. I’m focusing on myself and not much has changed, so there’s no real news to give you.

    Q: You’ve started ahead of your team-mate Pierre Gasly in two of the last three races, so it feels like you’re getting a bit of momentum behind you. While we’re in reflective mood, can you just talk us through how you feel you’ve improved as a driver during 2018.

    BH: Yeah, I definitely have improved and there was a lot to learn, being a rookie – an old rookie at 28 years old – but still a rookie in Formula One. Coming from LMP1 there was a lot of similarities, which I’ve touched on many times before but then also a lot of new things to learn. Tyres is a big one that springs to mind. Maybe the environment in Formula One, the style of racing, and I guess some of the external pressures that are sometimes put on you as a driver. I felt through the season… yeah, I’ve maybe hardened my approach, I’ve got stronger, I’ve learnt from mistakes, figured out, with the engineers what’s going to get the most out of the weekend for me, in terms of the car, the set-up. I think I’ve bought a lot of experience to the team and in the second half of the season I’ve definitely been stronger. Qualifying, me and Pierre have been quite aligned: sometimes he’s been just ahead, sometimes I’ve been just ahead. The races haven’t always worked out and I don’t think the points on the board is a true reflection. I think sometimes people do forget it’s also a team sport, it’s not just an individual, it is very much a team sport and I’ve been a team player. I think now the focus is really on making sure we’re ahead of Sauber before the end of the season. That’s the main focus for Toro Rosso right now and I think we’ve got an exciting couple of races ahead. Mexico we had really, really good pace considering we had the older-spec engine. Even with the issue I had on the first lap with the flat spot, I was still in a points position before the penalty and the damage, and I think that, knowing how much performance we can gain from the new engine, and potentially the new aero package that we’ll both have this weekend, I think we can be excited and optimistic for the last couple of races for 2018.

    Q: You mentioned the upgraded Honda engine there. How much of an improvement is that? Is it something you can actually feel in the cockpit?

    BH: It’s a tricky one to answer because these Formula One cars are very light and you have close to 1,000hp – I don’t know the exact number – and the objective from the drivetrain, which is massively complicated with three different engines and all sorts of calculations going on to make it all work but in theory you get power when you put down the throttle pedal and… I guess the point I’m trying to make is that every track we go to, we have different downforce levels, different altitude in Mexico, for example, so to feel a power increase is tricky for a driver but the lap time shows a story and there’s no question from everybody in the team and from all the data that there’s a really big step. I think we suffered a little bit in Mexico, especially in the racing environments and off the start line not having it – but we have it onboard again for the next two races and yeah, it gives us something to be optimistic about.

    Q: Lance, we’ve spoken to everyone else about 2019, so I feel it’s only right that I should ask you the same question. When are you going to tell us what your plans are?

    Lance STROLL: Yeah, well, right now I’m still focussed on the remainder of this season. There’s two races left, that’s where my heads at. We’ll see what the future holds.

    Q: Can we expect an announcement about your future within this season or do you think it’ll be a winter announcement?

    LS: I believe so. Time will tell. That’s all I can say right now.

    Q: I think that’s you telling us to move on. We’re in reflective mood here. You’re coming towards the end of your second season in Formula One. Talk us through your ambitions in the sport now. You’ve been able to observe all the other drivers around you, including the world champions. What do you think you can achieve in Formula One?

    LS: That’s dependent on a lot of things. I mean, right now I’m just taking it day by day, year by year. We’ll see – but there are so many factors in Formula One that are important. You need to be in a good car first of all – this year has been a good example: it’s been a very challenging year with the car. The performance really hasn’t been there and therefore we couldn’t score many points. So that’s a bit part of it – but yeah, I’m not looking too far down the line right now, I’m really just trying to, y’know, focus on the present, make the most of where I am currently and we’ll see down the line what happens. It’s too hard to tell, sitting here today.

    Q: How difficult has it been for you to make the most of where you are currently, because it’s been a difficult season? What do you feel you’ve learned during 2018?

    LS: Yeah, it has been very challenging. The car just hasn’t been there so we’ve just been surviving every weekend rather than actually competing. Been getting knocked out in Q1 a lot, most of the races I’ve had good starts and I’ve been in a points-scoring position, we’ve just fell back down the order so it’s kind of always been the case, we’ve just been on the back foot throughout the whole year. We haven’t really developed the car at all since Australia, I don’t think we’ve really improved the car at all. It’s been tough to see some of our competitors early on, like Sauber, for example, who were neck and neck with us at the beginning, make big steps in the right direction, compared to us. Yeah, it’s been a survival year, that’s all I can say. But I’ve still developed as a driver, I’ve matured as a driver. The second year in Formula One, more seat time, more experience. I’ve absorbed a lot of information, even though it’s been a very challenging year compared to last year but that’s the nature of the sport. As a driver, you have to accept that some years are more challenging than others and that’s part of the game.

    Q: Kevin, we’re talking about 2018, so how do you reflect on the season that’s just been? It’s been a good year for you. You can clinch your qualifying head-to-head against Romain Grosjean this weekend in Brazil.

    Kevin MAGNUSSEN:  Yeah, it has been a pretty good year, I think. It has shown that we are making progress with the team, year by year, and I think our aim should be to keep that up in the next season. I think this year it looks like we’re probably going to finish fifth in the Constructors unless we get some very good weekends in the next two weekends. That leaves us at least one realistic target for next year, to take another step forward. I think this year we’ve had a very fast car. We haven’t always scored the points that we should have for different reasons but the good thing about that is that we can go into next season and know that we can do better, because the performance is there.

    Q: Well, Mexico really hurt the team’s chances of getting P4 in the championship, didn’t it? Both cars knocked out in Q1 for the first time this year; do you understand what the problems were in Mexico?

    KM: Not quite, but I think we understand that it’s probably to do with tyres as we hadn’t changed the car so the only thing that really can be such a big factor is the tyres and I think in Mexico you have these factors like you have very little downforce because of the altitude and that has a lot of knock-on effects on different things so cooling as well and you run the car in a different window in Mexico. I think we got the tyre performance a little bit wrong so we suffered a lot in Mexico and that was a weekend to forget, definitely, but also at the same time we of course are trying to learn from it because last year and the year before the team also had a bad weekend in Mexico, so hopefully next year we can learn a bit more and get there a little bit more prepared, to not have such a big off weekend.

     

    QUESTION FROM THE FLOOR

    Q: (Ian Parks – New York Times) Stoffel and Kevin; Stoff you touched on your two years at McLaren, can you just expand a little on your relationship with Fernando, what you might take forward from those two years, having worked alongside an experienced double World Champion? And Kevin, could you just give me your thoughts on Fernando as a driver? I know you’ve expressed some disagreements in the past. Does that still hold true and what positives can you say about him?

    SV: Yeah, for me it’s definitely been a good experience to go alongside Fernando, let’s say. The way he prepares a weekend – obviously Fernando’s one of the most experienced drivers on the grid. I think as a rookie it was very valuable for me to learn from that, especially the way he prepares his weekend, through the practice sessions, how he’s building up to the race on Sunday, how he’s trying to extract the most so there’s a definitely a lot I’ve learned over the past two years which I can carry forward.

    KM: My respect for Fernando as a driver is very big. There’s no doubt he’s definitely one of the best drivers on the grid. Even though we’ve had some tough fights and a few arguments, there’s no damage to my respect for him as a driver. I think that’s it.

  • F1 2017 Brazilian Gp Review – Vettel Win Lifts Ferrari

    F1 2017 Brazilian Gp Review – Vettel Win Lifts Ferrari

    As the Brazilian crowd bid an emotional farewell to local hero Felipe Massa, it was Sebastian Vettel who delivered a controlled drive to victory for the first time since July.

    Pole-sitter Valtteri Bottas was pipped off the line by Vettel’s Ferrari and never truly threatened for the lead of the race. Besides snatching pole by less than half a tenth it’s been a difficult few months for Bottas with several off-colour performances littered throughout the second half of his season. Nevertheless, his pace wasn’t far off Vettel’s at all and it was perhaps only the lack of courage into turn one that cost him victory in Brazil.

    The end of seventy-one laps saw the top three covered by roughly five seconds with Kimi Raikkonen taking the final step of the podium. The Ferrari driver, on 40 lap old tyres, valiantly held off a charging Lewis Hamilton who had scythed his way through the field to go from the pitlane to fourth by the end of the race. Hamilton’s uncharacteristic crash in quali may have reduced him to a pitlane start but the silver lining was a Mercedes power unit at full tilt and a newly crowned world champion willing and able to pull off several excellent overtakes. Despite a lap time advantage of more than 1.5 seconds and fresher tyres, he was ultimately not able to take third place off Raikkonen.

    29The last few weeks have been trying for manufacturer Renault and the teams they supply in the pitlane. So much so that a spat broke out between Renault boss Cyril Abiteboul and Toro Rosso team principal Franz Tost. While Alain Prost stepped in to pour some cold water on the otherwise spicy discontent from both sides it is obvious that Renault is struggling towards the end of the season. So much in fact that they’ve ordered all teams running the French manufacturer’s power unit to turn down the performance output because of reliability fears.

    It explains then what happened to Red Bull’s early weekend pace, as it was nowhere to be found on Sunday. With the deficit, the best Max Verstappen could finish was fifth ahead of Daniel Ricciardo in sixth who started from the back of the grid due to, you guessed it, engine penalties. Power units continue to be the biggest talking point in F1 with the first meeting on what 2021 regulations could look like having already taken place. More seriously, however, is the fact that in 2018 teams will have a maximum of three engines to complete the season with and going beyond this allocation, which they undoubtedly will, means triggering grid penalties. It’s a ridiculous requirement given that no team will be able to stick to it and it should be redressed as soon as possible.

    17On the track, Felipe Massa delivered a typically plucky performance to hold on to a solid seventh place finish ahead of Fernando Alonso in eighth. Sergio Perez, merely a tenth behind Alonso, had to settle for ninth while Renault’s Nico Hulkenberg rounded out the top ten.

    To say it’s been a difficult few months for Ferrari would likely be one of the biggest understatements of the year. After all, as they headed into the summer breaks after the Hungarian grand prix they had every expectation of winning the championship. But it all went horribly sideways as that Hungarian Gp turned out to be Vettel’s last win. His win Brazil, a controlled drive from the front for all of the 71 laps, will be shot in the arm not only for him but for everyone in Maranello, after all, 2018 isn’t that far off.

    (All images courtesy of Pirelli Motorsport)

  • 2017 Brazil Grand Prix: Post Qualifying Press Conference

    2017 Brazil Grand Prix: Post Qualifying Press Conference

    DRIVERS

    1 – Valtteri BOTTAS (Mercedes)

    2 – Sebastian VETTEL (Ferrari)

    3 – Kimi RÄIKKÖNEN (Ferrari)

    TRACK INTERVIEWS
    (Conducted by Johnny Herbert)

    Valtteri, well done, your third pole position, perfect timing for you. How do you feel?

    Valtteri BOTTAS: Yeah, it feels good. Still a bit shaky. It’s a good feeling. It was just a nice lap. It was so close with Sebastian all the way through the qualifying and sometimes with Kimi as well. I got a good lap in the end. Obviously Lewis was out in the beginning, which is a shame for us but I’m happy I could stand up for us as a team.

     

    What happened to Lewis is part of racing, there’s nothing you can do about that but you did a great job today. What a brilliant position for you to start. This is track where it’s not the easiest to overtake and this is a chance for you to control everything tomorrow.

    VB: Yeah, it’s really good to start on the pole from here. We have a good car. It’s going to be a close race still with Ferrari, but I’d rather start from the pole, rather than, for example, P3, so looking forward to tomorrow.

     

    Sebastian, today, happy with that performance? I’m sure you would have loved that 51st pole, but it’s a good place to start tomorrow.

    Sebastian VETTEL: Yeah, it’s alright. It’s not so much about tomorrow but about today. For tomorrow I think it’s fine but I would have loved to be ahead. It was close. I think I chickened out a little bit on the brakes for the final run into Turn 1 and lost a bit too much time. From there the lap was fine. I knew I had a bit left in the last sector, in the last corner, which I got, but by then I was already too much behind.

     

    But overall the car isn’t in bad shape for you. It sounds as if it’s there but it didn’t get it all together?

    SV: It was not that bad. I was happy with my first lap. I think it was OK. Three hundredths, you always think there’s some place you could have got that but as I said for tomorrow our long run [pace] looked good, in particular against Valtteri, so let’s see what happens tomorrow.

     

    Kimi, happy for today?

    Kimi RÄIKKÖNEN: So, so. I felt it could have been better but it was a bit tricky sometimes to get the tyres into the right window for the first two corners to be confident under braking. The last run was better but it wasn’t good enough.

     

    It seems to be key today with these cooler conditions. It’s just made it that little bit more difficult. But generally Ferrari are in good shape for the race I would guess?

    KR: Yeah, I think we improved the car for today. Obviously the weather can change quickly here, so we have to wait and see what it brings tomorrow. It’s going to be a long race and we’ll do our best.

     

    Valtteri, tomorrow is going to be special because of how close it is and that is really going to be down to how many mistakes you don’t make during the race?

    VB: I agree. It’s not such an easy circuit to overtake on, so avoiding mistakes is one thing. The start here is always exciting. It’s going to be a long race. We know São Paulo, plenty of things can happen. I’m looking forward and again thanks to all the people for their mega support.

     

    Q: Valtteri, congratulations, your third career pole position, your first here in Brazil and a new track record, 2.4 seconds inside the 2016 pole. A perfect final lap. You had some work to do, obviously, after the first run and a great effort, I guess, in your mind, after a tough month for you. You’ve bounced back in the strongest possible way, particularly on a day when Mercedes needed you to stand up with what happened with Lewis.

    VB: Thank you. Yeah, of course very happy with the qualifying from my side and also from us as a team. Except the unfortunate off Lewis had in the beginning. It was then in the end only me. Happy I could deliver and happy I could put it on pole. So, yeah, the laps were getting better and better really, like with every one and it was, all the time, very close, so I’m pleased that in the end in Q3, I got a good lap and it was enough for pole. So, very pleased.

     

    Q: It’s always fine margins here Sebastian, you were fastest in the first run in Q3 but couldn’t improve. Unusual for you to leave the door open for a rival. What happened?

    SV: Well, I was very happy with the first lap, so yeah, I knew that in the last corner, in that first attempt in Q3, I had a little bit left because I lost the rear a bit, so I wanted to get there about the same and then I knew I could gain some time but yeah, I chickened out a little bit too early in the first corner, braking a bit too early, the grip was there, so I lost some time compared to the first run. Then I managed to stay there and got what I thought I will back in the last corner – but it wasn’t enough to come back. So, yeah, not ideal but overall I think a very positive day for us – both of us, I believe, looking at the gaps yesterday and today, so, very happy.

     

    Q: And Kimi, two of you versus one Mercedes. Unusual situation, from a strategy point of view that gives you plenty to play with, ‘cos he can’t cover both of you. Thoughts about that and also your performance today.

    KR: Obviously, we’ll see that tomorrow, what it will bring but today was a better day than yesterday, for sure. The feeling was pretty good on some laps but it was a bit tricky to have full confidence in the first corner to be sure that the tyres will work well and you don’t lock the wheel. That was really the most difficult. Some sets seemed to be more easy than others and the last set actually I had more grip than I expected. But yeah, not ideal but not too bad. I think the car is very good, position, the handling, so tomorrow is a race and it should be OK.

     

    QUESTIONS FROM THE FLOOR

     

    Q: (Livio Orrichio – Globoesporte.com) Valtteri, you have been facing some difficulties in the last few races, especially in qualifying conditions, and here since the first day you are very fast. What is it? The circuit? The characteristics of the car and the circuit? Self-confidence?

    VB: Well, for sure, sometimes it’s been more difficult, sometimes better – and that’s how it goes in racing – but I think the line, the graph for me has been all the time on the up and been feeling better and better with the car and just working hard on the issues we’ve been having, I’ve been having. Learning lots and, again, feeling better and just managed to learn from the mistakes and from the tricky sessions. Last few weekends has been a lot better, like last race in qualifying it was about hundredths between me and Lewis and it’s been the case all weekend here, so yeah, obviously, a shame he wasn’t any more in Q2 and Q3 but still I’m very, very pleased with the performance.

     

    Q: (Jens Nagler – Bild) Sebastian, bit of a slow start yesterday, then really close today. What can we expect from tomorrow’s race, especially with Lewis obviously not in the race for victory?

    SV: Don’t think it makes a difference. Obviously Valtteri’s on pole; it will be difficult to beat him but I’m confident we have the pace, especially on the long runs. I think it’s more of a surprise today that we got that close. If it’s that close, you obviously wish to be ahead but tomorrow should be a good race. We will see what happens. Interlagos is always special, there’s always something that happens in the race so let’s stay out of trouble and have a good race.

     

    Q: (Rodrigo França – Revista VIP) To Sebastian and Kimi: the weather forecast for tomorrow is a sunny day and 28 degrees, a lot hotter than today. This is good for Ferrari? Are the race times more competitive than in qualifying?

    SV: I think it’s OK, I think it’s like yesterday. I think we improved the car for today. Obviously it always feels a bit better when it’s colder but it should be fine. Usually in the race we are quite strong. If it’s hot, I don’t think it hurts us but then again today it was forecast wet, it wasn’t, so who knows? Maybe it changes tomorrow.

     

    Q: (Dan Knutson – Auto Action and Speedsport) A similar question to Valtteri: do you think the tyre strategy will be pretty straightforward tomorrow, given it’s dry and hot?

    VB: I do think there’s not that many ideal strategies, so I think it can be quite straightforward but like Sebastian said, many times it’s been a really interesting race here with plenty of things happening so who knows? We are not too worried about the hotter temperatures, because I don’t think it’s actually going to be that far from yesterday – maybe a bit hotter than P2 – but everything still seemed to feel OK for us and we didn’t go crazy with the set-up for qualifying so we still kept an eye on the race but obviously tomorrow we’ll find out if we have the quickest car or not.

     

    Q: (Rodrigo França – Revista VIP) Question for everyone: the new system with the blue flags that will appear on the cockpit of the driver that is receiving the blue flags, do you think this will work out tomorrow, the first time here in Sao Paulo?

    VB: Well, first of all it’s been a long time that we get a blue flag in the cockpit, the lights, I think.

    SV: Not for you.

    VB: But the boards yeah, first time, so obviously when there’s a train of cars, then it’s maybe more precise, showing who needs to back off but it should be good.

     

    Q: (Livio Oricchio – GloboEsporte.com) Hamilton is already World Champion but the second place in the championship is open. Does it stimulate you even more to keep your second position, Sebastian? And you, Valtteri, does it give you more stimulation to be second in the World Championship?

    SV: Look, obviously, we were on target to win; obviously that’s not any more in reach so the maximum stimulation we can get is to finish second so that’s what we try to do. If we don’t manage to do that then we’ve failed, so we’ve failed once this year already, I don’t want to fail again. The motivation is very high to make sure we stay ahead and we beat Valtteri tomorrow and in Abu Dhabi.

    VB: Yeah, same for us. It’s always good to have a target, makes you work harder and try harder so our target is to try and still get second place in the championship. It is possible but obviously he’s leading by 15 points so we really need to have a strong race here and also in Abu Dhabi.

     

    Q: (Jens Nagler – Bild) Valtteri, was pole something like a kind of a gift to those crew members who had the incident yesterday in the night?

    VB: Well, I spoke with them this morning and I said we are going to put it on pole and it’s going to cheer everyone so I’m glad it happened actually. Obviously first of all, very happy that everyone is in one piece and nothing happened physically to anyone but obviously pretty bad situation to be in but yeah, just happy everyone is still here.

  • Penalty Round Up: 2017 Brazil Grand Prix

    Penalty Round Up: 2017 Brazil Grand Prix

    Another race weekend, and we’ve got more grid penalties. So far none of them feature a McLaren. But it does look like Toro Rosso is getting all the bad luck.

    Lance Stroll gets a gearbox change after he came to a halt on track during Free Practice 3 while the rest of the Renault powered guys get penalties for component changes.

    Daniel Ricciardo

    • 10-place grid drop – 8th Control Electronics(1st 8th element)

    Pierre Gasly

    • 10-place grid drop – 8th MGU-H(1st 8th element)
    • 10-place grid drop – 9th MGU-H(1st 9th element)
    • 5-place grid drop – 7th Turbo Charger.

    Brendon Hartley

    • 10-place grid drop – 8th Control Electronics(1st 8th element)

    Lance Stroll

    • 5-place grid drop – gearbox change

     

  • Bottas Fastest in Closely Fought Brazil GP Free Practice 3

    Bottas Fastest in Closely Fought Brazil GP Free Practice 3

    Valtteri Bottas finished fastest in a very closely fought the final free practice session for the Brazil Grand Prix.

    It was so close in fact, the top four were covered by 0.058s. with Bottas the fastest for Mercedes with a best time of 1:09.281. Team-mate Lewis Hamilton was 2nd fastest with a best lap of 1:09.284, just 0.003s off.

    The two Ferrari’s of Kimi Raikkonen and Sebastian Vettel were 3rd and 4th fastest respectively. Raikkonen edging out Vettel this session with a 1:09.326, to Vettel’s 1:09.339.

    It was close between the Ferrari and Mercedes drivers as they battled each other for the fastest time lap after lap on their qualifying simulations. It was Mercedes who eventually took the honours of the session.

    Struggling for some pace in the session was the Red Bull of Daniel Ricciardo in 5th almost a second off the pace. Team Principal Christian Horner told Sky Sports F1 during the session that he does not think they can trouble Mercedes and Ferrari during qualifying but he hopes that they can get close. Verstappen in the second Red Bull finished his session 9th fastest with a best time of 1:10.495. The Dutchman complained about under-steer on his Red Bull and then spun at Turn 14 after dipping a wheel on the grass.

    It was another good session for Alonso finishing 6th fastest ahead of the two Pink Panther Force India’s in 7th and 8th. Perez finishing ahead of Ocon this session.

    Carlos Sainz rounded out the top 10 for Renault this session after some difficult in the beginning of the session.

    Lance Stroll’s session got off to a bad start after a terminal engine/gearbox problem put him out of the session. Williams say that they will have to change the engine and the gearbox before qualifying.

    The issue of traffic has cropped up once again this session. Drivers were finding it tricky to get out of the way of faster drivers and to set lap times. This could make qualifying interesting.

    It’s going to be another Mercedes-Ferrari show down in qualifying with Hamilton looking likely to take pole position.