BMW Sauber F1 Team - San Marino GP - Race
Weather: Sunny and dry, 27-28°C Air, 33-43°C Track.
Imola (TA). The BMW Sauber F1 Team finished the first race
of the European Formula 1 season in Imola with their drivers
Jacques Villeneuve and Nick Heidfeld 12th and 13th respectively.
Jacques Villeneuve: 12th
BMW Sauber F1.06-02 / BMW P86
Fastest lap: 1:25.438s, lap 53 (eighth fastest overall)
It was not that exciting because I had a problem in the first
pit stop. We were not as competitive as we expected. However,
the balance was good and with this we should have been able
to do some quick laps. The start was bad but then the first
corner was okay. For the next race we have a new engine and
that should help a lot, which is important as we are racing
in Germany.
Nick Heidfeld: 13th
BMW Sauber F1.06-03 / BMW P86
Fastest lap: 1:25.996s, lap 53 (twelfth fastest overall)
This was a disappointing race for us especially as I had expected
our race pace to be higher. But unfortunately this was not
the case. My start was okay but still I couldn’t gain
positions. One of my main problems was lack of grip, but at
the second pit stop we changed the front wing settings and
the tyre pressures so the last stint was a little bit better.
Mario Theissen (BMW Motorsport Director):
Over this Imola weekend only the free practice on Friday was
really good for us. Neither in qualifying nor during the race
were the drivers able to set the lap times we expected. It
was only in the last stint of the race that Jacques was able
to match the speed of the top drivers at certain times. During
Jacques’ first pit stop there was a problem when two
wheel nuts got stuck, but even without this problem he would
not have made it into the points. On the positive side for
the first time this season our engines have completed two
full race distances at the same time, so they have passed
this test successfully.
Willy Rampf (Technical Director Chassis):
Our average race speed was not as quick as we expected. After
the second stops both drivers were quicker and happier with
the balance of the cars, but in the middle of the race we
were far to slow. We have to analyse these fluctuating lap
times. Jacques had a slow first pit stop due to sticking wheel
nuts and this lost him approximately 15 seconds.
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