2007 EUROPEAN GRAND PRIX
NÜRBURGRING - RACE
A somewhat chaotic European Grand Prix ended disappointingly
for the Honda Racing F1 Team at the Nürburgring today.
Rubens Barrichello crossed the line in 11th position whilst
Jenson Button became one of a number of casualties at a rain-soaked
first corner when his car aquaplaned uncontrollably across
the river which had formed there in a matter of minutes.
The race began in dry and sunny conditions but dark grey
clouds were already looming ominously on the horizon. They
made rapid progress towards the track and the field was forced
to pit for wet tyres at the end of lap one. A flash downpour
followed and many of the drivers became passengers as they
lost control of their cars through the standing water. Within
just two laps Jenson made up an incredible 15 places and was
running in fourth position before he too fell foul of the
track conditions.
During this time, Rubens was punted from behind by Rosberg,
causing damage to his rear diffuser which compromised his
aero balance for the duration of the race. He pitted for a
second time on lap two to switch to the extreme wet tyres,
but as the track conditions worsened the race was red flagged
until the rain subsided.
At the restart Rubens took up his new position of ninth on
the grid and on a drying track he reverted to the wet tyre.
As blue skies emerged again he pitted after eight laps for
dry rubber on which he remained until seven laps from the
chequered flag when the heavens opened for a second time and
the field was forced to stop again for wets. Rubens completed
five pit stops in total and took on fuel in two of those.
RUBENS BARRICHELLO
"I'm bitterly disappointed with the result today. The
car felt bad from the start and it never really improved through
the race, most likely because of the damage caused when I
was hit by Rosberg. I love these dry-wet conditions and we
had some opportunities today because of the way the race was
unfolding. However, we did not have the car and we did not
make the most of the circumstances."
JENSON BUTTON
"I didn't get a good start and I dropped to 20th position,
however I had a really good first lap and I was up to sixth
position when I pitted for wet tyres. After that the rain
poured down and turn one was a lake. By that time I was in
fourth position behind Massa and Alonso. I just touched the
brakes and all four wheels locked, then I hit the wall. It's
a real shame because I had a lot of fuel on board, a good
strategy given the way the race then panned out for the others
and I love to drive in these wet conditions. This race was
unfortunately a lottery and sadly I lost out."
JACKY EECKELAERT
Engineering Director
"We missed an opportunity to score some good points today.
During the first two laps Jenson did well to overtake 15 cars
and was in fourth position when he went off and ended up in
the gravel trap. In that part of the race Rubens sustained
some damage to his rear diffuser when he got hit from behind
by Rosberg. Although the race was then red flagged there was
not enough time to carry out a proper repair on the grid,
therefore Rubens' car did not perform at all well aerodynamically
and as a result his race pace was no match for the cars in
front."
RACE STATS
Drivers Car No. Chassis No. Race Result
Rubens Barrichello 8 RA107-05 P11 Fastest Lap 01:35.632
Jenson Button 7 RA107-04 DNF
Weather Dry-Wet-Dry-Wet
Temperatures Air: 15-20°C Track: 15-30°C
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