2007 JAPANESE GRAND PRIX
FUJI - PREVIEW
The Honda Racing F1 Team makes a welcome return to Japan
next week for its second home race of the season, the 2007
Japanese Grand Prix at the Fuji International Speedway, Round
15 of the FIA Formula One World Championship.
The Japanese Grand Prix is always a memorable weekend for
the team and this year presents a new challenge with the race
moving from its traditional Honda-owned home of Suzuka to
the newly re-opened Fuji International Speedway.
Prior to arriving in Fuji, the Honda Racing F1 Team will
be making a stop in Odaiba for the annual Tokyo Motorsports
Festival where Jenson Button and James Rossiter will be demonstrating
the thrills of Formula One to thousands of fans by taking
the RA107 car around the streets of the city.
SHUHEI NAKAMOTO - Senior Technical Director
"This will be the first time that Formula One has visited
the new Fuji International Speedway and as a result we have
limited data on the circuit which makes the practice sessions
on Friday and Saturday even more important. The downforce
levels required will be very similar to the last race at Spa-Francorchamps
so we are prepared for a challenging weekend. Following the
three-day test in Jerez this week, we have confirmed our car
set-up and aero package for the race. We would like to put
on the best possible performance for the Honda fans at our
home race in Japan and achieve a satisfactory result."
JENSON BUTTON
"The Japanese Grand Prix is always a very special weekend
for the whole Honda Racing F1 Team as it is one of our two
home races of the year. I have had fantastic support as a
Honda driver at the Honda-owned Suzuka circuit in the past
few years and the Japanese fans always create such a special
atmosphere over the race weekend.
"This year will be a new challenge for both myself and
the team as the race returns to the Fuji International Speedway.
The Fuji circuit is an unknown quantity so I will be studying
the circuit layout with our engineers in advance of the race
but we will only find out its true characteristics during
our track walk on Thursday and the first few laps of practice
on Friday. The re-designed circuit is another Herman Tilke
special, and after the fantastic job that he did with Istanbul
Park, it will be interesting to see how this circuit matches
up. There is a long 1.5km start-finish straight which should
allow for some overtaking combined with some exciting looking
twists and turns.
"We are the first to admit that Honda have had a tough
season this year, however we approach the final races of the
season with continued motivation and will not stop pushing
to take the maximum possible performance from the RA107 car
to help us move forward next year. Of course, Rubens and I
will also be keen to put in a good performance for the thousands
of Honda fans who will be cheering us on from the stands.
"On the Monday before the race, I will be taking part
in the Tokyo Motorsports Festival once again. This is a fantastic
event and I had a great time last year driving our F1 car
right in the heart of Tokyo in front of all the Honda fans
so I am really looking forward to arriving in Japan this weekend
and getting the fun started."
RUBENS BARRICHELLO
"I am really looking forward to returning to Japan in
my second year with Honda for our home race. The Japanese
Grand Prix has always been a favourite of mine and the Suzuka
circuit holds some very special memories as I won there from
pole position in 2003. My experience last year driving with
Honda for the first time was fantastic. The fans are so enthusiastic
and really supported us throughout the weekend.
"This year Formula One is returning to the Fuji International
Speedway for the first time since 1977. I last raced at Fuji
back in 1991 in Formula 3 but the circuit has been totally
modernised since those days. It will be very exciting to race
on the new layout and I am sure that the organisers will have
done an excellent job with improving the
existing circuit.
"Our car and performance this year has not been at the
level we hoped for at the beginning of the season, however
a lot of hard work is still going on back at the factory to
improve our situation. We will all keep working very hard
right to the end of the season and I hope to see further small
improvements in our performance which will help us this season
and in 2008."
FUJI INTERNATIONAL SPEEDWAY
No of Laps 67 laps
Circuit Length 4.563 km
Race Distance 305.721 km
The Fuji International Speedway returns to the Formula One
calendar in 2007 having last staged a Grand Prix in 1977.
Built in the Sixties in the style of a classic American speedway,
Fuji hosted the very first Japanese Grand Prix in 1976 and
again in 1977 before a thirty year absence from the calendar.
Following a major facelift of the circuit and facilities by
track designer Herman Tilke, the Speedway reopened in February
2005.
Although updated and modernised, Tilke has maintained the
spirit of the Speedway's original layout by combining the
unique one and a half kilometre pit straight with characteristic
twists and turns to form a 4.563 km circuit. Widened run-off
areas have improved safety for the drivers, with enhanced
infrastructure and grandstands to accommodate an expected
280,000 spectators over the course of the Japanese Grand Prix
weekend.
The circuit is located in the Shizuoka prefecture, approximately
100 kilometres from Tokyo, and is overlooked by one of Japan's
most famous landmarks, the spectacular Mount Fuji. At 3776
metres, Mount Fuji is the highest peak in Japan and one of
the country's most popular tourist attractions.
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