2006 TURKISH GRAND PRIX PREVIEW
The Formula 1 fraternity travels to Istanbul this week for
the second Turkish Grand Prix, following the event’s
debut on the calendar last year at the purpose-built Istanbul
Speed Park. The track, which is located on the Asian side
of the Bosphorus river, is 90km east of the city centre.
During the three week August break from racing, Team McLaren
Mercedes has been preparing for the Turkish race at the McLaren
Technology Centre, Mercedes High Performance Engines in Brixworth,
and Stuttgart. Work has also included preparation of further
developments to the MP4-21 that will hit the test track next
week, from Tuesday 29th August, in Monza. The gap has allowed
the team members that travel to the races and tests to take
a short holiday before returning to the track action, including
Kimi Raikkonen and Pedro de la Rosa, who spent time in Finland
and Majorca respectively.
The race marks the 200th Grand Prix for the McLaren and Mercedes-Benz
partnership, which began in 1995. The team’s successful
Technology Partnership with ExxonMobil also reaches the 200
race milestone in Turkey. In this time Team McLaren Mercedes
has secured two Drivers’ World Championships, one Constructors’
title and 44 race wins.
The Turkish race is the only sail-away of the season. This
allows the teams to use all the usual trackside facilities
taken to races on mainland Europe. The Team McLaren Mercedes
race transporters left the McLaren Technology Centre on Monday
14th August and drove to the North Eastern Italian port of
Trieste, arriving on Wednesday 16th. The following day the
transporters set sail across the Adriatic and Aegean seas
before arriving in Istanbul on Sunday 20th August. The Team
Communications Centre left Hungary on Monday 7th August and
travelled directly to Trieste, before leaving for Istanbul
on Wednesday 9th.
KIMI RAIKKONEN
“Although it is great for the team to have the short
break, I am looking forward to getting back to racing, particularly
as we are in Turkey this time out. The Istanbul Speed Park
is a terrific circuit, it is demanding on the cars, but great
fun to drive, with lots of different types of corner, some
straights and elevation changes. All the ups and downs of
the track don’t really affect the set up; they just
make it more interesting to drive. There are some chances
to overtake, a couple of examples are into the first corner,
which I found to my cost last year, and along the long stretch
that takes you into the low speed turn 12. The corner that
everyone was talking about after last year’s race was
the double apex left of 7/8. I think it was bumpier than we
expected, and because it is such a long, fast corner if you
don’t get the line exactly right or lift or accelerate
at the wrong moment you will get bounced off the circuit.
We exit the turn flat out at 310km/h, and it is vital to have
been able to get to this speed as it takes you onto one of
the short straights at the back of the track. I took the maiden
pole and victory at the Istanbul Speed Park last year, and
it would be fantastic to repeat it in 2006. The car again
felt strong in Hungary and we had good pace, so we will all
be pushing hard towards this.”
PEDRO DE LA ROSA
“I cannot wait to race at the Istanbul Speed Park, it
is a fantastic track, I had a lot of fun driving it in my
role as Friday driver last year. It is however quite precise
from a set-up perspective, although this year we of course
have data about the track before we arrive. It was awesome
to get the podium at the Hungaroring and my aim is now of
course to get one step higher. Along with Imola and Interlagos,
the track runs anticlockwise and another key factor is the
bumps. These have an influence on set-up, mostly for aero,
and as a result we will run with less front wing than at tracks
with a smoother characteristic such as Magny Cours. However
a compromise has to be found, because we also want a lot of
front end for turn 8 in particular, as it is such a long corner
onto a straight, and you need the speed, but if you have too
much the car will pick up over the bumps and throw the back
of the car out.”
MARTIN WHITMARSH, CEO FORMULA 1, TEAM McLAREN MERCEDES
“It was an excellent result for Pedro in Hungary at
the last race. Both he and Kimi, with their respective strategies,
were strong throughout the weekend and we hope that we can
continue this pace into Turkey. This race also sees us reach
a milestone in our relationships with Mercedes-Benz and ExxonMobil.
In the 200 Grands Prix of our fruitful Partnerships to date,
we have taken two Drivers’ and one Constructors’
title, securing 44 victories along the way. We are all focused
on adding to that total here in Istanbul, which would be a
fitting way to celebrate this landmark. There has been a focused
period of preparation for the race at our headquarters’
and we travel to Turkey looking for a strong result at the
Istanbul Speed Park where we ran well last year, taking the
pole, victory and fastest lap. Tyre degradation was medium
at this track last year and we have selected, with Michelin,
similar compounds to those used in Hungary and Hockenheim.
These are above average in terms of hardness, but not as much
as tracks such as Silverstone and Barcelona.”
NORBERT HAUG, VICE PRESIDENT, MERCEDES-BENZ MOTORSPORT
“This is already the 200th Grand Prix together with
our partner McLaren since 1995 – a period which has
truly passed at racing speed. An anniversary like this is
also an occasion to look back, although in all sporting competitions,
the present and the future are obviously more important than
the past. Since our first victory on 9 March 1997, the team
has won 44 out of 166 Grands Prix; statistically one in every
fourth race. But of course we had periods like last year when
we won up to six consecutive Grands Prix; but on the other
hand also had to cope with long periods without any victory.
Since 1998, we have won three World Championship titles and
finished runner-up on eight occasions, four times each in
the Constructors’ and in the Drivers’ Championships,
like 2005 in both categories. That year ten victories out
of our 18 race starts were ultimately not enough to win the
Championships. This year so far, we have not yet translated
our chances of winning into victories, having just achieved
second and third positions on the podium. Therefore, everybody
in the team wants to improve further. There is no doubt that
the trend of the last races is leading in the right direction
and we want to continue this on the challenging circuit at
Istanbul. The track is demanding for chassis, tyres, engine
and drivers, and the race is without doubt one of the toughest
challenges of the year. Kimi won last year’s debut race
and we hope that this is a positive omen for him and Pedro
for the second Turkish Grand Prix.”
USEFUL STATISTICS
Turkish Grand Prix McLaren Team McLaren Mercedes Kimi Pedro
Circuit length 5.338 km Race starts 609 199 100 67
3.317 miles Race wins 148 44 9 -
Race distance 309.356 km Pole Positions 124 45 10 -
192.233 miles Points 3126.5 1219 330 20
Laps 58 Podiums 392 139 35 1
Inaugural race 2005 Fastest Laps 129 59 18 1
|
