2006 Italian Grand Prix - Race Report
The newly renamed Spyker MF1 Racing team endured a difficult
afternoon of racing at the Italian Grand Prix in Monza.
Christijan Albers was climbing up through the field before
a punctured rear right tyre and transmission problem dropped
him to the back of the pack. He nursed his car home in 17th
position.
Tiago Monteiro was forced to abandon the chase after 44 laps
due to brake issues.
Tiago Monteiro (POR), Car #18 (Chassis: M16-03)
Starting Position: 20th
Classification: DNF, 44 laps completed (+9 laps)
Fastest Lap: 1:24.822 at 14:42:49, 15th overall (+2.263 from
fastest lap of the race)
Quote: "Obviously, that's not the result
we were after but I must say, the car was going quite well.
In fact, once the tyres warmed up and we were able to burn
off some fuel, I was catching up to the group ahead of me,
so that really motivated me. The only weakness, I would say,
was that we were losing ground on the straights, and this
is something we will have to work hard to improve. Unfortunately,
after my first pit stop, I developed a serious brake problem
that would crop up randomly. It was causing the car to behave
quite erratically, which is dangerous at a high-speed circuit
like Monza. There were a couple of other issues that compounded
my problems, and eventually I just had to retire because the
car was becoming too unstable. But I'm encouraged by the fact
that we were catching the cars ahead before these problems
occurred, which proves that we are improving. At this time,
I'd also like to thank Mr. Shnaider for all his support, and
for giving me the opportunity to get my start in F1. I'd also
like to welcome our new owners, and look forward to making
more progress under the Spyker banner."
Christijan Albers (NED), Car #19 (Chassis: M16-02)
Starting Position: 18th
Classification: 17th, 51 laps completed (+2 laps)
Fastest Lap: 1:25.494 at 14:28:31, 20th overall (+2.935 from
fastest lap of the race)
Quote: "We finished the race but it
's not a good result, and that's a shame because it was our
first one with the Spyker name. First I had a flat tyre, which
pretty much killed my race, and then two laps later, I developed
a problem with my transmission. We know what the problem is,
though, so hopefully we'll be able to solve it once and for
all. It's disappointing because the pace was there and I was
able to compete for positions, which is similar to the situation
at the last race in Turkey, where our performance was quite
good. One thing I know for sure is that we'll come back fighting
in China."
Colin Kolles, Managing Director: "I
think the performance of the cars was very good. Christijan's
puncture ruined his chances for a good result, and Tiago had
some brake problems that prevented him from finishing. But
if you look at their times, they were quite competitive. Considering
this is supposed to be the worst circuit for us, that's quite
encouraging."
James Key, Technical Director: "This
was a difficult race, which is a shame, because obviously
today is a special day for the team, with our new owners being
introduced. Christijan was racing extremely well at the beginning
and was able to run with the cars around him - the Red Bulls,
the Toyotas and the Toro Rossos. He was battling to overtake
Klien when he suffered a puncture. He came in and then there
was an issue with the clutch that delayed him going back out.
We're not sure what it is - whether it's a sensor problem
or the clutch itself - but that led to him effectively losing
a lap. Tiago was following a long first-stop strategy and
doing quite well, but then he developed braking issues toward
the end of the race. We brought him in a couple of times to
have a look, but then we thought it would be safer to just
retire him. An unfortunate race, really. It could have been
better given the pace we'd showed in the beginning, but we'll
see what we can learn from this and move on with more optimism
for the last three races."
Johnny Herbert, Sporting Relations Manager:
"Today was a disappointment. It's never a good thing
to be going through problems, and we seem to having more than
our fair share lately. Christijan had a puncture early on
when he was racing well, but obviously that put us completely
out of contention. Tiago had his own set of issues and he
eventually had to stop because of brake problems. It was just
a shame, really, because I think we had to pace to finish
well today. But, we move on, and hopefully we'll have a stronger
race in China."
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