Preview, 2007 Bahraini GP
The ING Renault F1 Team previews round three of the 2007
Formula 1 World Championship.
Giancarlo Fisichella: "Aiming to do our maximum"
Giancarlo, you put in a strong drive after a difficult
weekend in Malaysia. How are you approaching this weekend's
race in Bahrain?
GF: I am proud of how I raced in Sepang. I made a good start,
was aggressive on the opening lap to make up places, and took
sixth at the finish. It's not many points, but they will all
be important for us this year. Given our circumstances, it's
a satisfying result, and encouraging for this weekend in Sakhir.
It is a circuit Renault knows well, we won the last two races
here, and we spent two weeks testing here in the winter. Hopefully
we can make some more progress compared to Malaysia.
Bahrain is one of the more challenging races…
GF: Yes, along with Malaysia, it's definitely one of the toughest
races of the season, primarily because of the very hot conditions
that we have to drive in. I think it will be tough race for
us, but we will be aiming to do our maximum. We are realistic
enough to know we have a long way to go to catch the leaders,
but everybody is very motivated to do it!
You tested in Sakhir during the winter, is that an
advantage for the weekend ahead?
GF: All the teams tested, so it means we will all be pretty
well prepared with a good baseline for the set-up. Of course,
conditions will be different and the car has developed since
then, so we will need to fine-tune it during practice. And
the circuit is usually dirty and slippery because of the sand,
especially when it's windy. So we will need to constantly
adapt the car to the improving track conditions, but for sure,
the information we got during the winter tests will be important.
Heikki Kovalainen: "Working hard to improve
again"
Heikki, you raced at Sakhir in GP2, and tested here
with the F1 car during the winter. Do you enjoy the track?
HK: Yes, I raced in the GP2 series final here in 2005, and
even though I missed out on the title at that race, I still
have good memories of the track. It is a demanding circuit,
and the conditions are tough for the cars and the drivers,
which means we usually see interesting races here.
You scored your first F1 point in Malaysia. How did
it feel?
HK: Naturally, it's an important moment for my career, a good
feeling, and you have to start somewhere! I was quite happy
with my race, and pleased with the progress compared to Melbourne.
I still need to improve, and work hard along with the team.
But I am confident we all have what it takes to improve our
pace.
What are the main factors you will have to take into
account with the set-up of the R27 ahead of the race this
weekend?
HK: We ran here in February, so we have a good idea of how
the car handles on this circuit. It features a lot of long
straights and a few fast corners, which means you need to
find a good compromise on downforce between good straightline
speed, and enough grip in the corners. We have to pay attention
to cooling the brakes properly, because there are some major
braking areas. So we need good cooling, and good consistency
from the braking system. The tyres will have a hard time too,
but as always, we will be able to understand their behaviour
and performance during the practice sessions on Friday, in
order to fine-tune the car's handling for qualifying and the
race.
Pat Symonds: "Hard, honest work to improve our
performance"
Pat, what is your analysis of the ING Renault F1
Team's weekend in Malaysia?
PS: I think we achieved the best we could have hoped for in
Sunday's race, especially after our qualifying performance
on Saturday. Giancarlo went from 12th to 6th, and drove a
good aggressive race, especially at the start; Heikki's performance
was solid, and his pace very similar to Fisi's, and he erased
the memory of Melbourne with a strong drive. The car was a
bit more consistent in the race, and performed reasonably.
So we raced well, and that's encouraging. But does that mean
we are satisfied with our current situation? Absolutely not.
What is the team doing in order to try and gain performance
relative to the competition?
PS: Working extremely hard! It means asking a lot of questions,
and finding answers to them. We can schedule which questions
we ask, and when, but we cannot schedule when we will find
the answers. It means working diligently and honestly to find
the root of our current difficulties. And at the same time,
we have to keep on developing the car to compete at the track.
If we simply throw our resources blindly at fixing the problems,
by the time we have resolved them, we will only have fallen
behind again.
The obvious question to ask is "what is the
cause of your problems?" Do you have an answer?
PS: I think it is obvious to say that it is not a simple diagnosis.
The first mistake we could make would be a knee-jerk reaction.
The people working on the situation, are the same people who
won two world championships in the last two years. We have
the same tools, the same methodology, and the same confidence
in our ability to succeed. Now, we need time and application
to do so – and I have every faith in our capacity to
bounce back strongly.
Looking at the circuit in Bahrain, how do you expect
the car to perform?
PS: If you look at the sector times in Malaysia, it is relatively
obvious that we were less competitive in the parts of the
circuit that featured the high-speed corners. Sakhir is not
a circuit with many high-speed corners, so it should be intrinsically
a little kinder to us. But can I predict we will make a step
forward in competitiveness? To be honest, it's very hard to
make any predictions at all at the moment, and I think a number
of people up and down the pit-lane are scratching their heads
right now.
What do you mean?
PS: At Renault, the drivers are complaining of a lack of grip
from the car, but we are also seeing inconsistency in its
performance: we were relatively stronger on Friday and Sunday
in Malaysia, when compared to our performance on Saturday.
At the front of the field, we saw a huge shift from Ferrari
and McLaren between the opening two races, and a number of
teams saw their two drivers deliver very different levels
of performance. To my mind, that suggests that while the tyre
situation is stable for everybody, there are still plenty
of questions to be answered in terms of achieving consistent,
reliable performance.
So what are the expectations for the weekend ahead?
PS: In Bahrain this weekend, we will once again race the package
at our disposal, and race it to the best of our ability. Everybody
back at base is pushing the development, and we can see it
with new parts constantly arriving at the track. Our responsibility
at the circuit is to race well, to race hard and get the most
out of our current package. We did that in Malaysia: both
drivers were quick, consistent and aggressive; and our pit-stops
were the fastest of the entire field. That speaks volumes
about the team's professionalism, and I am confident we can
achieve our maximum again in Bahrain this weekend.
Magic Moments: 30 Years of Renault in F1
To mark the 30th anniversary of Renault's F1 debut, each
weekend we re-live our magic moments from the race in question
– and the dates on which we are racing!
On this day… 19 years ago: 13 April 1986
Coinciding with Friday practice in Bahrain is the 19th anniversary
of Ayrton Senna's dramatic win in the 1986 Spanish Grand Prix,
at the wheel of the Renault V6 Turbo-powered Lotus 98T. It
was the first Grand Prix held at the brand-new Jerez de la
Frontera circuit in southern Spain, and still stands in the
record books as one of the closest finishes in F1 history,
as Senna took victory just 0.014s ahead of a charging Nigel
Mansell. Senna's Renault power just kept him ahead as Mansell,
on a charge through the field after a late-race stop for new
tyres, tried all he knew to pass on the exit of the final
corner. It was the Brazilian's third F1 victory, and the penultimate
of his four wins with Renault turbo power. It was the 19th
win for a Renault-powered F1 car.
On this day… 10 years ago: 13 April 1997
Friday in Bahrain will also mark the 10th anniversary of Jacques
Villeneuve's triumph in the 1997 Argentine Grand Prix. The
Williams-Renault driver won the race from pole (number 125
for a Renault engine), but the race was not as serene as that
makes it sound. Victory seemed to be heading to Oliver Panis'
Prost in the early stages, when it became clear that the performance
advantage offered by his Bridgestone tyres would have allowed
him to make only two stops, compared to his rivals' three.
However, the Frenchman's retirement on lap 19 while running
second meant the fight for the win came down to a straight
battle between Eddie Irvine's Ferrari and Villeneuve. The
Canadian held the Ulsterman off to win by less than a second,
taking win number 88 for a Renault engine.
At this race… 2 years ago: 2005 Bahraini GP
Fernando Alonso's triumph at the wheel of the R25 was a special
occasion in Renault's F1 history. Not only did this victory,
his second consecutive win, help establish the platform for
that year's world championship victory, it also marked an
important milestone in the company's F1 story: the 100th win
for a Renault engine in Formula 1, and the 20th win for a
Renault chassis.
At this race… 1 year ago: 2006 Bahraini GP
As the curtain-raiser for the 2006 season, the Bahraini GP
had a lot to live up to last year – and it delivered
in fine style. The race-long battle between Alonso's Renault
and Schumacher's Ferrari was compelling, encapsulating the
titanic struggle that was to unfold throughout the season.
After shadowing the Ferrari for two stints, Alonso's Renault
dived into the pits on lap 39 for its second and final stop.
Swift work from the Renault pit crew saw Alonso emerge from
the pits wheel to wheel with the German, and as Alonso held
his line, the lead – and victory – was his. He
held off Schumacher for his first win of the 2006 season,
giving Renault a winning start in its championship defence.
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