2007 Canadian Grand Prix,
The ING Renault F1 Team delivered a disappointing qualifying
performance this afternoon at Montreal's Circuit Gilles Villeneuve.
Giancarlo Fisichella, R27-05
Heikki Kovalainen, R27-03
Q1
1:16.805, P5
1:17.806, P19
Q2
1:16.288, P7
n/a
Q3
1:17.229, P9
n/a
Heikki Kovalainen failed to progress past the first knockout
round after an accident on his first flying lap disrupted
his session, while Giancarlo Fisichella did not fully capitalise
on the improved performance of the R27 during the final round
of qualifying, and will line up in ninth position on the grid
for tomorrow's race. Heikki will also observe an engine change
penalty following a sudden failure during this morning's practice
session, and will therefore start from P22, subject to any
penalties for other cars. While neither grid position is as
strong as the team had hoped after seeing an improvement in
the car's relative performance during the weekend, the Canadian
Grand Prix is always an incident-filled race, where overtaking
is possible and safety car periods a strong possibility on
a circuit with very little run-off. As ever, the team will
race to its maximum and for Giancarlo in particular, the car's
competitiveness on longer runs means he is optimistic of making
up positions during the race.
Giancarlo Fisichella, P9
I have had a great weekend so far, which makes it even more
unfortunate that I didn't have a very good final lap in the
third part of qualifying. The car felt really strong in Q2,
and I still had some lap-time left in hand, so I was feeling
very confident of a strong starting position. But on my final
timed lap, I made a mistake in turn 6 – and then was
pushing really hard to try and make the time back up, and
lost the car again in turns 10 and 13. We were expecting to
start from higher up the grid than P9, but I think we can
stay positive for tomorrow. The car is very competitive on
the harder tyre, which is likely to be the main race tyre
for most of the teams, and I think we have a very strong pace.
I am confident that I can turn the situation around in the
race.
Heikki Kovalainen, P19 (probable P22 after engine
penalty)
The first thing I want to say is thank you to my mechanics:
they have worked so hard all weekend, changing chassis overnight,
the engine this morning, and then making repairs during the
first part of qualifying after I hit the wall. They have done
a really incredible job, and I am just sorry that I couldn't
pay them back with a better qualifying performance. I went
into the session knowing that I would have an engine penalty,
but I was determined to push right to the limit to get as
far up the grid as I could. I hit the kerbs hard in turn 4
on my timed lap and lost the rear end, which damaged the wing
and the floor. The team repaired as much as they could, but
it was hard to have full confidence in the car after that.
I hoped I had done enough to get through to the second round,
but it wasn't to be. There is no point pretending that it
won't be a tough afternoon tomorrow, but we knew I would be
starting a long way back, and adjusted the set-up accordingly.
I will have to be aggressive all through the race, and try
to make up as many positions as I can.
Pat Symonds, Executive Director of Engineering
Giancarlo has had an extremely good weekend and looked competitive
through every session, so ultimately his final qualifying
position of P9 is a bit disappointing. Several small mistakes
on his final timed lap meant he failed to improve his time,
and put paid to his chances of a better starting position.
However, bearing in mind his pace in the other sessions, he
should still have a good race. Heikki's accident yesterday
and engine failure today have limited his running on a circuit
that is new to him. In trying hard to find the limit during
qualifying today, he slightly overstepped the mark. The mechanics
did a great job to get him out again, but his final lap was
also only his first lap of the weekend on the soft tyre. The
last word, though, goes to our mechanics. They have experienced
another very hard weekend, with an unscheduled chassis change
yesterday followed by gearbox and engine changes today, plus
the urgent repairs during qualifying. They have taken all
of this in their stride, and performed magnificently.
Denis Chevrier, Head of Engine Track Operations
We have become accustomed to talking about normal, trouble-free
days – and unfortunately, this was anything but. Although
we experienced a problem with Heikki's engine at the end of
the race in Monaco, our post-race analysis found no problems,
and we took the decision to race it here in Canada. The sudden
mechanical failure we experienced this morning was unrelated
to the incident in Monaco, and we are still working to understand
exactly what happened. However, we are confident that this
does not present a risk for the other three Renault engines
in the field. Giancarlo had a more straightforward day, and
showed encouraging pace for much of the qualifying session.
We know the car has the potential to perform well tomorrow
in race conditions, and we will be hoping to see both drivers
make good progress through the field.
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