Preview, 2007 French GP
The ING Renault F1 Team previews round eight of the
2007 Formula 1 World Championship.
Giancarlo Fisichella: "I can't wait
to get out on track"
Giancarlo, two great races in North America –
but no more points on your championship tally. What were your
feelings as you headed back to Rome after Indy?
Mixed feelings to be honest. As soon as I started running
in Canada, I knew that we had taken a good step forward with
the car. We were quick, consistent and I thought that in the
race we could fight with Ferrari and BMW – and that
was how it turned out. Then in Indy, the car was good again.
Maybe the feeling was not quite as positive, but we had a
good strategy, and got into the top ten quite easily in qualifying.
Then I had a spin, and that meant zero points. I felt really
sorry for the team after that, but we have to look at the
positives. The car is getting better all the time, and that's
thanks to the hard work of everybody at the track and the
factory.
You had a spectacular race in Indy, climbing back
through the field…
Yeah, it was good fun. But I'd rather have a lonely race and
score points, than all that overtaking and finish P9! It just
showed that the car was working really well. I had 36 laps
of fuel in the car for qualifying, and even with that fuel
load, I was overtaking guys off-line through the infield as
I came through the pack. So we had a good strategy, and good
potential. It was fun passing those cars, but ultimately,
I lost too much time doing so and that meant I couldn't fight
for the points.
Giancarlo, this will be your third French GP as a
Renault driver. A special feeling?
Without a doubt. I have had the best years of my career so
far with Renault, so it is going to be a great feeling to
be representing the team again at Magny-Cours. The motivation
in the team goes up a notch for this race, especially for
the engine team who are racing in front of their friends and
family. Does it make us try harder? Of course not. But it
makes a good result extra special. We will doing our maximum
to achieve that on Sunday.
You mention the Renault personnel who will be in
the crowd. Do you get a chance to meet them over the weekend?
We will be doing some promotional activities in Paris before
the race. Heikki, Nelson and myself will be visiting the Technocentre
in Guyancourt on Wednesday, to meet the personnel there. They
do a great job supporting the F1 team, both in terms of the
human support and motivation from all our fans at Renault
and also some important technical work behind the scenes.
This will be our chance to thank them all and we're looking
forward to it.
Looking at the Magny-Cours circuit, how tough a challenge
is it?
I think it's quite a selective circuit, because the car needs
to be strong in every area to be quick. There are some very
high speed corners, sharp changes of direction, and some heavy
braking and traction areas. That makes it a hard circuit for
the tyres too. Temperatures are generally very high, and the
tyres quite soft, so you have to find a good set-up to make
them last well through the stint, especially the softer compound
we will be running this weekend. Exiting the slow corners
is tough on the rear tyres as well, while the fast corners
give the fronts a hard time. So you need a consistent balance
to avoid taking too much out of the tyres.
And in terms of results, what are you expecting?
Firstly, to score more points, that's a priority. After that,
we have to race with BMW and try to beat them. They are the
team we are fighting in the championship, and we have to try
and out-score them in each race from now on. It's not going
to be easy, but we know that our car is improving all the
time, we are making steps forward, and the motivation is there
to do the job. I can't wait to get out on track and start
working.
Heikki Kovalainen: "Looking to maintain
the momentum"
Heikki, two strong races in North America and a positive
test in Silverstone last week… Things seem to be coming
together for you at the moment?
I think I have some good momentum going at the moment –
and I want to maintain that in France this weekend. Montreal
was my best result so far in F1, and Indianapolis was my best
race: a strong weekend, no mistakes, no problems, five laps
led and a good level of performance from me and from the car.
I am still improving every time I drive, learning and putting
it into practice. And as we develop the car, that is showing
in my race results.
Tell us a little about the R27. What has changed
since the start of the season?
We had a car that was difficult to drive. It was mainly inconsistency
– one lap, you would go into a corner and it would be
fine; next lap, a tiny change could mean you missed the corner
completely. That meant it was hard to perform consistently.
Since then, the team has done a great job improving the car,
finding the problems and fixing them. We are going in the
right direction and getting there, step by step. We have better
consistency, more downforce, and that gives the drivers more
confidence. The result? Improved performances.
Have your strong races in North America given you
more confidence in the car?
For me, nothing has changed. I came into F1 with confidence
in my ability. I always push to the limit, always attack and
try to be aggressive. Sometimes this year, I have overstepped
the mark. But I never lose confidence, never let my head go
down. I always believed that things would come together for
me, and I was positive even in the difficult moments. I think
that the results in North America have changed the perceptions
around me, not my confidence in myself. My job is to focus
on the essentials, block out the rest – and drive to
my full potential.
Last year, your work was mainly with the test team.
This year, you have obviously been working primarily with
the race team. How is the relationship there?
Great – just like it was last year. I have been around
the team since 2002, when I joined the RDD (Renault Driver
Development) programme, and I knew a lot of the guys already
before the season. But I have been so impressed with the team
and their approach this year. They are all world champions
but even when we have qualified 13th, or had reliability problems,
their commitment has been 100%. I still remember qualifying
in Canada, when the guys repaired my damaged car in about
5 minutes to get me back out on track. It was an incredible
effort, and it says so much about why this team are double
world champions.
What about Magny-Cours? Can you repeat the results
from North America in France?
Hopefully! It's no secret that France is a really important
race for Renault, and racing in front of all the people from
the factory at Viry, and the other Renault factories, makes
the atmosphere very special for us. When I last raced in Magny-Cours
in GP2, I had one win and one podium, and it's a circuit I
enjoy: there are some quick corners, and some good high-speed
chicanes that you need to attack to get a good lap-time. I
think we made another step with the car last week at Silverstone,
so I am looking forward to getting out there on Friday, and
seeing how things stack up. We got the maximum out of our
package in Indy. We have to do the same again this weekend.
Pat Symonds: "The tide is turning"
Pat, the team came away from North America having
scored an equal number of points to rivals BMW. That's a positive
for you, surely?
Well, the first thing to say is that the results don't quite
tell the full story, because some odd things happened to both
teams, in both races. But in overall terms, yes, I think it's
indicative of the fact that the tide is turning, we are very
close to BMW now and racing them hard.
The car certainly seemed much more competitive in
Canada and Indy…
I think it's since Monaco to be honest. Without a doubt, we
have upped our game and pulled out of the midfield bunch we
were in, to stand on top of it. And there's still more to
come.
The other key factor was seeing improved performances
from Heikki…
What a contrast from the start of his weekend in Canada, to
the end of the race in Indy! After Friday and Saturday in
Montreal, not much more could go wrong. But he then put in
a great drive in Canada: he pulled up from the back, he was
consistent, he pushed and challenged all the way. Then we
got to Indy and he was strong all weekend, mentally and in
terms of his driving. He used the equipment to the utmost,
and even led the race, which we hadn't anticipated!
Giancarlo was less fortunate, and saw two potentially
strong finishes go by the wayside…
Sometimes, it is very hard to be critical of the drivers.
For all of us, our job is all about taking things to the limit.
If you do that, occasionally you will overstep it. As engineers,
our mistakes are not very public; as a driver, it absolutely
is. Giancarlo made a mistake in America, and it was a great
shame because he was on a very strong strategy. But after
that spin, what a drive! He showed all of his good qualities,
driving very quickly, consistently and with a good dose of
aggression too.
Since the start of the season, you have spoken in
detail about how the team has been solving its performance
problems. How is that work progressing?
The first thing to say, and it's an important point, is that
the work is progressing. Of course, it is never fast enough
- we all want to be leading championships and winning every
race, and you're never happy until you are doing so! But we
take a lot of comfort from the fact that after a poor start
to the year, we are pulling it back so rapidly. Other teams
are not having a great season, and not pulling it back as
we are. There is plenty to be proud of in what we are doing.
Have the new testing restrictions for 2007 affected
the way you have tackled the problems?
I don't think so, no. Our work has largely been focused on
the aerodynamics of the car, in the wind tunnel. There has
been some track work too, but the mileage restrictions haven't
limited us at all. We wholeheartedly support the testing limit
because it's simply so expensive to run these cars in testing,
something like 200 euros per km.
Looking ahead to the French Grand Prix, how will
the circuit suit the R27?
Magny-Cours is known as a very smooth circuit – although
the new final chicane now gives the cars a severe pounding.
It's quite an aerodynamic circuit, with some good fast chicanes
which need a responsive car. The challenge is very different
to that of the low-medium downforce tracks in Canada and the
USA. If you look back to circuits like Barcelona, we were
struggling there at the time, but since then some very positive
steps forward have been made. So I certainly believe our performance
will be better, but we are still working on the car, still
trying things, and hoping for a good race in France.
Finally, what do you expect the second half of the
season to hold for Renault?
There's plenty of activity at the factory, that's for sure.
As we better understand the problems we have been suffering
from, we are able to improve the car. There will be enhancements
for France and Britain. And that's in addition to continue
the push with our normal development processes. There are
a lot of new bits coming for the car, and you can be certain
that we will keep on fighting.
Magny-Cours Tech File
Renault's home race also marks the return to Europe of the
F1 circus after the traditional mid-season North American
leg of the championship. The circuit in Magny-Cours includes
an interesting variety of challenges for drivers and cars
alike: three high-speed corners at the start of the lap; a
very slow hairpin at Adelaide; two enjoyable high-speed chicanes;
and more changes of gradient than the flattening eye of television
shows. As always, finding the right set-up will be about finding
the right compromise to achieve the R27's optimum performance
at every point of the circuit.
Downforce: Magny-Cours demands a much higher
level of downforce than we used at the recent North American
races. While both of these circuits required a similar low-medium
set-up, Magny-Cours – and indeed Silverstone –
demand a medium-high configuration, to ensure the cars are
competitive through the high-speed corners such as turn 3,
and the chicanes at turns 6/7 and 11/12. While it is tempting
to reduce wing levels in order to gain straightline speed
to try overtaking into the Adelaide hairpin, this is rarely
a feasible solution: the back straight is preceded by the
high-speed turn three, and while reduced downforce would allow
greater top speed, it would have a detrimental effect through
this corner, costing speed and also making it more difficult
to follow a competitor closely. It is something of a Catch-22
situation, and we consequently prefer to maintain our high
downforce set-up to achieve the optimum lap-time.
Suspension: Magny-Cours is renowned as an
exceptionally smooth circuit, which allows the teams to run
lower ride heights and stiffer suspension settings to improve
aerodynamic performance. This also has the added benefit of
making the car more responsive in the high-speed changes of
direction required through the two quick chicanes. As ever,
though, a good compromise must be found because the circuit
also includes a number of very slow corners, where softer
settings would offer better grip, and the correct balance
must be struck between performance in the high and low-speed
corners.
Tyres: Magny-Cours is a circuit that is
particularly temperature-sensitive, and something as seemingly
insignificant as a few minutes of cloud cover can have a drastic
impact on track temperatures – and thus grip levels.
Bridgestone will be bringing the ‘soft' and ‘medium'
tyre compounds from the 2007 range to this race, and as always,
successful management of both tyre types will be key to a
successful race strategy.
Transmission: The cars are generally short
and closely-geared at Magny-Cours, in order to optimise performance
on the exit of the slow corners. The team will pay particular
attention to performance from 0 to 250 kph, as this will ensure
strong performance through the slower parts of the circuit
– which in turn determine top speeds on the straights.
The transmission can also come under severe strain from riding
the kerbs, which the drivers do on several occasions, and
particularly at the end of the lap. In qualifying, it is necessary
to use the kerbs to gain lap-time but we may ask the drivers
to be more cautious in race conditions, to preserve the reliability
of the engine and transmission.
Engine: Magny-Cours is not a particularly
severe circuit in terms of engine performance. The V8 will
spend around 64% of the lap at full throttle – slightly
above the season average, but nevertheless a normal value.
A torquey engine is always an asset at this circuit, as it
will ensure the car exits strongly from the slow corners;
equally, we will look to ensure power delivery is as smooth
and linear as possible, so that chassis balance is not disrupted
when the drivers are using partial to full throttle in the
chicanes, or through turn 3.
Over at Red Bull Racing… with Fabrice Lom, Principal
Engineer, Red Bull Racing Trackside Engine Support
Fabrice, what conclusions did you draw after the
races in North America?
From an engine perspective, we haven't encountered any major
problems so far, and that's always a good starting point.
To summarise the team's position after seven races, I think
we can say that Red Bull Racing is stronger than its direct
competitors, Toyota and Williams. What's more, we have improved
our reliability since the start of the season, and we didn't
come back from North America empty-handed. Of course, there
is still work to be done – but we are making good progress.
Heading into Renault's home race at the French Grand
Prix, does anything change in your approach?
The French Grand Prix is always an important event on the
calendar for Renault and we will be determined to put in a
strong performance at Magny-Cours. Our approach isn't really
any different, we work in the same way but we are certainly
even more determined to succeed! And if we get a good result
in France, it will mean a lot to the whole team – not
just the engine side from Renault.
Coming back to the engine itself, is Magny-Cours
a challenging circuit which demands special preparations?
No, not really. It is a relatively straightforward circuit,
as there are no long straights, few high-speed corners, so
very few areas that demand precautions or preparation above
and beyond the norm. So our work before the event is no different,
but once the cars are running, we will be paying special attention
to how the cars ride the kerbs in the last two corners. They
take them very aggressively – and when the rear wheels
leave the ground, this can lead to over-revving which subsequently
damages the engine. That can be a big risk, and one we monitor
carefully.
Magic Moments: 30 Years of Renault in F1
In the late 1970s and early 1980s, there were perhaps two
golden rules in Formula 1: Ferraris performed well at Monza,
and Renaults went well at the French Grand Prix. From 1979
to 1983, Renault won its home race on no fewer than four occasions
– including a one-two finish in 1982, and each of the
four victories was from pole position. And while those wins
came at Dijon and Paul Ricard, the love affair continued in
the V10 era at Magny-Cours, with Renault-powered cars scoring
spectacular results through the mid-90s. The era of the Renault
F1 Team has seen further success, with podiums every year
since 2004. In total, Renault power has taken 26 podiums,
13 poles and 10 wins on French soil since 1977. So what will
2007 bring?
Renault at the French Grand Prix
Renault's debut F1 season didn't include the French Grand
Prix – the RS01 only took its first steps onto the F1
stage two weeks later, at Silverstone. 1978 might as well
not have done, with the car retiring on lap 22 after qualifying
in P11. But 1979 was the year when things really took off,
with Renault's first ever Formula 1 victory at Dijon-Prenois.
Jean-Pierre Jabouille won from pole, and indeed it was a double
podium finish with Arnoux in third. But as victories go, it
was one of the most anonymous ever, as the titanic battle
between Arnoux and Gilles Villeneuve for second monopolised
attention. 1980 saw Arnoux on the front row but he could only
finish 5th behind winner Alan Jones, but he made amends during
the next two seasons, with the Frenchman taking pole and the
victory in both 1981 and 1982. In 1982, he was part of Renault's
first ever one-two finish ahead of Alain Prost – and
in the process, he took the 25th pole position for a Renault
car and engine, and victory number 10! 1983 was Prost's year
was he mounted his championship challenge, taking pole and
the win, and the turbo era saw two more poles - for Tambay
in 1984 and Senna in 1986 – and two more podiums, both
in 1984 when Tambay's Renault finished second, ahead of Mansell's
Renault-powered Lotus.
When Renault returned as a V10 engine supplier in 1989, the
race was still being held at Le Castellet – and Riccardo
Patrese took P3 in his Williams-Renault. 1990 was a barren
year, but the move to Magny-Cours in 1991 kicked off an avalanche
of success, and renewed Renault's unique tradition in the
French Grand Prix. 1991 saw Riccardo Patrese on pole and Mansell
on the top step of the podium; 1992 saw the Williams-Renaults
on the front row, and Mansell and Patrese take a one-two finish;
1993 saw a Hill/Prost front row become a Prost/Hill one-two
finish; while in 1994, Nigel Mansell's Williams return was
rewarded with a P2 starting slot, but he retired with a gearbox
failure, as Damon Hill slipped from pole to P2 at the finish.
By 1995 and 1996, Renault's dominance was in full swing as
supplier to Williams and Renault, and the performances in
France reflected as much: a 1-2-3 finish in 1995 for Schumacher/Hill/Coulthard,
followed by an historic 1/2/3/4 in 1996 with the Williams
of Hill and Villeneuve ahead of the Benettons of Alesi and
Berger. And in 1997? P2, P4 and P5 in the race as Michael
Schumacher's Ferrari won – the third of the German's
eight victories in Magny-Cours.
The Renault F1 Team's debut race at Magny-Cours in 2002 was
one of mixed feelings: Jenson Button took a solid P6, while
Jarno Trulli retired with engine failure. That trick was repeated
on a larger scale in 2003, when both Trulli and Alonso blew
their engines, but things turned around in 2004. Fernando
Alonso took a stunning pole position, and raced hard to P2,
beaten only by a remarkable four-stop strategy from Ferrari
and Michael Schumacher. The following year saw the Spaniard
make amends, winning from pole, while in 2006 he took P2 after
a cunning, savvy race against Felipe Massa's Ferrari for the
second spot. On each occasion, team-mate Giancarlo Fisichella
finished sixth – a result he will certainly be looking
to improve upon this weekend…
On this day in history… 30 June
Late June and early July has always meant ‘French Grand
Prix' in the world of motor racing, ever since 26 June 1906
when the first ever French Grand Prix (won by a Renault, incidentally)
started out on two days of high-speed racing on a circuit
near Le Mans. Nowadays, they race for two hours rather than
two days, but the tradition means this weekend is full of
milestones for the racing world. And so it is for the last
day in June: on this day 28 years ago, Jean-Pierre Jabouille
and René Arnoux placed their Renaults on the front
row for the 1979 French Grand Prix; while 11 years ago, the
Williams and Benetton teams scored Renault's best ever Formula
1 result, a 1-2-3-4 finish on home soil, with all four cars
powered by Viry-Châtillon's famous V10 engine.
On this day in history… 1 July
1 July 1979 stands as a true milestone in Renault's F1 history
for on this day 28 years ago, Renault took its first ever
Formula 1 victory, with Jean-Pierre Jabouille guiding home
chassis RS11 to a comfortable win at Dijon-Prenois. He trailed
Gilles Villeneuve in the early stages, preserving his tyres
on a heavy fuel load, before taking the lead and comfortably
extending his advantage to the flag. Behind him, though, a
battle royal raged as Villeneuve and Arnoux engaged in possibly
the most dramatic wheel to wheel fight in F1 history –
a truly remarkable demonstration of bravery and skill. At
the flag, Villeneuve was second – but both Renaults
stood on the Dijon podium. The descendant of the famous yellow
teapot had made its mark, as the turbocharged 1.5 litre V6
engine took its first F1 victory…
|
