Australian Grand Prix 2008 Preview
The ING Renault F1 Team takes the first step of the 2008
Formula 1 World Championship: the Australian Grand Prix.
Fernando Alonso: "If an opportunity
presents itself, I am ready to seize it."
You rejoined the team in January to prepare for the
2008 season. How did you find your first few weeks of work
with the team?
They have been very busy! All has gone well in terms of my
arrival and it felt a bit like coming home. I already know
everybody; I know the way the team works and I was able to
start working well with the team immediately, right from the
first test.
As with any new car we worked hard on the reliability and
then started working on the development towards the end of
February with the arrival of the latest parts. I did nearly
fifteen days of testing between January and February so that
I could arrive in Australia as ready as I can be for the new
season.
Do you think that the team has succeeded in overcoming
the problems of 2007 and will you be ready to fight at the
front of the field at the beginning of the season?
The team was far behind in 2007 and it would have been impossible
to overcome that gap this winter. The other teams have also
progressed and so it will certainly take a little time to
reach a higher level, but I am convinced that we have the
potential to get there. The team has shown in the past that
they know how to produce a winning car; we just need to continue
our efforts and to make sure we don't lose ground.
After winter testing, which teams do you expect to
be strongest at the start of the championship?
It's difficult to say with certainty before the first session
in Melbourne. All the teams have worked on different programmes
during winter testing and so we cannot really predict how
things will be. I think that Ferrari will be the team to beat
during the first few races – they were strong during
2007 and seem to have performed well over the winter. The
first race will be the first real chance to see how the teams
compare with each other, and we will then have a better idea
of our competitiveness.
Do you expect a difficult first race in Albert Park?
The first race will not be easy, but I am looking forward
to it and the beginning of the championship. Many challenges
await the ING Renault F1 Team, but we have worked hard these
last few months and it is now time for the racing to begin.
I know that a win or a podium in Australia will be difficult,
but you never know what can happen during the race. It may
rain; the race may take place on a drying track and you can
have the chance to spring a surprise. If an opportunity presents
itself, I am ready to seize it.
Nelson Piquet: "I want to approach
this first race calmly, one step at a time."
Nelson, you are only a few days away from you first
race in Formula 1. What is your state of mind at the moment?
These last few weeks have been busy with testing and I have
been concentrating on my work and preparation so that I am
ready for Melbourne. But I still don't feel like a race driver
yet because I have only been doing testing, just like I was
last year as the third driver for the ING Renault F1 Team.
I think that when I arrive at the track and start working
with my engineers I will begin to realise what I am about
to do.
You have covered a lot of laps this winter. How did
it feel to get behind the wheel of the R28?
Yes, I have done lots of running this winter, which was essential
for my physical and technical preparation. I feel I have progressed
a lot during testing and I feel at ease in the R28. We still
need to work hard to improve our performance, but the whole
team is determined, and there is a good feeling in the team.
Everyone is giving their maximum to take the team forwards
and I am doing the same.
What are you expecting from your first Grand Prix?
It is a new circuit for me and I hope that I can find my feet
quickly. I feel I have done everything in order to be ready,
but the only way to get fully prepared is to do laps on the
circuit. Only then can you really have an idea of the layout
of the track, how to use the cubs and the best lines. I need
to work well with my engineers to set up my car and then I
need to get the best of it. I'm very competitive and I would
like to score points in my first race, but I recognise that
these things can take time. Above all, I want to approach
this first race calmly, one step at a time.
You completed numerous race simulations as part of
your preparation during the last test. Do you feel you are
ready to contest a race?
I had the opportunity to do many laps this winter, so today
I am physically prepared, although I have my doubts as to
whether the Malaysian Grand Prix will be as easy! As a team
we have gone through the different procedures that I will
have to deal with during races, because racing is different
to testing and I know that I will face new pressures. I think
that I am ready, and above all I am looking forward to the
start of the season. I have worked all my life to get here,
and it is a great feeling to be starting my first race in
Melbourne. I'm conscious that I have a lot to prove this year,
but I'm determined to do my best.
Bob Bell: "Melbourne will be a good
indicator of how we're going to fare for the early part of
the season."
Bob, the team has completed a busy testing programme
this winter. How did that go?
I think we are happy with how things went overall and we achieved
pretty much everything that we needed to in terms of preparing
for Melbourne. On the performance side it's hard to know exactly
where we stand; it's going to be very close between a big
group of teams. But we had a successful winter in terms of
getting on top of the car and learning how to set it up, so
we know we're extracting the most from our package. There
were no obvious handling problems with the car, and certainly
none of the problems that we had last year. We're also pretty
comfortable with the reliability of the cars, which is what
so much of winter testing is about. But from now it's a matter
of entering into a development race against all the other
teams to develop the car and to do all we can to make sure
we are improving faster than everybody else.
What about the mood in the team now that Fernando
is back?
I think there is a renewed optimism this year and Fernando
coming back has really buoyed the whole team. He really is
a great source of motivation for everybody. The wonderful
thing about Fernando is that he's a real fighter and he will
always get the best out of the equipment on the day. You know
that every race you enter with Fernando behind the wheel there
is a chance that he will bring back a trophy because that's
the sort of driver he is. And so it fills everyone with real
enthusiasm to be going into the first race with Fernando back
in the team.
The team fields another rookie this year in Nelson
Piquet. How has he adapted to the role of race driver?
Nelson has worked hard over the winter and his performances
during testing have shown that he has already reached a high
standard, and so I think he is as ready as he ever will be
for his first race. He is working well with the engineers,
who have done a good job of getting him ready for the season,
and he has shown good pace. Now it's a question of showing
that pace in a race as opposed to on the test track because
a race obviously has different pressures and there is a lot
more things for a driver to think about. It will be interesting
to see how he copes with that, but I'm sure he will do a good
job.
You have said before that the R27 was too conservative.
So how has the team approached 2008?
We have pushed very hard in all areas, and particularly on
the aerodynamics. The reality of modern F1 is that the quality
of the aero package determines a car's success – and
this has been our primary focus. The front end too has come
in for particular attention, notably the front wing and the
front suspension. The suspension architecture is now much
more akin to what is deemed ‘fashionable': the zero
keel solution offered us no real benefit for a number of years,
but it has opened up potential for us this year in order to
extract maximum performance from the tyres.
Tell us about Albert Park from a technical standpoint.
Is it a circuit that will play to the strengths of the R28?
I don't think it will be disadvantageous to the R28, put it
that way. It's a track that has traditionally required a car
with a good change of direction and good braking characteristics,
and this should suit the R28. But it can be a bit bumpy in
places and I think we've possibly got some work to do with
getting the car to work well on the bumps and the curbs. The
other thing about Albert Park is that it's all about driver
confidence, and so a good set-up is essential. I think that
is something we can achieve with the R28: we can set it up
to give the drivers what they want. It's not going to be disadvantageous
to us in any particular way, and I would expect it to be a
good indicator of how we're going to fare for the early part
of the season.
Last year the team struggled to adapt the car to
Bridgestone tyres. Has the team resolved those issues?
The relationship with Bridgestone has always been good, and
even when we were struggling to get the best out of the tyres
they were an excellent partner to work with. But it's true
to say that we are in much better shape this year with our
understanding of the tyres and we now have a car that is better
at exploiting the characteristics of the tyres. So I'm not
really concerned about the tyre utilisation; we know that
we can set the car up to get the best out of them.
The team has enjoyed great success in Melbourne with
two wins in the last three years. What is a realistic objective
for this weekend?
We want to be fighting for a podium – that will be our
clear objective for the season, and that's what we're aiming
for in Melbourne. Exactly how things will shake out is anybody's
guess, but we will be doing everything we can to try and achieve
that. Albert Park is a circuit that Fernando knows well, and
he's been successful there in the past, winning with the team
in 2006. It's a new circuit for Nelson, and so our main focus
is to make sure that he is as well prepared as he can be.
It's probably the most difficult circuit for a driver to learn
because it's so technical and one of those places where drivers
find it difficult to get their lines absolutely right.
Formula 1 enters an era of standardised electronics
with no driver aids. What impact, if any, do you expect this
to have on the spectacle?
The driving may be a bit more interesting to watch and the
cars may move around a little bit more, but I don't think
it will fundamentally alter the pecking order among the drivers.
It may catch out the unwary, particularly in wet conditions,
but I don't think it's going to make a huge difference. The
public won't be able to point a finger at the sport and say
"that's a result of the new electronic systems".
But the introduction of standardised electronics was not about
trying to alter the spectacle; it was about levelling the
regulatory playing field and containing costs. Overall I don't
think the spectacle of Formula 1 will change as a result.
The competition among the teams is close this year.
How do you see the pecking order at the moment?
All we can go on is what we have seen in winter testing, and
so we are fairly sure that Ferrari are the frontrunners with
McLaren probably a little bit behind them. After that there
seems to be a gaggle of teams that are all very close to each
another, possibly slightly behind McLaren or maybe just with
them. So it's very difficult to call where we think we will
finish in Melbourne, but we do go there with high expectations.
Melbourne: Tech File
Melbourne's Albert Park is a stop-start mixture of temporary
street course and a purpose-built track. This means the circuit
includes an interesting variety of corners with unusual geometry
and constantly evolving track surface. A relatively featureless
circuit, it is often described as having a ‘point and
squirt' layout that provides a difficult technical challenge
with a number of heavy braking zones and range of tricky low-speed
corners.
Aerodynamics
Melbourne is on a par with the aerodynamic demands of Silverstone
or Sepang and therefore requires a medium to high downforce
set-up. There are a few critical high-speed corners but nothing
especially demanding. The high downforce set-up helps the
drivers get good traction out of the slower corners, which
is important for carrying good exit speed onto the straights.
Suspension
Melbourne has a number of chicanes where a responsive car
with a good change of direction is critical, nowhere more
so than in the high-speed challenge of turns 11 and 12. The
suspension therefore has to be relatively stiff to achieve
this, but at the same time the car needs to be soft enough
to use the curbs and have good stability under braking. An
optimum set-up therefore demands a compromise, dovetailing
hard and soft settings accordingly.
Brakes
Albert Park is one of the most demanding circuits on brakes
with six major braking zones demanding stops from over 300
kph. It is not the severity of the braking, but the frequency
that makes an efficient brake cooling solution a constant
concern during the race. The track surface can be bumpy in
the braking zones, but nothing too significant and a soft
enough car should be able to ride the bumps without locking
up under braking. Braking is complicated further this year
by the absence of driver aids, namely the sophisticated engine
braking systems that have been outlawed with the adoption
of standardised electronics.
Tyres
The temporary nature of the circuit means the track is ‘green'
and dusty for the first day of running and gradually evolves
during the weekend as rubber is laid down on the racing line.
Tyre demands therefore vary significantly across the weekend
with the drivers trying to avoid too much graining during
the early sessions when the grip levels are lowest. The team
will use the medium and soft option tyres this weekend, as
was the case for last year's race, so there are unlikely to
be any surprises.
Engine Performance
Melbourne offers a good test for engines with the latest generation
V8s operating at full throttle for 66% of the lap. However,
the secret of a good lap time depends not on peak power, but
on good torque to help launch the car out of the slow corners
that connect the succession of straights. This is particularly
true of turns 14, 15 and 16, which are all low-speed corners
where the car tends to understeer making it difficult to get
on the power early. A well balanced car with good torque will
therefore find time in this last sequence of corners. Engines
must still last for two consecutive races, but engine use
remains unrestricted during the Friday practice sessions.
Strategy
Melbourne has traditionally been a two-stop race and is likely
to remain so this year. The main strategic change for 2008
prevents the top ten cars refuelling after the third part
of qualifying (Q3). This is designed to remove the unnecessary
fuel-burn phase of qualifying and is likely to see the front
running teams running shorter first stints in the race. But
those teams in the lower reaches of the top ten will need
to be wary of the threat from eleventh place onwards, where
no fuel restrictions apply, allowing the second half of the
grid to choose their optimum fuel load.
Pat Symonds Corner Analysis: Turns 11 and 12
Melbourne is a challenging circuit in that most of the sixteen
corners are really quite different. Each one presents a different
sort of challenge, but it is the fast fourth gear open chicane
that forms Turns 11 and 12 which is the most demanding of
them all.
From the perspective of overall lap time, T11 and T12 are
not the most important corners on the lap, but they are still
significant and it is perhaps more true to say that while
you cannot make up a huge amount of time in this sequence,
it is extremely easy to make a mistake that will cost a lot.
The drivers approach T11 at over 300 kph, with their line
of sight on the approach ‘tunnelled' by concrete walls.
It is not until the driver is on top of T11 that the approach
to T12 becomes visible. Braking for T11 is not particularly
hard, as the driver only needs to lose around 85 kph to get
on line for the apex of T11. He hits the brakes relatively
lightly, slowing progressively so as not to upset the car's
balance on corner entry. In this time (around ¾ of
a second) he also completes two downshifts.
Having hit the apex, he opens the throttle very progressively,
reaching full throttle for just a couple of tenths before
lifting to part throttle for T12. There is always the tendency
for a little oversteer in the middle of T12, and it is often
necessary to adjust the car again before accelerating out
of the turn.
Of the two corners, the second part is obviously more important,
but a mistake in either corner will penalise straightline
speed on the long run to T13…and possible cost a position
in race conditions. Therefore, it is important to keep T11
extremely tidy, so that the driver is not off-line and can
drive as straight a line as possible from the apex of T11
to the turn-in of T12.
Although the corners look quite open from the outside, and
may seem relatively undramatic, it should be remembered that
as the apex speeds are between 210 and 220 kph, the car is
achieving over 4g lateral acceleration owing to the high levels
of downforce available at these speeds.
Renault at the Australian Grand Prix
The Australian Grand Prix did not become part of the Formula
1 World Championship until 1985, when the honour of hosting
the first F1 race ‘Down Under' went to the city of Adelaide.
It was there that F1 made its Australian ‘home' for
the next ten years, with the race enjoying a traditional end-of-season
date until 1995.
During this time Renault powered cars excelled on the demanding
street course. Ayrton Senna set the standard by taking pole
position for the inaugural Australian Grand Prix in 1985 at
the wheel of his Lotus-Renault, while in the race Renault-powered
cars remained at the sharp end, coming home in second, third
and fourth places respectively.
Four years later, and with Renault V10 engines now powering
the Williams team, Thierry Boutsen swept to victory in the
1989 Australian Grand Prix, securing Renault's first victory
in Australia, backed up by teammate Riccardo Patrese in third.
The partnership with Williams saw the Williams-Renault package
emerge as the dominant force in the early 1990s, but further
success on the streets of Adelaide evaded the team until 1994
when Nigel Mansell returned to Williams-Renault to support
their world title assault. Mansell took his final F1 victory
and confirmed Williams-Renault as the 1994 world champions.
The following year fellow Englishman Damon Hill added another
Williams-Renault victory to the list with one of the most
commanding victories in the history of the Australian Grand
Prix – two laps clear of the rest of the field.
By 1996 the location of the race had shifted to Melbourne,
this time as the season opener. The Williams-Renault alliance
was still demonstrating its technical prowess, allowing Damon
Hill to claim victory on the streets of Melbourne ahead of
rookie teammate Jacques Villeneuve.
Since returning to the sport as a constructor in 2002, Renault
has found just as much success in Australia. A 2004 podium
for Fernando Alonso confirmed the team's progress, and by
2005 Renault had emerged as the team to beat. The team began
its title assault in style with Giancarlo Fisichella taking
pole and his first victory for the team in Melbourne, with
Fernando Alonso confirming the potential of Renault in third.
The team retained its competitive advantage for 2006 as Fernando
Alonso took his victory in Australia to lay the foundations
for his and the team's consecutive world titles.
The team suffered a ‘reality check' last year and could
not repeat its feats of the previous couple of years. Heikki
Kovalainen moved up to the race team to partner Giancarlo
Fisichella and endured an eventful baptism, eventually finishing
tenth, while his Italian teammate drove an assured race to
fifth. After a disappointing year, the team arrives in Melbourne
determined to bounce back and strengthen Renault's legacy
‘Down Under'.
Over at Red Bull Racing
Fabrice Lom, the man in charge of maximising the RS27 engine
with Red Bull Racing, reflects on winter testing and gives
his views on the season ahead…
Fabrice, how did winter testing go for Red Bull Racing?
I think that it went well. We already know the team well as
we have been with them for a year and we know their way of
working. The first discussions relating to the RB4 project
took place well in advance, with the result being a better
integration of the engine. Our main preoccupation resulting
from 2007 was to improve the level of reliability with the
package and our advice has been taken into account during
the conception of the new car. The result seems to be a car
that is intrinsically more reliable. This winter we have therefore
done well and we have covered many kilometres, and I believe
we have made good progress.
What have been the main tasks this winter?
As with all the teams, the adoption of the new electronic
regulations has kept us busy. We had initially worked on an
adapted RB3 to run a car with the new electronics as we wanted
to get used to the new settings and adapt to the new way of
thinking. This first step went well, and the drivers quickly
wanted to start working on the development of the new car.
We have made good progress, but we are still far away from
where we would wish to be.
In what state of mind do you approach the first race
of the season?
I feel that our package this season is a step forward. In
2007 we worked hard but the team was still young and our hopes
were simply to be able to finish races. For this season, not
finishing would be a real disappointment because we have other
ambitions. But it is hard to know the relative level of performance
of the other teams. What we do know is that the gaps are very
small, and we are in for a very competitive year and I think
that the battle to reach Q3 will be intense. We now have to
wait for the first race in Melbourne to have a better idea
of the main forces in the championship. In any case, we will
try our best.
ING Renault F1 Team in numbers
30 – It's the number of tonnes of equipment sent to
each Grand Prix. For Australia this has been transported by
sea and by plane.
The key dates for the ING Renault F1 Team
22-23 March Malaysian Grand Prix – Sepang, Malaysia
5-6 April Bahrain Grand Prix – Sakhir, Bahrain
14-16 April Testing – Barcelona, Spain
26-27 April Spanish Grand Prix – Barcelona, Spain
10-11 May Turkish Grand Prix – Istanbul, Turkey
17-18 May ING Renault F1 Team Roadshow – Marseille,
France
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