2008 Malaysian Grand Prix, Sunday - 23 MAR 2008
The ING Renault F1 Team experienced a difficult afternoon
at a hot and humid Sepang circuit, with Fernando Alonso and
Nelson Piquet finishing the Malaysian Grand Prix in 8th and
11th places respectively.
After qualifying in 7th and 13th, the team had high hopes
for the race and targeted points finishes for both cars, but
such was the competitiveness of the midfield pack that the
team was left to fight in the lower reaches of the top ten.
Fernando lost ground at the start during a frantic opening
lap but recovered to claim the final point.
Nelson reached the finish of his second Grand Prix, bringing
his Renault R28 home just outside the top ten. The young Brazilian
will look to build on the valuable experience he has gained
as the team travel to Bahrain for the next Grand Prix in two
weeks time.
Fernando Alonso, P8
"I did the best that I could today and I scored the final
point. We were able see that in normal race conditions we
are a little far away in terms of performance. Our goal for
the moment is to try and score points at each race and to
work hard in the next tests so that we can perform better."
Nelson Piquet, P11
"I am happy to have finished the race as this was my
first objective after the race in Melbourne. I have learned
a lot today and I recognise that the group we are fighting
with is very competitive and that you have to drive the perfect
race, but I finished close to my teammate and that is encouraging
for me. The race was difficult and the car is still not competitive
enough, but I am making progress and I hope to continue that
at the next race in Bahrain."
Flavio Briatore, Managing Director
"Unfortunately we did not make the most of the strong
grid position with Fernando and this left us down the field,
in spite of both Fernando and Nelson doing their best. The
only point we bring home is no consolation and now we have
to work hard to pinpoint our problems so that we can come
back stronger in two weeks time in Bahrain."
Pat Symonds, Executive Director of Engineering
"A relatively straightforward race, which gives us a
much clearer picture of where we all stand. There is not much
to report with either car as both drivers had uneventful races
and there were not many strategic opportunities. It is clear
we need to work hard on the car and improve it, as there is
a big gap to the front."
|
