British Grand Prix - Preview
SILVER SERVICE
Panasonic Toyota Racing is back in action for the British
Grand Prix this weekend after barely a break since the race
at Magny-Cours last Sunday. The team heads back to Silverstone,
the venue for the first-ever Formula 1 World Championship
race in 1950, following a frustrating weekend in France. Jarno
crashed out of the Magny-Cours race on the first lap after
an encouraging qualifying display while Ralf showed good pace
but lost out in traffic on his first stint, denying him points
despite some promising lap times. With only a few days between
races, the team has faced a rush across the Channel to Silverstone
in Northamptonshire, which is among the fastest circuits in
Formula 1. Both Ralf and Jarno are well prepared for this
weekend’s race after testing set-ups and comparing medium
and soft Bridgestone Potenza tyre compounds at the British
circuit last month. That positive test, as well as Ralf’s
competitive race speed in France, means the team is optimistic
of a return to the points this weekend.
Ralf Schumacher (Car 11): “I am looking
forward to the British Grand Prix. I have always enjoyed racing
in Britain because the fans there are so fanatical about motorsport,
they really love the sport. They are always supportive of
all the drivers, no matter what nationality they are. The
Silverstone circuit is very fast and challenging but I think
we are in reasonable shape after our test there. Even though
the result at Magny-Cours was not what we expected, we can
take some positives out of the weekend. I lost a lot of time
held up behind another car early in the race but after that
the car felt pretty good and my lap times were better than
our position suggested. It was frustrating to miss out on
points because we had a good opportunity but I am confident
we can continue to improve and get back into the points.”
Jarno Trulli (Car 12): “Silverstone
is a very high-speed circuit, probably the fastest on the
calendar after Monza. The sweeping fast corners in the first
half are probably the most difficult as you can lose quite
a bit of time before you hit the very fast Hangar Straight.
It’s a long circuit and a challenging one as well, for
the drivers and also for the team when it comes to set-up.
As a driver you need a lot of commitment in the corners to
really get the best lap time out of the car. There are all
different kinds of corners at Silverstone so there is a compromise
between grip in the corners and speed on the straights. Unfortunately
I go to Silverstone after a very disappointing race in Magny-Cours.
We had a really strong chance to score good points but on
the first lap I just misjudged the hairpin and crashed. But
we know our race pace was good enough to score points so that
is again the target.”
Pascal Vasselon – Senior General Manager Chassis:
“We had a successful test at Silverstone two weeks ago
so we approach the British Grand Prix with confidence. We
evaluated some aero elements of our upgraded package, which
we used in France, as well as looking at set-up for this race.
We will have the same aero package for this race as we used
at Magny-Cours because the requirements of the two tracks
are similar, although not identical. In terms of set-up, you
have a lot of high-speed corners and the average speed is
quite high. It would require a lot of downforce to be faster
on some of the high-speed corners but the circuit is fast
so you pay for that with drag. There is a compromise but after
the test we know pretty much which aero set-up window we are
working in. The test at Silverstone went smoothly. Both drivers
felt the car was very reasonable at high speed so we are confident
of scoring points again this weekend after a disappointing
race in France.”
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