CANADA CAN DO
Panasonic Toyota Racing crosses the Atlantic this week for
the Canadian Grand Prix at the Circuit Gilles Villeneuve in
Montreal, where the team expects to recover from a disappointing
Monaco weekend. The Canadian Grand Prix is the first race
of a North American double-header with the United States Grand
Prix following just a week later to give the team a logistical
challenge. Despite that, the lively city of Montreal is one
of the favourite stops on the Formula 1 calendar with enthusiastic
fans and much-appreciated hospitality making it a seasonal
highlight. The relatively low-downforce Circuit Gilles Villeneuve
features high-speed straights punctuated by several chicanes
for a very different challenge to Monaco, so the team will
use a revised aerodynamic package this weekend. After an extremely
frustrating weekend in Monaco, Toyota leaves Europe for a
new continent determined to improve.
Ralf Schumacher (Car 11): “I always
look forward to the Canadian Grand Prix because Montreal is
such a great place to hold a race, with a beautiful city and
lively atmosphere. I find it an enjoyable place to be and
I have a good record in the race – I won in 2001 and
was second in 2003. The circuit itself is one of the best
of the season. It is technically challenging as it has long
straights followed by heavy braking, which really takes it
out of the car. But the team has taken this into account and
we have made changes for this race, with a totally different
aero package compared to Monaco. Obviously Monaco was a bad
weekend for the team but we are working hard on the issues
we had there and I hope we’ll see an improvement in
Canada.”
Jarno Trulli (Car 12): “I really enjoy
the Canadian Grand Prix and it is one of my favourite races
because the atmosphere in Montreal is just fantastic. I certainly
hope I can enjoy this weekend more than our race in Monaco,
which was very difficult after the problems we had in qualifying.
But Montreal it is a completely different kind of circuit
which makes different demands on the car, particularly when
it comes to the brakes. I am sure we will move forward from
our Monaco performance and I expect to be fighting further
up the field. It has been two races now where we have not
scored points so we are really motivated to do better in Canada.
I scored points there last year after one of my best races
of the season and that is the target again - I’m optimistic
we can get a good result.”
Pascal Vasselon – Senior General Manager Chassis:
“For me, the Canadian Grand Prix is the second
best race on the calendar after Monaco because there is a
great atmosphere, you are in the middle of a city and the
Canadian people are very hospitable. Montreal is the first
time we will race our medium/low downforce aerodynamic package,
which consists of new front and rear wings and other small
changes so our first task in Friday practice will be to maximise
this package, which we also plan to use at Indianapolis. The
Montreal track is very tough on brakes so we have introduced
improvements to our brake ducts which will help aero efficiency
and also cooling, as this is very important. Another factor
to think about is the generally low tyre grip in Montreal
as a result of the track surface. Monaco was a very disappointing
weekend for us but we will put that behind us. We go to Canada
with the goal of closing the gap on the front teams and scoring
points again.”
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