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2006 Turkey GP
Team Quotes - Sunday 27 August
Formula One enjoyed another spectacular afternoon today in Turkey, following on from the thrilling Hungarian Grand Prix three weeks ago.
The sweeping Istanbul Park circuit was the stage for a dramatic head-to-head duel between the two contenders for the 2006 World Drivers' Championship. After fifteen intense laps in which Fernando Alonso held off the attacks of Michael Schumacher, the reigning world champion prevailed – and extended his championship lead by two points, to a total of twelve with four races remaining.
The Renault F1 Team's Turkish Grand Prix revolved around two key moments: the run to the first corner, and the safety car period on lap thirteen. The first corner put paid to Giancarlo Fisichella's chances of a better result, when the Italian spun his R26 as he braked to avoid team-mate Fernando Alonso. After pitting for a nose change and converting to a one-stop strategy, the Italian began a dynamic climb back through the field to eventually finish sixth.
Fernando Alonso was running third, behind the two Ferraris, when Tonio Liuzzi's stranded Toro Rosso brought out the safety car. With the Ferrari team-mates obliged to queue in the pits, Massa pitting ahead of Schumacher, Fernando was able to emerge ahead of Michael Schumacher. He then diligently built a nine second gap, aided by a mistake from Schumacher, that meant he emerged from the second stop ahead of the German. After that, it was a race to the flag.
The Renault F1 Team retains leads in both world championships, with just four races remaining. Fernando Alonso leads the drivers' title by twelve points, while the Renault F1 Team now possesses a slender two point lead as they begin testing for the final races of the year this week in Monza.
Flavio Briatore, Managing Director: This was a fantastic day for the team. We didn't have the performance to beat Ferrari in a straight fight, but the events of the race helped us – and we seized every opportunity, with no mistakes. Fernando drove like a champion, soaking up the pressure and opening the gap in the championship again. Giancarlo put in a strong drive after a tough opening lap, and brought home valuable points. Overall, this has been a good day for the Renault team and we are still leading both championships. Now, we need to push hard in testing this week and race from the front in Monza.
Pat Symonds, Executive Director of Engineering: What a fabulous race. Fernando's result hinged on the first stop under the Safety Car, and the tyre behaviour in the second stint. We gained an advantage on both fronts, and we could see that Fernando would be able to keep the gap at the final stop – but also that he would have to defend hard from that point on. He did the impeccable job we are used to, and this second place feels as good as a victory would at most races. We must not forget to congratulate Giancarlo today, who put in a fantastic drive. He put himself off at Turn 1 to ensure that he did not collide with Fernando, which was a very sporting move. After that, his drive from the back of the field on a one-stop strategy was a pleasure to watch. The race this afternoon severely tested the tyres, with a demanding circuit and track temperatures well into the 50s. The Michelins held up beautifully, allowing Fernando to hold off Michael and letting Fisi run a successful one-stop strategy. We are now emerging from the test ban, and we have plenty of new ideas to be tested at Monza next week – both on the tyre front, and on the car as well. I expect the battle to go down to the wire, and we will be fighting hard to come out on top.
Team McLaren Mercedes driver Pedro de la Rosa finished today's Turkish Grand Prix in fifth position. Team mate Kimi Raikkonen's race ended after the first of 58 laps following an incident at the start and a subsequent off at Turn 4. Pedro had his only pitstop on lap 31 (11.1 seconds) Kimi is fifth in the Drivers' Championship with 49 points whilst Pedro is 11th with 14 points. Team McLaren Mercedes remains third with 89 points. To prepare for the last race of the European Formula 1 season the team will test at Monza this coming week with Kimi and Pedro.
Ron Dennis: "Pedro drove a very good race, using our one-stop strategy to achieve a solid fifth position. Kimi's accident was the result of Fisichella's incident at the start which led to Speed hitting Kimi from behind, damaging his left rear tyre. The subsequent tyre failure damaged the bodywork, as Kimi was making his way back to the pits. This changed the aerodynamic characteristics of the car and on re-joining the race Kimi ran wide at Turn 4. The impact jolted his back, but our team doctor is optimistic that Kimi will be able to test as planned at Monza this week."
Norbert Haug: "A good race of Pedro's starting 11th and finishing fifth. He stayed focussed and made the best out of the one-stop strategy and kept his cool. It's a pity for Kimi – the crash at the first corner was not his fault, but if you start lower down the grid you are in danger of such incidents. We now will continue to work hard at next week's test in Monza in order to be in good shape for the Grand Prix in a fortnight."
Sixth win of the season for Scuderia Ferrari Marlboro, the first from Felipe Massa. This is win number 189 from 737 races. Felipe took his maiden career win at his sixty seventh participation in a Formula 1 Grand Prix.
Jean Todt: We are very happy about Felipe's win, the first of his career having driven impeccably. Today, we had the potential to finish first and second, but the arrival of the Safety Car on lap 14 compromised our chances of achieving this result. The fact we were unable to use all 100% of our potential takes the edge off the satisfaction in finishing first and third, but it is comforting to know that we have everything in place to succeed in the forthcoming races. In Monza and at the three races outside Europe, we will have many changes on the car and, thanks to the great work being done by our technical partners, first and foremost Bridgestone and also Shell, we will be in the best possible shape to try and win both championships.
Ross Brawn: A really fantastic result for Felipe, who drove exceptionally well all weekend. My compliments to him and to his team of engineers and mechanics, who got his car to work really well. He had great pace and the arrival of the Safety Car did not really do him any harm. However, it was frustrating that the Safety Car came out at a time that really did affect Michael's race badly, because today, our cars were fast enough, the Bridgestone tyres were very good and I think that we could have finished first and second. We then tried to recover the situation for Michael, but for some reason which we will need to look into, we picked up some blisters on his second set of tyres and he was unable to push in the middle stint, when of course it was crucial to close down the gap to Alonso. However, we remain confident: all the elements are in place for us to win both titles and we will fight right to the very end to achieve that.
Panasonic Toyota Racing will leave Istanbul with two points after an eventful afternoon's work in today's Turkish Grand Prix. On a blisteringly hot day at the Istanbul Park, with track temperatures again above 50 degrees Celsius, Toyota's drivers Jarno Trulli and Ralf Schumacher had it all to do today from their respective grid positions of 12th and 15th. Unfortunately both drivers lost ground on the first lap after they were caught up in the carnage of a major first corner incident that involved nearly half the field. Thankfully both were able to continue, although Ralf had to stop for a new front wing which left him way down the running order. The team switched his strategy to include only one further pit stop and he was able to make it up into the points in an eventual 7th place. Jarno made up a few places with good passing manoeuvres in the early laps but he struggled for grip as the race went on, finishing just outside the points in 9th. Toyota will this week test at Italy's Monza circuit in preparation for the Italian Grand Prix in a fortnight's time.
Tsutomu Tomita – Team Principal: "Considering the poor grid positions from which we started the race, today's result was reasonable. But the first part of the weekend left us with too much work to do to compete with the top cars in the race. Then the race got off to a bad start when both our drivers were involved in the first corner incident. When Ralf pitted for a new front wing we used the chance to fuel him up and change our strategy to an effective one-stopper. He also damaged some aerodynamic parts and he complained about the balance in the early part of the race. But the safety car played into his hands and from then on his balance improved and he scored a strong points finish. Jarno had a different race and he struggled for grip just as he did in qualifying. So that meant we probably chose tyres that were too hard. He did well in the early laps but the safety car did him no favours considering his strategy. From then on he could not find a good balance but he did well to bring the car home. During the race I was frustrated that our lap times were a bit off the pace of the top teams. We have four races remaining and we have more new aero parts planned for the remaining races. So we will continue to push hard right to the end of the season."
Sam Michael, Technical Director, WilliamsF1: "Today was disappointing because we looked good for some points. We had a long first stint strategy today, so the safety car on lap two was the worst thing that could have happened. We took the decision at that point to split the strategies by bringing Mark in and leaving Nico out, but it was pretty difficult to recover from this situation. Both Mark and Nico drove well, had good starts and first laps, but we had a failure in the water system on Nico's car and we will have to investigate this further to establish the cause. We'll look forward now to bringing some improvements to the car for Monza."
Chris Jilbert, Principal Engineer, F1 Race Engineering, Cosworth: "Today's race was one of very mixed fortunes indeed. Both cars were looking very well placed following the incident on the first lap, with Mark & Nico gaining positions. Nico's car developed a water leak before his first pit stop, at which point we had no option but to call him in, which was a great shame given his strong performance. Unfortunately Mark was unable to capitalise on his early gains, finishing outside the points. The engines have been reliable, but again we have been very unfortunate not to get both cars to the end of the race."
Jenson Button ended today's Turkish Grand Prix in fourth position after a strong performance from sixth on the grid, securing a further five points for the Honda Racing F1 Team. His team-mate Rubens Barrichello finished eighth having started from 13th position. He enjoyed a tremendous race with four great overtaking manoeuvres, guaranteeing the team a two-car finish and a solid total haul of six-points.
Today's result again reduces the gap to third position in the Constructors' Championship, with the Honda Racing F1 Team now on 58 points with four rounds still remaining.
Hot on the heels of its own first win just a few weeks ago, the Honda team would also like to congratulate Felipe Massa on his first grand prix victory and wishes him a well-deserved celebration.
Formula One now resumes testing after the summer break, and the Honda Racing F1 Team heads to Monza in Italy next week with an extensive development programme in preparation for Round 15 of the Formula One World Championship.
Gil de Ferran - Sporting Director: "What an exciting race! We are very pleased to have both cars in the points, which is a great result at the end of a generally satisfying weekend. Jenson was fortunate to not get caught up in the first turn incident and drove a faultless race from there, pushing very hard all the way. In the end though, we weren't quite quick enough to challenge for the podium today. Rubens was less fortunate in the first turn and lost quite a few places, however he showed excellent speed and determination as he drove back through the field, fighting until the very end. Both engines performed reliably in their second race, even though Rubens used all the revs possible throughout the race. In summary we leave Turkey happy but aware that there is still some improvement needed. Congratulations to Felipe Massa on his well-deserved first win!"
Christian Horner: A disappointing result. From a good position, Christian unfortunately slipped back. He had some damage to his car's front left bargeboard, which caused some understeer. David retired with a gearbox failure after showing reasonable pace – it's frustrating.
The best starting positions of the year – fifth and eighth – gave the BMW Sauber F1 Team confidence that it could score points today but it left Istanbul empty handed. The tyre choice for Robert Kubica was the wrong one and the best he could achieve was 12th. Nick Heidfeld was the victim of a first corner incident, which caused him to pit for a new nose, and his race was effectively over so the best he could do was finish 14th.
Mario Theissen (BMW Motorsport Director): With our grid positions, we expected both cars to be in the points, therefore, this result is very disappointing. In the first corner after Giancarlo Fisichella spun Nick lost his front wing, and on his way back to the garage his car's floor was damaged - with all of this his race was over. For Robert the tyres were the decisive factor. We took a risk but it didn't pay off, and this was especially so with his third set as they only stopped graining at the end of the race. This cost him a place in the points.
Willy Rampf (Technical Director): After his collision in the first corner Nick lost any chance of a good result. The front wing, the rear right tyre and the floor were all badly damaged. Nick had to cope for the rest of the race with a badly balanced car, but made the best of the situation. Robert had earned himself a good grid position, but lost positions during the Safety Car period. At the end of the day the reason for his lack of pace was due to our decison to use the softer tyre compound, and it was not the right one for Robert.
Midland Formula 1 Racing endured its second double-DNF of the season at the Turkish Grand Prix, a result made all the more disappointing by the considerable gains in performance achieved by the team.
Tiago Monteiro was the victim of uninitiated contact in the first corner of the first lap while trying to avoid a car ahead that had spun. The accident broke his front suspension and ended his race on the spot.
Christijan Albers fought his way up from last place on the grid to run as high as 9th position at one point - just a few seconds away from 6th - only to crash into a barrier with 11 laps remaining.
The team now heads directly to Monza for a three-day test in preparation for the Italian Grand Prix, which will be held at that circuit in two weeks.
Colin Kolles, Managing Director: "I think Christijan drove a great race today. We were looking very competitive relative to the cars in front of us and our times were quite close to theirs. Unfortunately, we had a problem during his second pit stop that cost him a few positions and his race ended shortly afterward. But it was a spirited drive that showed what he and the M16 are capable of. Tiago had some bad luck on his opening lap, but I know he will come back strong. We are testing more new parts next week in Monza, so hopefully we will continue to gain ground on the teams ahead and make the most of the remaining races."
Dominic Harlow, Chief Race and Test Engineer: "Obviously, we're very disappointed not to have any cars at the finish. We think Christijan looked very, very strong in the opening stages of the race. Our strategy for him was playing out quite well until his second pit stop, at which point we encountered a problem with refuelling, so that's something we'll have to examine. Unfortunately, he had an off shortly afterward, and that's something else we'll have to look into. Tiago's race doesn't leave much to be said, because it was over in a first-lap shunt in which he was a completely innocent victim."
Johnny Herbert, Sporting Relations Manager: "It was a pity that we didn't finish today, because Christijan was doing a good job of staying ahead of several cars, for example, and having some good battles with the Toro Rossos. He fought all the way, but unfortunately he had the off at the end, which put us out of the race. Tiago never had a chance - he got tapped, spun around, damaged, and put out of the race. So that was just one of those horrible situations that's probably happened to us far too often this year. But overall, I think it was a positive weekend where we were able to show some good speed. Hopefully, that should hold us in good stead at the test in Monza next week, plus the race that follows."
Franz Tost: Scott was involved in the crash on the opening lap, but after that he had a good race especially in the first and second stints when he was very good. In the last stint he was unable to pass Kubica as we were not quick enough on the straight. Tonio made a fantastic start going from 18th to seventh. Then he struggled a bit, complaining of graining. Finally he spun at Turn 1. We have to find out why, but we think it was a mechanical problem. Now we look forward to another 'home' race in Monza.
Super Aguri faced further challenges in Turkey today. Takuma Sato made a great race start only to encounter a racing incident in front of him at turn one and then receive substantial damage to his car and tyre from a rear impact. He returned to the pit where the SAF1 Team mechanics repaired his SA06 enabling him to rejoin the race, albeit 16 laps down. Sakon Yamamoto made a solid race start but unfortunately a spin at turn one caused him to stop off the track and bring his race to an end on lap 23.
Aguri Suzuki, Team Principal: It was not a good race for us today. Right at the beginning Taku was a victim of the accident at turn one but the mechanics did a great job fixing his car. Although several laps down when he rejoined the race, Taku went on to collect some valuable data until he crossed the finish line. Sakon made a good race start and managed to avoid the initial incident. It was due to inexperience that he made a mistake at the first corner later on and spun out of the race. However, it was very important to him and the team that he completed these laps and we now look forward to developing the SA06 further in Monza next week.
Bridgestone shod Felipe Massa clinched his first ever Formula One victory on the Istanbul Park Circuit this afternoon after running a faultless race from pole to chequered flag. The young Brazilian flew off the start line and was not hindered by either the safety car period or any of the other runners in the field. His teammate Michael Schumacher unfortunately did suffer from the safety car period, having to pit on the same lap as Massa and despite putting in some stunning times, including the fastest of the day, the seven time world champion had to settle for third place behind Fernando Alonso. Consequently, Ferrari has closed the gap in the Constructors' Championship to just two points behind Renault, but Schumacher lies twelve points behind Alonso in the Drivers' Championship. Panasonic Toyota Racing's Ralf Schumacher, meanwhile, took another two points for his seventh place finish after driving a good consistent race from 15th on the grid. Jarno Trulli finished ninth while WilliamsF1's Mark Webber crossed the line in tenth place, giving Bridgestone five runners in the top ten of today's Turkish Grand Prix.
Hisao Suganuma, Technical Manager of Bridgestone Motorsport: "Our congratulations to Felipe on his first win! We are very pleased to have played a part in his victory today. Michael unfortunately struggled a bit in his second stint but was able to close in by the end of it and push again in the third stint. He couldn't quite overtake Fernando today but I think with first and third places and the two fastest men on track today, it was evident that Bridgestone and Ferrari had a competitive edge. Toyota's Ralf Schumacher and Jarno Trulli finished seventh and ninth and WilliamsF1's Mark Webber tenth so overall we are pleased with the performance of the Bridgestone tyres this weekend. Conditions were tough with high track temperatures but the tyres coped very well and consistently. There are now four more races to go, four tough races, so we will immediately turn our focus to keeping up the pressure."
Ross Brawn, Technical Director – Scuderia Ferrari Marlboro: "A fantastic result for Felipe who has been exceptional all weekend. The team and the car was working really well. He had a great race and the safety car didn't really do him any harm. It was just frustrating that the safety car came at a time which hurt Michael so badly because I believe we had a fast enough car and the tyres to finish first and second. We did try to recover the situation and although he unfortunately picked up some blisters in the second stint, he kept the gap to Fernando Alonso."
Pascal Vasselon, Senior General Manager Chassis – Panasonic Toyota Racing: "All the Bridgestone tyres we have had this weekend have been well suited to this track. If we hadn't had problems earlier in the weekend we could have expected a stronger result. Nonetheless, Ralf did well to make it from where he was on the grid to finish in the points."
Fernando Alonso finished second in today's Turkish Grand Prix to stretch his Formula One world championship lead to 12 points with just four races remaining. For 16 laps, the Spaniard resisted intense pressure from arch-rival Michael Schumacher to reinforce his season- long points lead.
Several leading Michelin runners were delayed by a multiple pile-up at the first corner, but five of the company's drivers still managed to score points at the end of a gruelling race. Jenson Button was fourth ahead of Pedro de la Rosa, Giancarlo Fisichella and Rubens Barrichello.
Nick Shorrock, Michelin F1 director: "To me those final 16 laps felt like the longest of the season. For the fans this has been a fantastic race from start to finish, but the battle between Fernando Alonso and Michael Schumacher was particularly outstanding. Fernando did an exceptional job to resist such pressure and strengthen his bid for a second consecutive F1 world title.
"From a technical perspective I'm very pleased with the way our tyres performed. We witnessed a little bit of graining during at the start of the stints, but generally our products held up very well in one of the season's most demanding races.
"We are now going to Monza for a one week test with a heavy p rogram, looking at tyres choices for future Grands Prix but also looking at ways to improve our first lap performances. If successful this will open up new strategies for our partners."
Pat Symonds, executive engineering director, Renault F1 Team: "Today's conditions were incredibly testing for tyres, with track temperatures in the mid -50s, and the long, long Turn Eight did its best to destroy them. Our Michelins held up brilliantly, not only to enable Fernando to beat Michael Schumacher but also to allow Giancarlo Fisichella to run a one- stop strategy.
"The F1 test ban is over now and we have some good ideas to try out before the next race at Monza."
Alain Dassas, Renault F1 Team president: "The spectators craved a good show– and I believe they got one. This was a superb race. Fernando Alonso drove exceptionally and I'm really happy with this result. Michelin did a brilliant job, too, and our tyres performed perfectly during the race. Together, we have made huge strides forward in recent grands prix and I'd like to thank them."
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