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2007 Monaco GP
Team Quotes - Sunday 27 May
Vodafone McLaren Mercedes continued their domination of the 2007 Monaco Grand Prix weekend when Fernando Alonso and Lewis Hamilton claimed the team's second one-two finish this season. Fernando crossed the line first with Lewis four seconds behind. Both drivers had lapped the entire field apart from Felipe Massa in third place who was 69 seconds behind Fernando. Both drivers were on a two stop strategy with Fernando coming in on laps 26 (7.5 seconds) and 51 (7.9 seconds) whilst Lewis pitted on laps 29 (8.9 seconds) and 53 (5 seconds). Fernando is leading the World Championship with Lewis second – both on 38 points. The Vodafone McLaren Mercedes team extended their lead in the Constructors Championship and now has 76 points.
Ron Dennis: An outstanding result for the team. Both Fernando and Lewis drove so well and responded excellently to the team's wishes of bringing both cars home safely in what was a memorable one-two result and McLaren's 14th victory in the Principality. However there is some disappointment because of the different strategies we needed to follow to cope with a potential deployment of the Safety Car which has happened four times in the last five years. Consequently you virtually have to decide in advance which one of the team's two drivers will claim the victory. Once the first round of pitstops had taken place we reverted Lewis from a one-stop-strategy to the faster two-stop-strategy and at the same time slowed both cars down to conserve the brakes. As a team we would like to race but this circuit requires a disciplined approach and as a result we can leave Monte Carlo with the maximum amount of points.
Norbert Haug: The team showed a picture book performance today in Monaco. At this challenging circuit Fernando and Lewis were fast like nobody else on both the Bridgestone Potenza prime and option tyres which worked perfectly well on the car. Both drivers' performances were flawless and the team's strategy was perfect. Thank you to the colleagues in Woking, Brixworth and Stuttgart for all their hard work making this second 1-2 victory in the fifth race of the season possible.
The ING Renault F1 Team scored its best result of the 2007 season so far with a fourth-place finish for Giancarlo Fisichella in the Monaco Grand Prix. The Italian started from the same position and produced a mistake-free, competitive drive to finish twenty seconds ahead of his closest rival. Running a two stop strategy, and using hard tyres for the first stint before switching to the softer compound, he was able to build a comfortable gap in the opening stint, maintain it during the second, and then conserve the car during the final laps.
His team-mate Heikki Kovalainen endured a more difficult afternoon. Starting from 15th on the grid after having his qualifying run spoiled on Saturday afternoon, the Finn ran a one-stop strategy, using hard tyres followed by the soft. He was held up by David Coulthard's Red Bull through the first stint, and with overtaking almost impossible in Monaco, was unable to pass. He jumped ahead of the Briton at his pit-stop, but was subsequently left too far from other rivals to make up further positions. The Finn was classified 13th overall.
Flavio Briatore, Managing Director: Giancarlo put in a fantastic performance all weekend, and congratulations to him for his fourth place. From the team's point of view, it is encouraging to have moved closer to the front of the field, and back towards our normal level of performance. Our step forward confirms that we are moving in the right direction at the factory, and credit goes to all the people who have worked night and day in the last few weeks. We know that there is still a long way to go, and we will be aiming to make steps forward with each race. I am confident that we can continue to improve from here.
Pat Symonds, Executive Director of Engineering: Giancarlo drove a smooth and competitive race, and was untroubled in achieving our best result so far this year. We called him in early for his first stop to avoid traffic, but other than that, planning his strategy was straightforward, and his race turned out the same way. After Heikki's problem in qualifying, it was natural for him to run a one-stop race and at a circuit like Monaco, it was always going to be very difficult to improve on his starting position. The strategy was slightly compromised by an early first stop because of a left rear puncture, which was caused by a brush with the wall. On top of that, his engine lost a significant amount of power on the last lap, and we need to investigate the cause of the problem. Overall, though, it has been an encouraging weekend for us, and we will look to confirm this improved performance at the next races.
Jean Todt: As we had expected this was a very tough race for us. On a track where overtaking is almost impossible, we saw the top four cars on the grid finishing in the same order. Kimi, who started from down the back, could only pin his hopes on a good strategy to try and get a good result, but after spending nearly the whole time in traffic, he only managed to bring home a single point.We must congratulate those who, today, were quicker than us and work to get back to being competitive at the highest level right from the start of the two consecutive races in Canada and the USA.
Luca Baldisserri: Today we were not competitive enough to win. We tried to change things about a bit with Felipe, switching to the extra-soft tyres at the first stop but this choice didn't pay off. Even so, we don't think this would have changed the result. Kimi faced a very difficult race starting from sixteenth place. He made a good start but then he spent nearly the whole time in traffic and the point for eighth place was the best he could do. We have to study the situation and understand why our rivals were better than us, before tackling the double header in North America in better shape so that we can fight for the wins.
The Honda Racing F1 Team's Rubens Barrichello and Jenson Button finished today's Monaco Grand Prix in 10th and 11th positions.
Rubens made the most of the first corner mêlée at Ste Devote to gain two places, easing his way into seventh place from ninth for the opening stint of the race. On a heavier fuel load, Button lost out at turn one and dropped a place to 11th. After the first round of pitstops, the two Honda Racing F1 Team drivers ran nose-to-tail, and the gap between them was rarely more than a second for the next 40 laps. Rubens crossed the line 1.1 secs ahead of Jenson.
Jacky Eeckelaert, Engineering Director: "After achieving 9th and 10th in qualifying yesterday we hoped for a points finish today. Rubens got a good start, making up some places over the first few corners, and then both drivers held their positions reasonably well over the first pit stops. However, our race pace was not fast enough for us to finish in the points. We have clearly made a step in the right direction and we are now knocking on the door of the points placings. Despite no testing before the two North American races, we will have some improvements with which to try to close the gap to the teams directly in front of us."
In an exciting Monaco Grand Prix, the fifth round of the world championship, the BMW Sauber F1 Team scored points for the fifth consecutive time and strengthened its third place in the constructors' championship. Robert Kubica finished fifth and Nick Heidfeld sixth.
Mario Theissen (BMW Motorsport Director): McLaren Mercedes has achieved an impressive one-two here – congratulations to the team. Monaco was again an exciting race, although there wasn't much overtaking. The choice of strategy was crucial here – one or two stops was the question. Some had clear laps for most of the race while others got stuck in traffic and lost time. We are pleased we were reliable again, bringing both cars home and scoring seven important points.
Willy Rampf (Technical Director): We can be pleased with this result as we have seven championship points after a race which was thrilling for us. Nick had quite a heavy fuel load, and in the early stages of the race he lost too much time with the softer of the two tyre compounds. Only after the tyres had come back was he able to achieve the lap times we had expected. Robert started the race with even more fuel on board, but as early in the race he got stuck in traffic he couldn't exploit the car's potential. When he had a clear track his lap times dropped immediately.
Panasonic Toyota Racing endured a frustrating Monaco Grand Prix as Jarno Trulli took the chequered flag in 15th position, one place and 0.9 seconds ahead of team-mate Ralf Schumacher after a race to forget for the team. A difficult qualifying session left Jarno in 14th and Ralf in 20th on the grid, giving both drivers an uphill task in the 78-lap race. That task became harder when they lost ground at the start on the run into St Devote, with Ralf dropping to 22nd and Jarno to 18th. However, Jarno was overtaken illegally by Takuma Sato in the hectic first corner and took back that position soon after. As is traditional at Monaco, traffic proved to be a problem and both drivers found it difficult to improve their positions despite setting some competitive lap times in clean air. The team opted for one-stop strategies and Jarno was first into the pits on lap 47 to switch to the super soft Bridgestones, with Ralf following suit two laps later before a clean run to the chequered flag. Toyota's next engagement is the Canadian Grand Prix in two weeks for the first race of a North American double-header.
Tsutomu Tomita – Team Principal: To be honest before coming to Monaco we had very strong confidence about our competitiveness and on Thursday we were actually competitive. I thought it was very promising for the race but on Saturday in practice we were struggling and in the afternoon in qualifying it was a bit of a disaster for us honestly. We lost many, many positions to slip to 14th and 20th. From then we could do nothing about the race. Jarno's race was over really very quickly when the engine almost stalled at the start and he was passed by many cars. Ralf also got passed by a few cars at the start and it is just impossible to overtake here. Therefore from this point of view the two drivers fought very well today but we could do nothing. The very important thing to learn right now is to bring the best performance of the car to the race and we will challenge again to do that in Canada.
Christian Horner: A very disappointing race. Mark's car unfortunately developed a misfire which confused the gearbox and caused third gear to break, ending with his retirement. David made contact on the first lap with Tonio Liuzzi, and damaged his car's front wing. The damage sustained was greater than suspected and he lost a considerable amount of time which prevented him from getting anywhere near a points-scoring finish. It tops off what's been a frustrating weekend where the potential was there to score points, but we're going home with nothing.
Fabrice Lom, Renault Principal Engineer, Track Support: It was a tough race and we are a bit disappointed. David's position on the grid made his race very difficult, as we expected. For Mark, it was another story. After the start, he started to feel some engine misfires that ultimately caused the gearbox to fail. The problem is still under investigation to allow us to understand what happened. We are not worried regarding the reliability of the engine but we must understand the origin of the issue we had today on Mark's car. It's a shame we were not able to make the most of our package today because it has real potential. We look forward now to racing in Canada, which is a very different type of track.
Alex Wurz led the AT&T Williams team home in his first points finish this season at the prestigious Monaco Grand Prix, but Nico Rosberg was unable to capitalise on his better grid position in the race. Alex's success was based on a one-stop strategy with two critical elements during the afternoon – overhauling a pair of Hondas in his pitstop and holding off a hard charging Raikkonen for a long period at the end of his second stint. Nico ran a two stop race, but having dropped a place at the first corner to Nick Heidfeld, found himself stuck behind the slower BMW, costing him time and unravelling his race strategy as he spent long periods in traffic.
Sam Michael, Technical Director: Today was a good result for Alex who drove a solid race and picked up a couple of points. Unfortunately Nico's race was over at the first corner when Heidfeld got past him. Without that he had the pace to run in the top five, but that's the way it goes around Monaco. It's good to come away with some points and two reliable cars.
Franz Tost: Scott had a very good start, going from 18 to 13 and he did his best ever race for Toro Rosso. He deserved a point because he was always pushing very hard and the lap times were very consistent and very very fast. All I can say to him is thanks and congratulations for a job well done. Tonio was unlucky. He was hit from behind and he lost air from his right rear tyre, which is what led to his crash.
Gerhard Berger: Well done to the team and of course to Scott who drove a superb race. Today's performance shows the team has potential and hopefully that will be realized soon.
At the end of what had been hitherto been a positive Monaco Grand Prix weekend, there was ultimately disappointment for the Etihad Aldar Spyker Formula One Team as neither cars made it to the end of the race.
Adrian Sutil had a good start and stayed with the group in front, also keeping the Aguri of Anthony Davidson and Toyota of Ralf Schumacher behind him. After his first pit stop on lap 45, Adrian dropped back behind Schumacher, however was unable to get back into contention when on lap 55 he ran wide on the entrance to Casino Square and nudged the barrier. As the right rear tyre came off the rim the German was unable to continue and retired.
Christijan Albers started the race on an aggressive two-stop strategy on supersoft Bridgestone tyres, counting on unpredictable weather or a safety car period that so often characterise the Monaco Grand Prix would materialise. Unfortunately neither situation did and the Dutchman was unable to make the most of his strategy. Christijan put in some quick laps towards the end of the race, lapping at the same pace as the group in front, but unfortunately his race came to a premature end on lap 70 when he retired in the pits with a driveshaft failure.
Mike Gascoyne, chief technical officer: 'A disappointing end to quite a good weekend. Christijan started from the back after the problem in Qualifying and we went for two stops, relying on a safety car period as we had to do something with the strategy, but that didn't happen so we knew his race was compromised. Adrian had a good race on a one stop strategy and was very competitive in the group around him and was able to race other cars, but he made a mistake, touched a barrier and his race was over. It had been a good weekend until this point, so ultimately very disappointing.'
Colin Kolles, team principal and managing director: 'Although the result was a real disappointment, there are some positives we can take away from the weekend. Adrian's superb fastest time in practice and our race pace were both exceptional given our form until now, so we have to focus on these rather than the fact neither cars made it to the end. It's a strong basis for Canada and the US GPs.'
At the end of a demanding race that saw very few retirements, Super Aguri drivers Takuma Sato and Anthony Davidson both took the chequered flag for the first time at the Circuit de Monaco. Takuma made an impressive start and made up four grid positions and came home in 17th position, whilst Anthony, driving in his first race on the street circuit, crossed the finish line in 18th place.
Aguri Suzuki, Team Principal: It was not a good weekend for the team. It is very important to qualify well at this circuit and as we did not have a good session yesterday, it was always going to be a difficult race. Both drivers and the team did a very good job today, so I hope that our weekend in Canada is a different story and we can return to performing in higher positions.
McLaren Mercedes driver Fernando Alonso has scored his second win on Bridgestone Potenza tyres, leading team-mate Lewis Hamilton across the line at Monte Carlo for the Monaco Grand Prix in a race which saw a wide range of tyre usage strategies.
Alonso started the race from his first Bridgestone-shod pole position and demonstrated the class of a double world champion, setting the fastest race lap on way to his 17th career win, although he was pushed hard in the later stages of the race by team-mate Hamilton, who finished four seconds behind.
Ferrari's Felipe Massa finished in third, over a minute behind the McLaren Mercedes duo. Renault's Giancarlo Fisichella took fourth with the BMW Sauber pairing of Robert Kubica and Nick Heidfeld taking fifth and sixth respectively. In seventh place was Alex Wurz (Williams Toyota) whilst Kimi Raikkonen took the final point for Ferrari. Alonso's win was McLaren's 150th.
Both one and two stop tyre strategies were used by those who finished in the top five demonstrating the durability of Bridgestone's soft and super soft tyres. Also seen today was a greater variety than seen in previous races of tyre compound strategies.
The drivers' championship now has Alonso and Hamilton tied on points with 38 apiece with Massa in third place with 33. The constructors' championship has McLaren Mercedes ahead of Ferrari with 76 points compared with 56. BMW Sauber sits in third with 30 points. Formula One action resumes in two weeks' time with the Grand Prix du Canada at Montreal on June 10th.
Kees van de Grint, Bridgestone Motorsport Head of Track Engineering Operations: Today I think it is fair to say that McLaren Mercedes dominated in Monte Carlo on Bridgestone tyres. Both the soft and super soft compound Potenzas performed as expected and we could clearly see an improvement in the usability of the super soft as the track had rubbered-in. Both tyres were capable of any strategy and it was interesting to see the different approaches of many drivers with one or two stops and using the compounds in different orders. Seven out of the top eight drivers and three out of the top five chassis did not race on Bridgestone tyres last season, clearly illustrating our tyres can be used to points scoring effect no matter whose tyres were used previously.
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