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2007 Spain GP
Team Quotes - Sunday 13 May
Vodafone McLaren Mercedes driver Lewis Hamilton finished the Spanish Grand Prix in Barcelona in second position. It was his third consecutive second place. Today's result means that he takes the lead in the Drivers' Championship with 30 points. After 65 laps, Lewis came home 6.7 seconds behind winner Felipe Massa. Fernando Alonso ended up third following an incident at the first corner and is second in the Drivers' Championship with 28 points. Lewis and Fernando were both on two stop strategies. Lewis came in on laps 22 (8.5 seconds) and 47 (6.7 seconds). Fernando made his pit stops on laps 19 (9.7 seconds) and 48 (6.7 seconds). After four out of 17 races, Vodafone McLaren Mercedes is the only team to score points in every race of the season with both drivers. The team leads the Constructors' rankings with 58 points ahead of Ferrari on 49 points.
Ron Dennis: Coming into the Monaco Grand Prix being first and second in the Drivers' Championship and leading the Constructors' battle is a good achievement for the entire team. Our pace was a little weak in the middle sector. Fernando's race was hampered by having damaged his deflector during his efforts to get past Massa in the first corner. Another solid performance from Lewis. As you would expect we will continue to push hard in our development programme to put the team in the best possible position to win as many of the remaining races as possible.
Norbert Haug: It's great that Lewis and Fernando are at the top of the list in the Drivers' Championship after the fourth race here in Barcelona. Well done and thank you to all the team members for leading the Constructors' rankings too. Fernando showed a great and committed manoeuvre in the first corner that unfortunately didn't pay off. Lewis again did a great job – we will keep pushing and will increase our performance further. We are now looking forward to the next race in Monaco in two weeks time.
At the conclusion of sixty-five action-packed laps at Barcelona's Circuit de Catalunya, the ING Renault F1 Team's dominant feelings were of frustration, alleviated only by the glimmer of hope offered by the improved performance of the R27 thanks to the team's recent development programmes.
Both drivers were forced to drive seriously compromised races owing to fuel rig problems, which affected Heikki's first and second stops and Giancarlo's second stop as neither driver was delivered sufficient fuel to complete their planned stints. As a result, both drivers were forced to make one more pit-stop than planned in their race strategy, and this cost the team a double points-scoring finish. However, Heikki Kovalainen nevertheless salvaged a seventh-place finish, the best of his career so far, while Giancarlo Fisichella finished just outside the points in ninth position.
However, the basic performance of the R27 confirmed that the team has made a small step forward in competitiveness since the last race, and this promises well for the coming weeks as the team continues to work on its development programme, while pursuing an intensive phase of research and analysis to cure the problems that are currently masking the car's true potential performance.
Flavio Briatore, Managing Director: Today, the team has to say sorry to the drivers for the problems we had. The car was better than at the first three races; Heikki had a very consistent weekend, that showed what he can do; and Fisico battled all the way in spite of some difficult circumstances. But now, we need to investigate the fuel rig problems, and ensure they don't happen again. We have made progress, and that is positive, but every point is still vital, and we need to ensure we take the maximum from every race at this stage of the season.
Pat Symonds, Executive Director of Engineering: Our race today was severely compromised by problems with our refuelling. The problems occurred on both cars, and with both fuel rigs in various combinations, which is more than mere coincidence. We are currently investigating the source of those problems. With Heikki, he ended up with a very light fuel load after his first and second stops, meaning we had to convert our strategy to make three stops and run short stints in the middle of the race. For Giancarlo, the problem occurred on his second and supposedly final stop, which meant we simply had to stop before the fuel ran out, and were unable to optimise his strategy. To salvage two points from such a challenging afternoon is a bonus, but at the same time, we are all extremely disappointed. Moving on from the problems, though, our relative competitiveness shows we have made a small step forward, as our qualifying performance had suggested. We know that we should have been fighting closer behind the leading group this afternoon, and that is a small consolation.
Third victory of the season for Scuderia Ferrari Marlboro, the second courtesy of Felipe Massa. This is win number ten in the Spanish Grand Prix for Ferrari and number 195 from 745 races entered. It was Felipe's fourth career win from 75 Grand Prix starts.
Jean Todt: Pole position, victory and fastest race lap: for the second consecutive race weekend, Felipe Massa put in a flawless performance. He was really great today in a great Ferrari car. It was an exciting race, especially in the opening stages: the duel at the start between Felipe and Alonso, disappointment for Kimi's retirement due to a problem in the wiring to the alternator, flames at the first pit stop. In the second part of the race, Felipe drove impeccably, controlling the situation and bring home a wonderful win. We know that one of the indispensable ingredients for winning the championship is reliability and twice now it has been missing this season, today with Kimi's car. Therefore, despite three wins and four pole positions, we are back to a following role in both classifications, because of the great competitiveness of our main rivals. This season is very hard to predict, there is still a long way to go and much work to do to reach the objectives we have set ourselves. We know what is required and how important will be the support of all our technical partners.
Luca Baldisserri: A great performance from Felipe, who completed what was a perfect weekend for him. We had struggled in free practice to do a quick time over a single lap with new tyres but we had seen that our race pace was very good and today that was confirmed. A shame that Kimi had a problem in the wiring to the alternator: there was no warning and now we have to see what caused it, robbing him of a probably podium finish. Then we had a slight fuel leak at Felipe's first pit stop, which caused a small fire that did not do any damage either on the car or the refuelling rig. Once more, reliability is crucial and we must leave nothing to chance to ensure that a technical problem does not rob us of a good result again.
Rubens Barrichello achieved the Honda Racing F1 Team's first top ten finish of the season in today's Spanish Grand Prix, whilst team-mate Jenson Button finished in 12th position.
Having lined up 12th and 14th on the grid, both drivers had a strong start and made up places to lie 10th and 11th respectively at the end of lap two. They were 9th and 10th by lap 11 and both ran in the points at different stages in the race. They were making steady progress before a coming together on lap 22 as Jenson was rejoining the track from the pit lane exit after his first stop. He lost his front wing after making contact with the back of Rubens' car into turn one and was forced to return to the pits for a nose change which compromised his result.
The team will now continue to work hard on improving the performance of the car ahead of the Monaco Grand Prix in two weeks' time.
Jacky Eeckelaert, Engineering Director: On the positive side we have made some degree of progress here this weekend. On the other hand, it is just a small step when we have a lot of catching up to do. During the first part of the race both drivers looked to be in a position where they could finish in the top eight. Unfortunately Jenson came together with Rubens after his first stop and damaged his front wing. Rubens ran 8th before the last pit-stop, but the balance on the last set of tyres was not good and he lost the position.
The Spanish Grand Prix was the fourth race of the season and for the fourth time the BMW Sauber F1 Team had a car finish fourth. This time it was Robert Kubica who contributed the five championship points to the team's tally. After 46 laps Nick Heidfeld had to park his BMW Sauber F1.07 in the garage with a suspected gearbox problem.
Mario Theissen (BMW Motorsport Director): We view the result with mixed emotions. Eight cars retiring was a lot today, and sadly we were among them – most likely it was a gearbox failure. But as disappointing as this is for us and for Nick, it was a positive result for Robert. He scored our fourth fourth place today, drove a very good race and our team is now established as the third strongest. At the end of the day the result is pleasing.
Willy Rampf (Technical Director): After a race like this I have mixed feelings. Robert drove a strong race and deserved fourth place. Nick was also in a good position before his pit stop. We then had a problem fitting the front right wheel nut, had to bring Nick in one lap later and, as a result, his race was ruined. After 46 laps a technical failure forced him to retire. However, on the positive side we are pleased with five more championship points.
Panasonic Toyota Racing will leave Barcelona licking its wounds after a desperately disappointing Spanish Grand Prix at the Circuit de Catalunya. The race took place in perfect conditions with track temperatures around 50° Celsius as it has been all weekend. Jarno Trulli's fine qualifying performance yesterday earned him 6th place on the grid. Unfortunately he suffered a fuel pressure problem as the drivers lined up for the first start and he was forced to take the restart from the pit lane. He lasted only eight laps before the problem became terminal. Ralf Schumacher's day also began in the worst way when he was hit from behind by Alexander Wurz's Williams on lap 1. After a pit stop to check for damage he rejoined over a minute down. He then raced hard despite missing top speed with a damaged rear wing. Unfortunately he retired 20 laps from home when the nose cone worked loose. Toyota is scheduled to test this week at the Paul Ricard circuit in France in preparation for the Monaco Grand Prix on May 27. The team will head to the principality looking for a turnaround in its fortunes.
Tsutomu Tomita – Team Principal: It's obviously disappointing that neither of our cars finished today. Jarno did very well in qualifying but before the start of today's race he had a problem with his fuel line. That made his fuel pressure unstable and meant his engine was not working properly. Ralf made a good start and made up ground before he was hit from behind by Alexander Wurz. He had to pit in to check the car and from there he had good race pace considering the rear left endplate was damaged and he was therefore losing top speed. Then he had to stop due to a problem that was an indirect consequence of his crash. After over 40 laps his nose worked loose and we now have to investigate why that happened. The only thing we can say about today is at least the problems all came at the same time, which is very efficient! On a positive note we were pleased to discover we were on similar strategies to the top cars so Jarno's qualifying performance was encouraging. We head to Monaco with a further upgrade on the car so we hope for a more successful weekend there.
Christian Horner: David was exemplary today. He had good pace, a good start and a good strategy. Despite a problem that gave us all a bit of a scare in the last three laps, he found a way to drive round it by using all his experience. He was able to bring the car home in fifth position and get us onto the scoreboard. I'd like to acknowledge the huge effort made by the whole team. Everyone's been working hard over the last few weeks, but we still need to keep pushing. It's disappointing that we had a repetition of yesterday's transmission failure on Mark's car. He's had miserable luck all weekend, but I'm sure he'll bounce back in Monaco and we can head there optimistic, in full knowledge that we've made a good step forward in pace here this weekend.
Fabrice Lom, Renault Principal Engineer, Track Support: We are very pleased with today's result. We scored our first four points of the season and showed that our package has real potential. The engine worked perfectly and its good qualities in low revs even helped compensate for David's gearbox problem in the late stages, and helped him to defend his position. In spite of Mark's unfortunate retirement, we showed today that we have nothing to envy our direct competitors and that we have genuine potential, which is very encouraging for the coming races!
In the Spanish Grand Prix at the Circuit de Catalunya today, Nico Rosberg delivered the best performance of his Formula One career to date as he crossed the finish line in sixth position. Nico's three points drive him up one place in the Drivers' table to eighth, while the team move into equal fifth place in the Constructors' Championship. However, the Grand Prix brought a split result for the team as Alex Wurz's frustrating weekend continued into the race as a collision forced him into early retirement at the end of the first lap. With Monaco the next stop on the calendar in two weeks' time, the pressure to find additional performance remains and so the team will spend four days testing at the Paul Ricard facility in France this week.
Sam Michael, Technical Director: Everyone did everything right today. The starts were good and it was an impressive drive from Nico. He pulled everything he could out of the car and we didn't experience any reliability issues. Unfortunately, Alex did not have the best of weekends as he shunted on the first lap which ended his race. The three points mean we leave Spain in fifth place in the Constructors' Championship, which is a welcome result for the team.
Franz Tost: A very disappointing weekend. The start was olay from both drivers who did a good job in the early laps. Unfortunately we then suffered a technical failure on Tonio's car as he lost hydraulic fluid. We will now have to investigate to find out why. Scott had a problem with his left rear tyre. This will also need investigating. Now we are testing at Paul Ricard where we will have to work on our reliability issues.
For the second consecutive race, the Etihad Aldar Spyker Formula One Team has achieved a double finish, with Adrian Sutil 13th and Christijan Albers 14th respectively. In a race of attrition that saw one third of the field fail to finish, both Spykers ran reliably to the end to secure the team's best result of the season so far. With this result, the team moves into 10th position in the constructors' championship.
Adrian Sutil had a consistent race, lapping within half a second of the Aguri of Anthony Davidson and the Toyota of Ralf Schumacher for the first half of the race. As more competitors dropped out, Adrian moved up the order to 13th by his first pit stop on lap 23. In his second stint, the 24-year-old German then kept the Honda of Jenson Button at bay until a stall during his second pit stop on lap 47 dropped him back behind the Briton. Undeterred, Adrian pushed hard to keep in touch with Button and finish the race a solid 13th position overall.
Christijan Albers also showed well, putting in similar lap times to Adrian throughout the race. His race was however interrupted by a drivethrough penalty on lap 33 for failing to observe blue overtaking flags and, like Adrian, a stall in the pits on his second stop on lap 48.
The team's test programme will continue next week in a four day test at Paul Ricard to prepare for the forthcoming Monaco and Canadian Grands Prix.
Mike Gascoyne, chief technical officer: Again it was a step forward for us in getting both cars home. It was a relatively trouble-free race, although stalls for both drivers in the second pit stops and Christijan's drivethrough penalty cost us a little bit of time and, for Adrian, also lost us a position to Button. Our pace was however more competitive than in previous races and we had good reliability, so now we have to concentrate on bettering the overall package and getting new parts on the car that will improve our speed relative to the others.
Colin Kolles, team principal and managing director: The whole team worked hard and did a great job this weekend. We've moved forward not only in pace, but also in the championship - going up a place is a just reward for all the hard effort for the team.
Who would have thought on 14th February 2006 when the first incantation of the SA05 took to the track at Kemble airfield, UK that the Super Aguri F1 TEAM would be fighting for 8th position and their first Championship point with the reigning World Champions at the 2007 Spanish Grand Prix. It is another milestone in the very short history of the SAF1 Team and a day that no one in the team in Spain, Leafield and Japan, Honda, Bridgestone Potenza, our Sponsors, Partners, Suppliers and fans around the world will forget.
Aguri Suzuki, Team Principal: The team did a perfect job today. We were lucky, but the drivers and team maintained our very good positions through out the race and the first Championship point is very important for us.
Ferrari's Felipe Massa has won the Gran Premio de Espana Telefonica after a dominant display under glorious blue skies at the Circuit de Catalunya.
Massa notched up his second consecutive win of the season and Ferrari's third after a strong start from pole position. He defended his position from attack from Fernando Alonso (McLaren Mercedes) in the first corner and was unchallenged for the rest of the 65 lap race.
Lewis Hamilton (McLaren Mercedes) gained second place on the first lap and crossed the line in this position, 6.8 seconds adrift of Massa. It was his third consecutive second place finish in the Briton's rookie season.
Alonso registered third spot and was followed across the line by Robert Kubica (BMW Sauber), David Coulthard (Red Bull), Nico Rosberg (Williams), Heikki Kovalainen (Renault) and Takuma Sato scored the final championship point. Sato's point was Super Aguri's first ever and the first point scored by a Japanese constructor with a Japanese driver and Japanese engine and tyres.
The drivers' championship now sees Lewis Hamilton lead with 30 points from Alonso on 28 with Massa in third with 27. The constructors' championship sees McLaren Mercedes on 58 points from Ferrari with 49 and BMW Sauber on 23.
After investigation with the Toro Rosso team it was determined that Scott Speed suffered a left rear puncture. Investigation of the tyre revealed a cut in the centre of the tread.
Kees van de Grint, Bridgestone Motorsport Head of Track Engineering Operations: Up front it was business as usual today. All but two cars opted for the conventional strategy of medium, medium, hard. The exceptions were Speed who used the hard for his first stint and Alonso who used it for his middle stint, both for understandable reasons. It was clear that the medium compound had an advantage on the track today. It was good to see David Coulthard, Nico Rosberg and Takuma Sato score points. Unfortunately Scott Speed's Toro Rosso had a puncture, but we could see from the data that everything was perfect until Turn 5 where there was a drop in pressure to as low as 6 PSI and the tyre gave up as it is not to be run at these levels. Investigation of the tyre showed a cut in the middle of the tread which caused the puncture.
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