Q: A question I am going to be asking all of you: about new developments on your cars for this weekend and what you're hoping from them? Giancarlo, I believe you have a new spec engine this weekend and new aerodynamics?
Giancarlo Fisichella: Yeah. I have the B-spec engine which is a bit lighter. It is not stronger but we can run with a bit more revs and a new front wing. That's all.
Q: And how have they gone in testing?
GF: Not too bad. We had a good test at Paul Ricard and it looks (as though it's) a small improvement so already our package looks really good and those things look promising, yeah.
Q: You ran a car in Rome last weekend; tell us about that?
GF: Yeah, it was a fantastic day for me because that road show in Rome was exactly the first time for me…it was a really exciting day because I was born in Rome and running with a Formula One car, in front of all my friends, my children, a lot of fans, was fantastic. But unfortunately the weather conditions weren't fantastic, it was raining, but apart from that, more than 25,000 people came to watch it, so it was good anyway.
Q: I should think Roman streets in the rain was quite interesting, fairly slippery?
GF: It was very slippery because it was wet and it was really bumpy, but it wasn't a race weekend. It was good to show everyone what a Formula One car can do and especially to listen to the engine noise was nice for the people.
Q: The season for you has been very much up and down, obviously with the win in Australia followed by the problems in the next two races. What are your feelings, particularly as your teammate obviously capitalised on that?
GF: I told you we have a good car, a good package and we won the first three races. Unfortunately, in Malaysia I had a problem with the front flap which I lost just after the pit stop, and in the last race I blew the engine just after two laps, so I was really disappointed for that because I couldn't score some more points, points which are very important for the championship for drivers. But I am looking forward, because I have a great car, I have a great team, and here we are in my home Grand Prix so I try to do my best to get on the podium again. Obviously the dream is to win again. But it is going to be quite difficult, especially because in the first qualifying session I will be one of the first guys around the circuit and the circuit will be much better at the end of qualifying.
Q: Nick, how are the modifications on the car, what are you hoping for?
Nick Heidfeld: As in the last couple of races, here again we have a few new aero parts which I am sure are going to improve the car but we have to wait and see how the other cars have improved as well.
Q: And you tested them?
NH: Some of them, yes, but a lot of them we didn't, as in the last races. We have quite a strong belief in our wind tunnel now. It worked for the last couple of races. We just got the parts just before the weekend. We put them on and they usually worked.
Q: Now, I believe you had a shoulder injury; is that OK now? What happened?
NH: It's fine. It happened testing in Paul Ricard. I didn't crash, it was just unfortunately that while driving, probably going over a bump or something, a muscle went into spasm and it's still a bit irritated now but it is not going to be a problem for the weekend.
Q: Now you have settled into Williams. I don't think they were expecting such a good start to the season, but has it surprised you?
NH: Yes, I think it has surprised all of us, especially after testing. In testing we were not happy with the car at all but already by the first race, we made such big improvements that we were in a reasonable position and after that I was able to finish on the podium in Malaysia and it was certainly more than we had hoped for since we got the new car. Obviously we would have hoped to be even stronger than that but we are all working very hard.
Q: So, it's been a nice pleasant surprise…
NH: Yes and no. It was a pleasant surprise from what we have seen when we launched the car but then again, we would have hoped for a stronger start whereby we would have hoped to be able to win races straightaway, of course.
Q: Vitantonio, modifications on the car?
Vitantonio Liuzzi: Yes of course. We had some new developments on the aerodynamic side and on the electronic side which we tested in Barcelona and we did a shakedown this week at Silverstone and we are looking forward to this week. It seems quite OK. We improved a little bit but for sure, as Nick was saying, everyone is developing the car and we have to see our level. Fortunately Imola is a track which fits in quite well with the whole team so we are looking forward to the weekend.
