We have all been impressed with the reliability, but how marginal has it been, particularly Ross and Pat can you tell us about the engines, of course we are not really asking for detail. Has it really been that tough to make these engines to last two races and also to get the cars to the end?
Pat Symonds: It is difficult, but equally it is just an engineering challenge. In Formula One we have not been used to running engines for that long but in many other forms of motorsport they have. Certain things have had to change and I think our guys have adapted very well to it, we have been very pleased with the engine. Are they marginal? Yes they are. When we take them to bits they are quite scary at times, but that's really the way that should be. We don't want it to be pristine at the end of two races, we want it to be on the limit. That is how we want to do it and I think our guys have done it very successfully.

Geoff Willis: I think the level of skill and professionalism in the sport has steadily got better and better and compared to two or three years ago we are now running engines that are significantly lighter, more powerful, running for about five times as long, but then all the rest of the car is also extremely reliable. There is a strong level of competition so you are seeing people having to engineer their designs right close to the edge of their performance. So it is down to their procedures and processes and the very formal ways that people are working on their cars and engines to maintain that level of performance as well as that level of reliability. So yes, it is very tough, reliability has always been part of any sort of motor racing and it is as important now as it always has been.

Ross Brawn: I think fundamentally there is no difference in the engineering challenge between making an engine last 300km or 1,500km, it is the level of performance you try to achieve with that level of reliability. Each time you strip the engine you are looking for areas that are suffering or areas that are stressed and step by step you achieve the reliability you need. I think the thing that is a little frustrating at times is the time available to do the job, because if we were able to start again with a completely new engine this would not be the most efficient way. If you can start with a completely new engine design then you can incorporate the features you want to achieve reliability with best performance and I think we have all been working with compromised designs because these engines weren't designed to last two races, they were designed to do short stints, certainly ours were. I think with the V8 engine that is coming it is the first time we will have a chance to design an engine from the very beginning knowing that it has to do two races and I think therefore the V8s could be even better than the ones we have now. |It is a performance-reliability ratio. We could all blow our engines up tomorrow if we wanted to, that is not difficult. It is just the level of performance you can achieve with the reliability. The great thing about the engine is you can take them on a dyno and do a lot of the work at home.

Sam Michael: I think a lot of things have changed in Formula One, not just on engines but hydraulics, gearboxes, suspension, and the default system you have in place now is so rigorous. All the teams have a target of 100 percent reliability and it has been like that for a few years now and once you have so many people and resources dedicated to that you do start to make a breakthrough. I think what Ross said is right as well, the V8 is going to be even more because of the way the regulations are written. It is much easier for the engine manufacturers because of set weights and spacings to make sure engines have got plenty of weight in them and I think it is going to get better and better.

Pat, what is it like to work with Fernando Alonso, what sort of a guy is he from a professional point of view?
PS: He really is excellent. That may be a bit of a glib statement, because you do expect me to say that, but I have worked with many champions before and he has many of the same characteristics. I think the thing that is surprising and is a real compliment to him is that one forgets his age, because the maturity he shows is well beyond his age, even the time he has been in Formula One, which is not long. You just forget about it. It is like you are dealing with a guy who has a destiny, he knows that destiny and he is totally comfortable with it. He is a very intelligent guy, he is particularly good at reading a race, looking after equipment, in the same way that Michael is. He knows when to go fast and when to reel it back a bit. He has a very good understanding of the tactics and what needs to be done in the race. And he enjoys it. And I think that is always refreshing. He really is a good guy to work with and if he achieves the championship as we hope and expect he will I think he will thoroughly deserve to take Michael's crown.

You have worked with both, and you mentioned the analogy with Michael there. What other differences or similarities can you see?
PS: When you look at these people, a year in Formula One is a long time and ten years is an eternity. It is sometimes a little bit different to draw comparisons in every area and what we require of a driver technically these days is slightly different to what we wanted ten years ago and very, very different to what we wanted 20 years ago. So, I think you have to look a little bit outside the technical aspect and look at the human aspect of these people. I think champion drivers are just like champions in any sport, they have this incredible self esteem, self confidence and this ability to set themselves targets. They are realistic but difficult to achieve targets but they achieve them time and time again and that is what I see with Fernando and it is equally what I have seen in other Formula One world champions and I am quite sure you see it in all top sportsmen.