10/08/2004
NEWS STORY
During the three-week gap between these two races, travelling team members have had a short rest, and we have been extremely busy planning the next stage of the team’s climb back up the grid.
Nick Heidfeld: My holiday time was spent at home in Switzerland which was very nice because of all the travel we do during the season. The weather was really good and I enjoyed doing a lot of training outdoors.
Now I'm definitely looking forward to getting back into the car after a relatively long time away from racing. I'm excited about going to Hungary as it's a circuit I enjoy very much, it's quite a tight track and very technical - a little bit like Monaco but obviously without the city mixed in with the circuit itself. It's a Grand Prix venue with good feelings for me because I won my F3000 title here in 1999 and also I like the city very much, so I'm looking forward to the whole event.
Giorgio Pantano: I spent the break between races close to my home town, Padova. There is a beach there in the province of Venice called Sottomarina and I rented a small apartment and a little boat and just spent the days training on the beach early each morning and again in the evening, relaxing in-between training sessions. I like staying close to home because you never know if you might be needed by the team so it's best not to go too far away; also we spend a lot of time travelling around the world so it was great to spend some time at home.
I am excited about the next race as it feels like a long time since the last one, and I have been to the Hungaroring before in F3000. I scored my first F3000 points here in 2001 and I like the track, although I know it's very difficult because the weather is always hot and humid which makes it physically challenging. It's a short track, quite technical, not as fast as some of the others and to be honest it's quite difficult to overtake - so it's very important to do well in qualifying.
Timo Glock: It has been relaxing to spend time at home during the last couple of weeks and I have enjoyed seeing some friends and family. I also concentrated on my fitness training and having a normal life for a short while! The time between races at this point in the season gives you a chance to reflect and evaluate how things are going. I think the first 12 races have been quite good and overall I'm pleased with my performances, which have been quite consistent with not too many mistakes. I have learnt a lot of F1 circuits, and the processes of working with the team and engineers. For the rest of the season I will be pushing harder to help the team with its free practice programme and also for me, to get good results in preparation for next year when I aim to get a race drive.
I'm looking forward to learning the Hungaroring. I have never been there although I have been on holiday in Budapest before. I have been looking closely at the circuit on TV footage: it looks quite small with a lot of corners, and I think it will be very important to find a good tyre for the race distance.