NewsOnF1 - 7 - 13 April News

13-Apr: At the Friday press conference for the San Marino GP, Jacques Villeneuve (BAR) believes that their car is working better here compared with the first 3 races and said "The balance was there from the first lap so we can do some work, that's good. I think that the car's been more competitive than the results we've got so far, we got some points in the last race but we're backwards in the championship compared with where we wanted to be. At the last race anybody could have been on the podium and there's going to be other races like that. It looks like we're more competitive here than we were in the first three races and so it is possible (to finish on the podium)."
Jarno Trulli (Jordan) doesn't feel any special pressure driving at his home GP as for their competitiveness he believes that they are not too far away from the top runners and said "It's difficult to know how competitive we are because we don't know how much fuel load all the other runners ran but we're pretty confident. We know that Ferrari, McLaren and also Williams are really fast but we've proved we're not too far away."
Giancarlo Fisichella (Benetton) described finishing in 6th place at Brazil was like winning and said "We didn't expect to finish the race and score a point. It was like winning for us because we're struggling a little bit with engine power and the car." He also indicated that he is frustrated with being at the back in front of his home crowd and said "It is difficult but I have to push again, do the maximum everywhere, it's frustrating to be here on my home circuit and in the last few rows. It's not fantastic but that's the life. We have a good step with power on Magny Cours so it's quite late."
Gerhard Berger (BMW) indicated that Juan Pablo was with the team because they expect great things from him and said "He is with us because we expect him to do something really well. He has fantastic car control. We know he is a very competitive driver and he did a great job in the race in Sao Paulo, no question about it."
He also pointed out that with Michelin they are hoping to stay close to the top runners and said "It's very very difficult. Each step is usually a very small step and especially to catch up with these guys is very hard. But on the other side, with Michelin, we are able to make small steps from race to race and we saw it in Sao Paulo in comparison to the races before, and hopefully we will see it again here."
Ross Brawn (Ferrari) believes that they have sorted out their set-up problems from Brazil and said "We came away from Brazil disappointed. The car just didn't work as well as we hoped. I think one of the things that a lot of people don't appreciate is that set-up is so important. They talk about tyres, about the car, about the engine but the set-up is equally important to get the car working properly. We didn't have a very good set-up in Brazil which was emphasised in the wet. Last week in Fiorano we had a couple of wet days and we were able to go back through the car that we had in Brazil and it was pretty awful around Fiorano which was really reassuring, but by changing the car around we were able to get it to work normally again. So we were pleased that the car was good in the wet this morning. I hope it's back to normal." When asked about the reason for covering the brake areas he said "It's just some things that we've done on the brake ducts and the brakes which we try to keep to ourselves. Obviously we won't keep them to ourselves for very long because there is a large number of photographers in the pit lane." Brawn also believes that Barrichello has put the Brazilian GP behind him and said "He was down for a few days. It was a difficult weekend for him with huge expectation. But I suppose to a large extent things settled down. He didn't test last week, but we kept him informed of the testing and I'm really pleased today because he's put all that behind him. We just want to keep him straight."
Adrian Newey (McLaren) has admitted that they have yet to get on top of the problems with their car and said "We have struggled a little bit with the car this year. We haven't quite got on top of the regulations fully. And so while the car worked well in Brazil, and we were generally happy with the car in Brazil, albeit slightly disappointed in qualifying - we haven't quite got the consistency out of it, which we would like. It's a combination of a whole load of factors: partly set-up, partly engine characteristics, it's difficult to break it down to one thing." As for what they are doing about fixing these problems, he said "The biggest problem is time, with the races every two weeks you're on a pretty tight schedule really. Silverstone last week was our first (real) test since the season started and that wasn't a good test, so in terms of setup we're having to experiment at the races, which isn't ideal. In the other areas, aerodynamics, we're trying to understand the problems in the wind tunnel, the engine driveability is working on the dyno so it's really a multi-pronged attack."

13-Apr: San Marino GP – 2nd Friday Practice: Michael Schumacher sets the fastest time ahead of Rubens Barrichello and Ralf Schumacher. Mika Hakkinen, Olivier Panis and Kimi Raikkonen make the top 6 ... Timed Results ... Full Report ... Notes

13-Apr: San Marino GP – 1st Friday Practice: Rubens Barrichello sets the fastest time ahead of Michael Schumacher and Mika Hakkinen. Coulthard, Trulli, Frentzen make the top 6 ... Timed Results ... Full Report ... Notes

12-Apr: At the Thursday press conference for the San Marino GP, Juan Pablo Montoya (Williams) has indicated that leading a Grand Prix gives him the knowledge that he is capable of doing it and he is pleased that the performance from his car has come early. As for winning a race this season, he said "Why not? But you know I haven't even made my first pitstop yet for example so... "
He also indicated that knowing the Imola track will help a little although he has only raced here once before in an F3000 race.
David Coulthard (McLaren) has indicated that he felt he had a fortunate start to the season but warned of not writing off Mika Hakkinen and said "I think that I've had a fortunate start to the season, the car's been reliable and I've made the most of the situation. Some of the incidents on the track have opened up to my benefit and I think it's just as simple as that. You all want to know who's hot, who's not and I think that if you 're trying to suggest that Mika's not able or not capable of getting round this then I'm not quite sure what you've been smoking."
When asked if he felt that this is his last chance for winning the title, Coulthard said "I feel that I've got a good opportunity at McLaren, I don't think I'm here by accident, I think I'm here because I can do the job and who knows what's around the corner? I don't know if it's my last chance but, again, it's an example of people wanting to put your career in a box and close the lid before you're actually at the end of your career. That's what makes it exciting, you'll just all have to wait and see."
Michael Schumacher (Ferrari) has indicated that he believes their lack of performance at Brazil was due to setup and said "Certainly the car wasn't working good enough to compete, which is a nuisance but it doesn't mean there is conflict in the team. I am responsible for my setup, it's not as though everybody has to tell me what to use as my setup, myself and my engineer work it out over the weekend. We believe in it but sometimes you find out it's not good enough to win."
As for his run of wins ending, he said "I think it's part of racing, you can't win every race, it's impossible. After the first two races I couldn't have dreamed of such a start to the season. I thought it would be much tighter and maybe we would be behind initially. Now we are being caught up. I presume if you look at the lap times, Brazil was a pretty straightforward result and only with the development of the year will we find out which team is strongest."
On the prospect of a rival series being setup, Schumacher said "There has been experience in other series where this has happened and it has not made the situation easier, actually more complicated. We're at a different level, so I don't know it would be the first experience ever in Formula One if this was the case. We have to find out and see how it works. Formula One is doing well and obviously the manufacturers are interested in this kind of development. It will be interesting to see how it develops."
Peter Sauber (Sauber) has indicated that because the competition at the top is very hard they are able to score more points. He is hoping to score 2 more points soon and reach the 100 points mark.
Giancarlo Minardi (Minardi) has indicated that the new partnership with Paul Stoddart is working very well even though they are running two operations (in the UK and Italy) and said "He's a great partner and we share the same passion, we're working very well together. And right now the two companies are working very well together. Each one has their precise jobs to do without any kind of overlapping."

12-Apr: Gerhard Berger, BMW's Motorsport Director has warned that Williams will not be able to challenge for the championship this year as they are not on par with Ferrari and McLaren yet and said "There are two ways of winning: by your own merit, or when your rivals drop out. If Ferrari or McLaren have problems, we're capable of winning now, but in terms of pure force we'll have to wait until 2002. At Imola we just want to stay as close as possible to the Ferrari and McLaren then we'll see what happens."
Berger praised both Williams drivers claiming that Ralf Schumacher is very close to his older brother while Juan Pablo Montoya has the potential of becoming a great driver and said "Ralf's driving performances are very, very close to those we're used to seeing from Michael, I really believe that if they were driving equally matched cars Michael would have to push himself to the limit to stay ahead of his brother. Ralf lacks nothing to go just as fast as Michael."
And of Montoya he said "Juan Pablo is gifted with superb car control and raw natural talent, but he has to learn that you can't do everything with talent alone. He's got to develop a cooler, more analytical attitude so that he can help improve his car's performance throughout a grand prix weekend. Despite his superb performance in Brazil, he's still learning how to drive in traffic and how to set up his car. But it's only his fourth grand prix. If he gets everything focussed, he'll become a great driver."

Ferrari's Sporting Director Jean Todt is hoping that they get everything right for the San Marino GP as it is the first race for Ferrari at home since they won the title last year and said "It is always special when Ferrari races in Italy, but this first race since the team took the title will be something extra for the spectators and for the team. I hope we can give them what they will come to see."

11-Apr: "End of the streak for Schumacher ?" is the title of the 9th issue from the Diagnosis and Prognosis Series for the 2001 season. In this issue, the Heretic looks at the upcoming San Marino Grand Prix - Issue 9

11-Apr: Following an investigation into what went wrong for Ferrari in Brazil, the team admitted that the car appeared not to have the correct setup for the race. A Ferrari spokesperson said "Computer analysis after the race confirmed that in Brazil we didn't have the right set-up for the car. We realised this immediately and then tests confirmed that the car didn't have enough downforce, the car was slow in accelerating out of corners and on the wet surface it was difficult to drive."
Ferrari are confident that they won't have similar problems at San Marino, the spokesperson said "We'll get it right at Imola because we don't want to make the same mistake again."
Michael Schumacher made similar comments following his test at Fiorano and said "I am sure that at Imola we will be more competitive than in Brazil."

The Jordan team have not achieved good results at San Marino in the past. Last year, both their cars failed to finish while in '99 Damon Hill finished 4th but was a lap down and in '98 Ralf Schumacher finished in 7th place 2 laps down. Trevor Forster, the Managing Director of the team hopes that this year their fortunes with turn around and said "Bad fortune has caused San Marino to traditionally be one of the less successful races for Jordan. We have been in some good point scoring positions in the past at Imola, but the cars have unfortunately not crossed the finish line. This race is therefore very important for us to rid ourselves of this tradition."
Heinz Harald Frentzen described the track as a roller coaster ride and said "It's good to go to San Marino as it's the start of the European season which is good for the teams and drivers. Italy, the tifosi and the circuit always remind me of my first win in 1997. This track is a roller-coaster ride for the drivers but it has special flair."
His team-mate Jarno Trulli is hoping to deliver in front of his home crowd and said "Everyone assumes that Imola is my home race, which is true because I am Italian, but I haven't actually raced in Italy very much. I feel good about going to Imola. My supporters in Italy are hoping for a good result and I would like to give them that."

10-Apr: "A rival series, real possibility or just a bargaining option" Topic of the week - Have Your Say

10-Apr: Juan Pablo Montoya has some past experience at the Imola track from his F3000 days and is looking forward to racing there again and said "Imola should be a good track for us. Unlike the other circuits, which hosted the first three Grands Prix of this season, I have raced in San Marino before in F3000. I cannot say though that this is the most familiar track to me because my race there lasted about five laps before I crashed out! After the performance in Brazil I think we definitely proved what we can do and I am looking forward to giving it another go in Imola!"
His team-mate Ralf Schumacher is hoping to finish the race and avoid any of those backend shunts that he experienced twice already and said "I think that we are well prepared for the Grand Prix of San Marino. I hope that I can finish my race and collect as many championship points as possible."

Jacques Villeneuve was very pleased with the BAR during the last test at Silverstone as he broke the lap record. He is very excited about the San Marino race and said "I've been testing in beautiful, freezing Silverstone. The car is very quick, so I am very excited about the next race in Imola. The end result in Brazil wasn't very good, but the car was very quick in the race, especially in the wet, which is very promising. Now we just have to work on qualifying."
Villeneuve turns 30 this week and his comment on that was "I’ve been told my life has only just begun."

9-Apr: The legendary Ayrton Senna has won 8 pole positions at the San Marino Grand Prix and that is out of 11 appearances. In his first attempt in 1984 driving a Toleman Hart, he failed to qualify. He came back with a vengeance winning pole the following 7 years in a row (from 85 - 91). His last pole at San Marino was also his last ever when he was tragically killed during the race in 1994.
In terms of pole positions, no other driver comes close to Senna on this track with Rene Arnoux, Mika Hakkinen and Michael Schumacher next with 2 poles each. Mika Hakkinen was on pole for the last 2 years in a row while David Coulthard and Jacques Villeneuve are the only other current drivers to win pole at Imola with one pole each.
McLaren are the team with most poles with 7 followed by Williams with 4 and Ferrari with 3.
Ayrton Senna also has the most number of wins at San Marino with 3 wins, he is joined by Alain Prost and Michael Schumacher with 3 each as well.
Along with Michael Schumacher, David Coulthard and Heinz Harald Frentzen are the only current drivers to have won here with a win each. Mika Hakkinen has yet to win at Imola.
Williams has won the most number of races at San Marino with 7 followed by McLaren with 6 and Ferrari with 4.

9-Apr: "The Williams threat is serious" The San Marino Grand Prix Preview is now available ... Race Preview

San Marino Formula 1 Grand Prix Schedule:

Session	Time (Local / GMT) - World Clock
Friday Practice Session 1 Friday Practice Session 2 Saturday Practice Session 1 Saturday Practice Session 2 Qualifying Session Warm-up Session Race	11 AM Imola Time / 9 AM GMT 1 PM Imola Time / 11 AM GMT 9 AM Imola Time / 7 AM GMT 10:15 AM Imola Time / 8:15 AM GMT 1 PM Imola Time / 11 AM GMT 9:30 AM Imola Time / 7:30 AM GMT 2 PM Imola Time / 12 PM GMT
Go to the San Marino GP Page

8-Apr: Bernie Ecclestone has indicated that he is willing to share his remaining 25% in SLEC (the company that holds the TV rights to Formula 1) with the car manufacturers if that will avoid the creation of a rival series. Ecclestone said "We will share our 25% with the car companies if that is what it takes to sort this out. "
Ecclestone it still unsure as to what the car manufacturers actually want and said "I have no idea what they want at this stage. Their position changes all the time. They are in business to sell cars. It seems strange to me that they want to own the races as well." He has assured the car manufacturers earlier that Kirch will keep Formula 1 available on free to air TV. (story)
The remaining 75% of SLEC is owned by German media companies Kirch and EM TV and the car manufacturers fear that Kirch will move Formula 1 to pay TV.

As for his role in Formula 1, Ecclestone (who is 70) has indicated that he intends to remain in the business indefinitely and that he doesn't plan to die soon! He said "The teams need not worry about my retirement, only my death. And I am not planning to die soon."

7-Apr: "Montoya. Unlucky or reckless" is the title of the 8th issue from the Diagnosis and Prognosis Series for the 2001 season. In this issue, the Heretic looks at the aftermath of the Brazilian Grand Prix - Issue 8

7-Apr: The Ferrari team concluded their testing at the Fiorano track after 5 days of intensive testing with Luca Badoer present for 5 days and Michael Schumacher for 3 days.
Luca Badoer continued his testing of the traction and launch control systems in preparation for the Spanish Grand Prix using the F1-2000. He completed 49 laps and practiced 17 starts.
The session was run under mixed conditions ideal for testing traction control.
Michael Schumacher concentrated on tyre and aerodynamic testing for the San Marino Grand Prix. He completed yet another massive number of laps with 127 and a best time of 0.59.349.
Michael Schumacher commented on their preparations for the upcoming San Marino GP by saying "This week’s testing has been very positive. We worked principally on the tyres and the development of several aerodynamic solutions. I am sure that at Imola we will be more competitive than in Brazil. This year the battle for the championship will be between three teams: I think Williams will be up front also at Imola .”

Click here for the timed results