NewsOnF1 - 17 - 22 May News

22-May: Michael Schumacher is reasonably optimistic of his chances in Monaco and believes the F2002 will be suited to the track. He said "The Monaco Grand Prix is a challenge. Racing between the guard rails at high speed is tiring, but at the same time, extremely motivating because it is so narrow. I really like driving here. There are so many blind corners which make it unique and I am looking forward to racing here again.
I think the F2002 will also go well in Monaco. The car intrinsically has a lot of aerodynamic downforce, which is a very important factor at this track. Also from the mechanical point of view we are well prepared and Bridgestone are bringing a tyre well suited to the characteristics of this track. I am reasonably optimistic about our level of competitiveness."

Ralf Schumacher admits that the Monaco track may not suit their car but remains hopeful to be close the Ferraris and said "I once remember someone said that racing an F1 car around Monaco is just like flying a helicopter in your bedroom. You could not describe this race in a better way.
This circuit might not suit the WilliamsF1 BMW FW24 as much as the Ferrari F2002, but after the positive test in Valencia, I hope that we can come a bit closer to the red cars. As long as we will still have a mathematical chance for the World Championship, we won't let go of this target and this approach counts just as much for the Monaco Grand Prix."
Team-mate Juan Pablo Montoya hopes to give Williams something to smile after crashing out early from the race last year and said "I can’t say I really enjoyed my debut in Monaco last year, and overall it was a difficult weekend for me. I thought initially that it would be a lot more fun than it was, and in fact it was extremely hard work.
The circuit itself is very slow with a only couple of quick corners, and of course it's completely different from the tracks we usually race at. It's a very fancy weekend and a glamorous event, but maybe it's a bit too classy and I am not really that kind of person. Whatever happens, I hope this time around will provide the BMW WilliamsF1 Team with better memories to cherish."

Eddie Irvine has an impressive record at Monaco having finished (in the points) every time since the '97 season. Eddie is hoping to continue his good form here and said "The race is full of action and no more so than at the top of the hill through Casino Square, making it my favourite corner. Climbing up the field here can be very tricky and you rely on the attrition of others to help you out. I qualified fifth last year and gave Jaguar its first ever podium in Formula One. Being on the podium alongside two Ferraris is what Jaguar is all about and while the chances of repeating it this year are much tougher, you can’t help going into this weekend with slightly more optimism than other races. There are so many variables that ultimately dictate the finishing order and unless you fall off completely, you can never rule anything out at Monaco."

Renault are hoping to erase their disappointment of Austria by achieving their best result here. Technical Director Mike Gascoyne said "The track will definitely suit our car. We have always known that it is good in terms of mechanical grip and this will be one of the most competitive races so far.
We expected to be slightly less competitive in Austria but overall the weekend was disappointing. We did not get the best out of the car and chassis combination on the first two days, even though we proved our race pace was competitive. This time we are looking towards the top six in qualifying.
Last year it was our strongest race in the first half of the season. We have a number of aerodynamic developments on the car that will represent a reasonable step forward in overall performance and will improve our competitiveness even further."

21-May: The Quali-flyer's predictions for the 'Real Race' in Monaco ... Report

21-May: "What should be done about team orders ?" - Topic of the week - Have Your Say

20-May: "Can Michael equal Senna's 6 wins ?" - The Monaco Grand Prix Preview is now available ... Race Preview

Monaco Formula 1 Grand Prix Schedule:

Session	Time (Local / GMT) - Current local time
Thursday Practice Session 1 Thursday Practice Session 2 Saturday Practice Session 1 Saturday Practice Session 2 Qualifying Session Warm-up Session Race	11 AM Monaco Time / 9 AM GMT 1 PM Monaco Time / 11 AM GMT 9 AM Monaco Time / 7 AM GMT 10:15 AM Monaco Time / 8:15 AM GMT 1 PM Monaco Time / 11 AM GMT 9:30 AM Monaco Time / 7:30 AM GMT 2 PM Monaco Time / 12 PM GMT
Go to the Monaco GP Page

19-May: Rubens Barrichello has indicated his surprise at the reaction from the crowds following the race in Austria and said "I was surprised at the reaction of the crowd and of the people in the media centre after the Austrian Grand Prix. It was a team decision by Ferrari. Of course, I would have preferred not to have been given the radio message to move over, but it was a calm discussion between me and the pit-wall. I feel I won the race anyway and we have seen this situation in the past from Ferrari and from other teams."
Rubens believes he is on a high and that he is capable of repeating his performance at Monaco and said "I am still tackling the season with an open mind, concentrating on my racing. I am going through a very good period in my life in general and I will be doing my best to win in Monaco. I know that I am driving well enough to win races. Austria was an amazing weekend and everyone could see how well it was going for me on Friday and Saturday. What happened in Austria is the past and I can go to Monaco with my head up, looking to have a seriously good weekend."
Rubens also believes that the Ferrari F2002 has closed the gap to Williams BMW in terms of power and said "The car is very well suited to any track we race on. It is a superb package, which gives me as a driver a lot of confidence. Last year, we felt the BMW-Williams had a slight power advantage over us, but this season I am not sure if that is still the case."

18-May: Williams and Renault held a private test for Michelin on the final day of testing at Valencia. The track was artificially wet and both teams tested different wet and intermediate tyre compounds for Michelin. Renault's test driver Fernando Alonso set the fastest time ahead of Williams' test driver Marc Gene with Jenson Button setting the 3rd fastest time ahead of Ralf Schumacher.
Marc Gene covered the most number of laps with 100 followed by Ralf Schumacher with 80 laps.

Click here for the test times from Valencia

At Mugello, Ferrari concluded their test by conducting a full race simulation. The test was completed successfully with Luca Badoer driving. He completed a total of 79 laps with a best time of 1:23.379

Click here for the test times from Mugello

17-May: The 4th day of testing at Valencia saw Marc Gene in the Williams top the timesheets followed by Jenson Button and Fernando Alonso both driving for Renault.
3 teams were present with 5 drivers setting lap times. Fernando Alonso covered the most number of laps with 60 followed by Olivier Panis with 56.
Olivier Panis caused the session to be stopped twice as a result of engine problems.
Weather conditions were sunny with air temperatures reaching 26 degrees.
BAR concluded their test while Williams and Renault conclude their test tomorrow with an artificial wet test.

Click here for the test times from Valencia

On the final day of testing at Paul Ricard, Heinz Harald Frentzen topped the timesheets ahead of Kimi Raikkonen and David Coulthard.
4 teams were present today with 6 drivers setting lap times. David Coulthard covered a massive 111 laps followed by Brazilian Cristiano da Matta test driving for Toyota with 97 laps.
Once again running today was on a shorter configuration of the circuit with more corners simulating Monaco.
da Matta said following his first Formula 1 drive "I am very impressed with this experience. I did 97 laps but I am not really tired. The car was much lighter to drive than in CART but more demanding on the neck due to much higher G-forces. The high speed corners were particularly impressive and I didn't expect such high grip levels from the grooved tyres."
Weather was sunny with air temperature reaching 25 degrees.

Click here for the test times from Paul Ricard

At Mugello, Luca Badoer started testing for Ferrari at the track. Driving the F2002 he concentrated on set-up work as well as testing mechanical components. He completed 45 laps with a fastest time of 1:23.384.
Weather was sunny with air temperature reaching 27 degrees.
Testing continues tomorrow.

Click here for the test times from Mugello

At Fiorano, Rubens Barrichello concluded testing for Ferrari conducting an artificial wet track test as well as a shakedown for the cars to be used at the Monaco GP. He completed 73 laps with a fastest time of 59.168.
Weather was sunny with air temperature reaching 30 degrees.

Click here for the test times from Fiorano

At Jerez, Anthony Davidson concluded BAR's 2 day test at the track. Over the 2 days he covered a total of 185 laps with a best time of 1:21.871.

Click here for the test times from Jerez