INDIA in F1

Tag: Formula One

  • JPSI makes Airtel Indian GP 2012 bigger and better

    New Delhi, 11 October 2012: Jaypee Sports International Limited (JPSI), today, shared their Traffic, Transport and Logistics update for the 2012 Formula 1 Airtel Grand Prix of India which will take place at the Buddh International Circuit (BIC), Greater Noida, between

    Aerial view of BIC. Photo courtesy JPSI.

    October 26 – 28, 2012.

    JPSI, as promoters of Buddh International Circuit, presented a way forward to ensure that neither the participants nor the spectators faced any issues commuting to and from the Buddh International Circuit (BIC), a press release said here today.

    As part of their elaborate plan this year, the parking at BIC will be able to hold more than 21, 000 private cars and 1,000 motorcycle parking. Apart from the private cars, more than 200 Pre-booked chartered buses from the NOIDA City Centre Metro Station and 200 chartered buses that can be availed as a Park and Ride facility from the nearby Knowledge Park II. There will also Free access provided to Delhi-NCR Radio cabs to enter the circuit parking with  dedicated taxi parking area and the Circular Shuttle that were successful last year, will be in service this year too around the circuit to drop spectators at entry gates and at dedicated shuttle stops at each seating stand.

    Mr. Qamar Ahmad, Senior Vice-President, Traffic & Security, JPSI said “Last year we managed to host the race successfully and building on those learning, we have made improvements in the traffic and transport facilities for this year. The Yamuna Expressway is now open to public and all ticket holders are allowed to take that to reach the Buddh International Circuit without any hassles. We are getting full support from all the authorities to help remove bottlenecks and all efforts are being made to ensure a comfortable experience for the spectators.”

    To make the second edition of the 2012 Airtel Grand Prix Of India a memorable, a host of entertainment events have been lined up by JPSI. The race day, October 28, 2012 will witness playback singer Shaan and music director duo of Vishal and Shekhar perform. Along with Vishal-Shekhar and Shaan, six selected college bands will perform at India’s biggest motorsport event through Rock the Race, a JPSI initiative to find talent in the youngsters of the country India.

    The Buddh International Circuit, this year will have the Turn 8-9 Kerb extended from 5m to 15m with the height of all the kerbs across the circuit now at 25 mm and Turn 2-3 and 7-8 will have Astroturf lining to provide additional safety to run-off areas. Apart from the track modifications, video screens around the track have been increased from 11 to 17 to make sure the spectators are able to catch every inch of racing at the Buddh International Circuit on the big screens.

    Mr. Farhan Vohra, General Manager – Race Operations, JPSI said, “We are extremely excited about the Indian Grand Prix 2012 as there are some changes that we have made to the run off areas that will enhance the overall experience of the race. We have extended the width of a few turns from 5m to 15 m and height of the kerbs to 25 mm. We have hired special mechanized dusters from Bahrain and these will start working after 15th October to clean up the minutest of dust particles from all over the track which cannot be washed with regular dusters.”

    The race equipment – the race tires and the fuel for the cars have already arrived along with the Paddock setup area, and has already been cleared by the customs at the circuit. More than 30% of the equipment as arrived, while the cars are expected to reach the circuit by the 15th of Sept after the Korean Grand Prix. Before the 24th of October, 95% of all equipments will have cleared customs and are expected to be at the race track.

    Mr. Sougoto Das, AGM, Cargo & Logistics, JPSI said, “With the experience of hosting the race last year, the movement of cargo has been smooth. We are getting full support of the authorities. The F1 cargo comes in two lots, one by ship and the other by air. The ship cargo has started coming here such as tyres, car fuel, etc. However, cars will start coming after the Korean GP this weekend.”

    About Jaypee Sports International Limited (JPSI)

    Established in October 2007, Jaypee Sports International Ltd., a subsidiary of Jaiprakash Associates Ltd. (JAL), has constructed India’s premier motorsports destination – Buddh International Circuit (BIC) – which hosted India’s first ever F1 Grand Prix on October 30, 2011. In addition to F1, the track is also expected to host other top-level international motorsports events. BIC will be a part of Jaypee Sports City, which is spread over 2,500 acres. This facility will include a Cricket stadium that is being developed in two phases and which will have a seating capacity of 100,000 people. There will also be a hockey arena, a sports training academy and infrastructure for other sports. Jaypee Sports City, the country’s first fully integrated megacity built around a sporting lifestyle and featuring premium residential and commercial spaces, has been designed by world renowned architects and planners, WATG. One of the world’s leading design consultants for the hospitality, leisure and entertainment industries, WATG has made a significant contribution to making Jaypee Sports City the best of its kind anywhere in the world.

    ends

  • Battle intensifies ahead of Korea GP

    FIA Thursday Press Conference – Korea

    File photo of Sebastian Vettel. Courtesy Red Bull content pool

    DRIVERS – Nico ROSBERG (Mercedes), Romain GROSJEAN (Lotus), Pastor MALDONADO (Williams), Mark WEBBER (Red Bull Racing), Fernando ALONSO (Ferrari), Sebastian VETTEL (Red Bull Racing)

    PRESS CONFERENCE

    Nico, coming first of all to you. It has been mentioned that this is a better circuit for you than Suzuka. What are your feelings about that?

    Nico ROSBERG: Already in the race in Japan things were looking better. Michael put in a consistent pace there. For sure here this track should suit us more. All the conditions, all the circumstances, the long straights and everything. I’m definitely looking forward to it and I’m confident that we can do better again.

    The big problem is keeping Sauber at bay in the Constructors’ Championship, isn’t it?

    NR: Personally, I’m looking forward, so I want to try to maximise the points that we can get and I’m convinced we can do (that)… there are still a lot of points to be had in the next few races and that isn’t going to be a concern.

    So you’re quite happy with the way things are going?

    NR: Yes.

    Romain, there is a new exhaust system on the car. What are you hoping for from that?

    Romain GROSJEAN: Hopefully some good performance. We were one of the only teams not to use it so it may help us to go quicker. We know our weakness this year on the car and this may help us to improve quite well.

    Obviously you had the problem last weekend and went to see Mark after the race. What did you say and are you quite happy that you’ve cleared the air?

    RG: Yes, Mark came to see me and I completely understand that he was unhappy. The only thing I could say was to apologise and that’s what I did. I’m clearly conscious of the risk at the start, I’m working on changing on quite a lot of things but work doesn’t come from one day to the other one. There is a process going on. I said I was very sorry. I’m not stupid and I’m conscious of the risk. And hopefully by now it will be a different and I will not make the mistake of focusing on the wrong targets.

    And Mark, are you happy with that?

    Mark WEBBER: Yeah, absolutely. I went to see Romain, we had a discussion about it and that was that. So, yes.

    Pastor, again a team that feels the car is suited to this circuit. Is that your feeling?

    Pastor MALDONADO: I hope so! I hope to have a competitive car and a part of that is to be quite competitive in quali. We missed a couple of tenths in the last qualifying in Suzuka and we were out of Quali 3. It was quite a good pace during the race but we are really looking forward here to being in Quali 3 and very competitive. But it’s very difficult to know exactly where we’ll be.

    At the moment your future seems to be undecided. Is it your decision and have you been in contact with other teams apart from Williams?

    PM: To be honest I realty want to stay with Williams. It’s a good team and the team is getting better and better every day. We’ve been rebuilding everything in the team and I think now it’s more compact and the car is looking, as I mentioned before, every day better and better. So good confidence with them but at the moment there is not confirmation. So looking forward to seeing that but otherwise looking forward to remaining in Formula One for sure.

    Mark, you’ve had an unfortunate second half to the season, since your win at the British Grand Prix. This is a circuit that has been up and down for you. You pretty much sealed the championship here for Red Bull Racing when you finished third. Can you get it back? Can you turn things around here?

    MW: Yes. That’s the goal, mate. As you’ve said, we’ve had a few ropey runs of late. Lost of different reasons: a few on my side – not driving well enough – a few on some dodgy strategies, and last weekend was out of my hands. In that case, all of a sudden, three or four or five races with definitely not the points you want. I’m really looking forward to this race. It’s… in terms of atmosphere it’s not off the charts, we know that, but in terms of the race track, it’s not a bad little circuit to drive on so I think the car will go well here.

    Fernando, how badly do you need a good result this weekend?

    Fernando ALONSO: Well, I think we all need some good points this weekend but it’s the same situation for everybody, if not worse, so that’s it.

    And with five races how much are Ferrari pushing as well.

    FA: I think we have been pushing from the first test in the winter, so nothing has changed in the last five races. We just need to keep doing the things we’ve been doing so far. I think it has nearly been a perfect championship for us at the moment, with good strategies, good starts, good approach to the races. Everything we had in our hands on Sunday we maximised the points. We had one zero in Spa and one zero in Suzuka but things completely outside of our team, so apart from that we don’t need to change too many things.

    Of course your rival is Sebastian there, winner here last year and winner of the last two races this year. Does that give you confidence? What is the feeling coming to this race:

    Sebastian VETTEL: Of course. We had a good two last races as you mentioned. We obviously come here on a high and we try to produce the momentum to have another very strong result here. We know that this circuit should be quite good for us. Historically we have been competitive here. The two years we have been racing here before I think we always had a very good car, so try again.

    It’s interesting that people say this circuit suits the car or vice versa, as this seems to be a circuit that has a bit of everything: it has a lot of straights, it has the twisty section at the end, it’s got some fast, flowing corners in the middle. Is it just an all-round car that you have?

    SV: In the end I think it’s the nature of the track that maybe we used to like in the last two years. We should be reasonably competitive but then again, this year I think it has been very unpredictable and you don’t know what happens so it could be the case here. We have to try our best to get another strong result. If you look at the layout, for sure you start off with a lot of straights and then you finish off with corners. It looks a little strange compared to other places because usually it’s a bit more of a mix. But here you get the straights first and then the corners.

    QUESTIONS FROM THE FLOOR

    (Johnny Herbert – Sky Sports F1) Romain, clearly you have the speed to be a Formula One driver, it’s a first time here in Korea, we’ve got a tricky couple of corners on that first lap, Eric Boullier said it’s really down to you now to sort out your situation. Tell me what you’re going to do different here this weekend.

    RG: Not having any contact on the first lap, that’s clearly one of the objectives. I’d say there’s work in progress and it takes a bit of time but yeah, it’s a cycle as well: things have been going bad, and the more it goes bad… I’m conscious of the risk at the start. The Spa accident was quite impressive and I was the first one to be happy that Fernando had nothing [injured], I’m conscious of the risk; I paid the price as well for my mistake. In the team we spoke quite a lot; they are not happy, I am not happy the way we have been going through the first laps. There is 550 people working at Enstone to give us the best car and if you ruin everything in the first 100m it’s not good. I’m conscious of all of that and will try to take as many precautions as possible to go through the first lap – and then normally in the race we are OK.

    (Paolo Ianieri – La Gazzetta dello Sport) Fernando, what is Ferrari bringing here as updates, and do you feel confident that you’re going to have the speed to fight with Red Bull?

    FA: Not many updates, obviously it has been only four days from Suzuka to here so we will try to set up the car as best we can for this race, this layout. But, I remain reasonably confident that we will be competitive. We’ve been more or less competitive in the last eight, ten races – maybe not the fastest but always in position to fight for podiums etcetera. I think here will be no different.

    (Carlos Miguel – La Gaceta) Fernando, do you believe that Kimi Räikkönen must apologise with you, like Romain with Mark Webber?

    FA: No, I think in the start in Suzuka it was very tight in between all of us, that’s the problem of starting in the middle of the group: I had Jenson on the right, Kimi on the left and you cannot disappear in those moments. It was an unlucky situation with the front wing of Kimi and my rear tyre. After the puncture I could not start the car on the corner – so it was a mix of things that were not in our part – but y’know, in the last seven, six races, when we were in Suzuka, now five races, one or two have gone wrong, and one or two will go wrong for the others.

    (Andrea Cremonesi – La Gazzetta dello Sport) Mark, you are sixty points behind the leader of the championship. How is your role now? To help Sebastian or try to recover this gap?

    MW: I need to win, so that’s my goal, I’ve come here to push. It was a good little battle between Seb and I in Suzuka, he did a very good job in Q3. We did a very good job, and looking to finish the season as strongly as possible for myself.

    Q: (Paolo Ianieri – La Gazzetta dello Sport) Fernando, with only four points advantage, obviously your strategy has to change in the last few races. Are you going to attack more?

    FA: I think we’ve been attacking in all the races. We were fighting in all the races the maximum we can, approaching the races to maximise the points we have available. Sometimes we were on the podium, sometimes we were fourth, sometimes we were fifth and this will not change now. I don’t we can over-drive or over-do what is available for us. As I said, now we have lost many points, in the last four races let’s say, because at Spa we had a DNF which we had nothing to do with. In Monza we had a Q3 problem and started in tenth, and in Suzuka we had a puncture at the start, in the first corner. All these last four races, in which we lost a lot points, I think are just some unlucky situations. Things normally change, they go up and down. Hopefully our bad run will finish and we will start a run of good runs until the end.

    Q: (Luis Fernando Ramos – Racing Magazine) Sebastian, in all your complete seasons in Formula One, we have seen an improvement in terms of results in the second part of the season, after the summer break. Is it just a coincidence, or do you feel that you put all the bits together and feel more confident and improve in the second part of the season?

    SV: I have good holidays in the summer, so I should consider doing the same in the winter break! I don’t know. As Fernando has said a couple of times now, I think it has been fairly up and down for a lot of us. We have seen this year that there are a lot of cars that can surprise. Look at the race we had in Barcelona for instance, where the Williams was very competitive. Pastor drove a fantastic race and won. In China Nico was very strong and won the race so there’s more than one or two cars that are able to win. Of course you need to get everything right for every weekend in order to be competitive but I think it has been the story of the championship. It has been up and down. Same for us, we have good races, bad races. I think the last couple of races were good for us but again, only three races ago we didn’t finish the race in Monza. Things can change quickly, so we need to stay focused and concentrated on what we have. Whether there is a trend where we do better in the second half I don’t know, but throughout the season we are pushing very hard, trying to get our maximum.

    Q: (Jonathan Ledgard – BBC Sport) Fernando and Mark, as very keen cyclists and very knowledgeable, I was wondering what you made of the news overnight about Lance Armstrong, who has allegedly been involved in the most systematic, professionalised form of cheating ever, and how much your faith in your beloved sport has been shaken?

    MW: Yeah, disappointing. I was a keen cyclist fan through the early 2000s. But slowly, slowly, slowly, over time lost a little bit of passion for the sport. It has been quite obvious, in the last few years, that this was probably going to come, from people on the inside, but the damn wall has now broken and I think that obviously he was the last tree in the forest they wanted to drop down, and a big tree at that. It’s good that they’re trying to clean the sport up, and even retrospectively, it sends a message to lots of different sports that irrespective of what you’ve achieved and how you’ve done it at the time – first of all, it’s a good message –  the karma, we’ll come and get you.

    FA: The same. Nothing really to add. Obviously I love cycling, I love bicycles and sure Lance was more than another rider, he was some kind of idol for many people and inspiration for many of us and many media people in the world. It’s not easy and I think he will remain an inspiration for many people, whatever happened, whatever the result. Not easy to put together all things.

    Q: (Flavio Vanetti – Corriere della Serra) To Fernando and Sebastian: Lewis seems to downplay his chances in the championship. What’s your opinion on that?

    FA: I don’t know how many points he’s behind now. Well, I think it’s more difficult (for him) because now there’s not only one driver ahead that you need to take some points off. We are now two with more or less the same points ahead and he’s behind, so for sure the chances for him are a little bit lower. If we see the form of McLaren and Lewis before Suzuka, there’s still plenty of time and plenty of points to do it. I think he still has the possibility…

    SV: I think they are still fighting for the championship. I think that is their target, or has to be their target. I think if you look at the races we had after the summer break, so far, I think if you summed them up, in average, I think McLaren was the most competitive car. They are the ones which will be very competitive, no matter where we go, at least that’s what the last couple of races showed. I think they still have a very good chance.

    Q: (Kate Walker – Girl Racer) To anyone who wants to answer it: we’ve all heard a lot about how the season is up and down. Psychologically, from a driver’s point of view, does that make it easier for you, when you’re gearing yourself up, mentally knowing that it could be anyone’s weekend, or is it more difficult, knowing that it’s more variable, that it’s not necessarily about your car, your talent or about that circuit?

    NR: Well, for us, in our situation, for example, for me it’s an extra motivation, because I come here and I’m not sure that I’m definitely going to be in the same position as in Suzuka. There’s a chance that I will be able to be a lot further up and fighting for much better positions, so it’s quite a nice thing.

    PM: All the races are difficult, not only this year. For sure this year, the championship is more competitive. The strong teams, the medium grip teams get closer and we have more chance to fight for good results, but for sure it’s more challenging for us but we are enjoying that.

    MW: Not really. I think that as a competitor you want it to be more consistent and obviously achieving nice results. I’ve enjoyed the racing, to be honest, that’s been quite good, but ultimately we like to have the taste of success and that’s what we strive for each weekend so I prefer that than the enjoyment of the racing, I suppose. That’s the balance we try to strike, but obviously we work hard as a team. We would like to make it more boring if we can, but we’ve got some tough opposition so that’s the name of the game and let’s see how the season finishes off.

    Q: (Alan Baldwin – Reuters) I’d like to ask anybody who would like to answer it really, but Sauber put out a press release earlier on this morning announcing that Monisha (Kaltenborn) was going to be taking over from Peter (Sauber) as team principal, which will make her the first woman team principal. I know we’ve got used to seeing Monisha around and being chief executive, but it is quite a breakthrough. Maybe you could comment on this?

    MW: Yeah, I think it’s great. Why not? There’s absolutely no reason why… we have very successful businesswomen around the world so there’s absolutely no reason why she cannot run a successful racing team. Some of the qualities that females have in terms of making decisions faster than a room full of men might be a positive thing. I look forward to seeing how she goes.

    SV: I don’t think her job really changes; I think she was already doing what she’s doing now. Obviously I still know some of the guys at Sauber from a couple of years ago, but I think that at this stage they would probably be happier to put out a press release saying that they’ve found a lot of cash for next year.

    Ends

  • Title chase wide open at Korean GP

    Mokpo, 10 Oct 2012: After the Driver’s championship became wide open with Sebastian Vettel of Red Bull Racing closing the gap with Fernando Alonso to just four points in Japan, the Round 16 of the 2012 Formula One World championship sees the teams make a relatively short journey from Suzuka across the Sea of Japan to the South Korean port city of Mokpo and the nearby Korean International Circuit.

    With only five legs

    The circuit, completed just in time for the inaugural race here in 2010, presents some stern challenges for the teams, mostly centred around how to maintain the integrity of the tyres around its 5.615km distance. With the facility being used very infrequently, the Yeongam circuit is always dirty during the weekend’s opening sessions and is low on grip. To cope with this Pirelli has brought its softest compounds. However, the circuit also has a relatively abrasive surface and a mix of mostly medium and high-speed corners, so lateral loads are high and wear rates can be debilitating. The tyres take a beating as a consequence. Good management or rubber could be the deciding factor here in Korea.

    Drivers’ Championship leader Fernando Alonso suffered a shock first-lap exit in Suzuka and the incident leaves the chase for the 2012 title finely balanced. Sebastian Vettel’s win in Japan has put the Red Bull Racing driver within touching distance of the Ferrari man’s increasingly fragile lead in the standings and Alonso has thus called the final five races of the season a “mini-championship”. If that’s the case then, with just four points separating him from Vettel, the Spaniard needs a big result in round one in Korea to keep his title hopes alive.

    Vettel, meanwhile, became the first driver to score consecutive wins this season with victory in Suzuka and the momentum now seems firmly with the defending champion. But the KIC has been both cruel and kind to the German, with a DNF in the inaugural race being followed by victory last year. He’ll be hoping for a repeat of 2011 but if the teams and drivers have learned one thing this season it is to expect the unexpected and this race should be no exception. A fascinating weekend awaits.

    ends

  • It’s fantastic to see my home country fans happy: Kamui

    Hinwil/Suzuka, 8 October 2012: There was hardly anyone in the Formula One paddock in Suzuka who could resist smiling at the sight of an elated Kamui Kobayashi after his third place finish in front of a home crowd at the Japanese Grand Prix. A day later, the Sauber F1 Team driver talks about the first podium in his Formula One career.
    Kamui, has yesterday’s achievement sunk in yet?
    Kamui Kobayashi: “To be honest I don’t really know because I’ve been busy since the race was over. Last night there was a party with fans in Suzuka, and this morning I went straight back to Suzuka circuit because there was another event organised with more than 5,000 fans. In every respect it was a very intense weekend. I had a lot of confidence before we came to Japan, but then on Friday we were slower than expected, which was a bit worrying. Then qualifying went well, except I lost time due to a yellow flag, and the race was close until the very end.”
    What does the first podium finish mean for you personally?
    KK: “I’ve always felt that if you ever want to look back and regard yourself as a Formula One driver, you have to have been on the podium at least once. Without such a photo it’s a bit as if you had never been there. So it means a lot to me.”
    You frequently said in public before the race that you wanted to finish on the podium. That was quite a bold statement. What made you so confident?
    KK: “Firstly, I had great faith in our team; secondly, I knew we had a fast car; and thirdly, it was clear to me that Suzuka is the perfect track for it. Despite becoming a bit uncertain during Friday, I was very positive again on Saturday and after the formation lap I really had the feeling it would all go well this time. I had a couple of chances earlier in the season but missed them due to bad luck. I knew that the potential was there and this time it all went smoothly.”
    What were your thoughts and feelings when you crossed the line?
    KK: “I instantly relaxed when all the pressure came off. Without doubt it was a very important race for me in my career. And I felt: yes, now we will be having more strong races and really go for 5th place in the constructors’ championship.”
    And how was it being on the podium, facing the huge grandstand with all your fellow countrymen cheering you?
    KK: “This I cannot put into words. It was a fantastic feeling to see all the people in my home country so emotional and happy. It gave me such a lot and I will never forget that moment. I want to thank the Japanese fans for the great support they gave to the Sauber F1 Team and to myself.”
    A fan of F1 Sauber driver Kamui Kobayashi, who won a podium finish last week in Suzuka. Photo by Sauber F1 team.

    ends

  • Now it’s an all-out race with Vettel: Alonso

    Suzuka, 7 Oct 2012:

    Fernando Alonso of Ferrari's dreams come to an end at the first corner as he retires in the Japan GP on Sunday 7 Oct 2012. FIA photo

    Fernando Alonso says the final five races of the season are now “a mini-championship” after his title lead was almost wiped out by a first-corner collision with Kimi Raikkonen at Suzuka.

    The Ferrari driver started from sixth, directly in front of Raikkonen, and at lights out the Lotus driver attempted to pressure Alonso with a move around the outside. The Finn made a small mistake, however, putting a wheel into the dirt, and the momentary loss of control led to a collision. Alonso immediately spun off in a cloud of dust, his race over.

    “Today, we were very unlucky: to finish a race like this, at the very first corner is really a shame. Contact from Raikkonen caused a puncture to the left rear tyre and my race ended there,” he said. “This result has practically wiped out the advantage I had before, but if I’d been told at the start of the season that we would have been in this situation five races from the end, I’d have happily signed for it!

    “Now we start a sort of mini-championship, run over five grands prix,” he added. “The aim will be to score at least one point more than all the others. What happened to us today could happen to the others next time: the wheel turns and that is what races are all about.”

    Alonso admitted that the accident could have been avoided if he had a car capable of qualifying beyond the lower half of the top-10, where he said incidents are common.

    “Unfortunately, when you start in the middle of the pack, these things can happen, because apart from the performance of the car – and ours is usually better on Sunday – circumstance can count for a lot. That could be seen from Felipe’s race. He started tenth, but produced a perfect race, fighting with the fastest cars.

    “Clearly, we must work a lot on the development of the car: I’m not worried, but we must react to the step forward that the other competitors have made.”

  • FIA Press Conference – Japan

    Suzuka, 7 Oct 2012: Sebastian Vettel of Red Bull Racing team closed the gap as leader Fernando Alonso of Ferrari retired early and the championship was thrown wide open at the Japan GP here on Sunday. The top three drivers attended the mandatory FIA Press Conference. Felipe Massa was second followed by a well-deserved victory for home star Kamui Kobayashi of Sauber.

    PODIUM INTERVIEWS

    Sebastian Vettel (Red Bull) and Kamui Kobayashi (Sauber) celebrate on the podium in Suzuka on Sunday 7 Oct 2012. A Sauber F1 team photo.

    (Conducted by Jean Alesi)

    Sebastian, yesterday pole position, today winner but you pushed very hard until the last laps. Did you know Fernando was not racing again?

    Sebastian VETTEL: I saw the safety car at the beginning. I think first of all we had a very good start which was very important because I think right behind me there was a little bit of a crash and I saw a Ferrari was out. I wasn’t sure, halfway through the race when I was looking at the tower to see where the others are, I saw the car that was still racing was Felipe, so I was assuming Fernando was not racing any more. First of all I would like to thank everyone. The atmosphere here every weekend is unbelievable, we leave the hotel, we get so much support from all of you, the grandstands are full when we go down the main straight, nearly every single corner is full of people and it really makes our job very, very special. Thanks for all of that, domo arigato, and… unfortunately that’s all of my Japanese. I’ll try to pick up some words for next year. Thank you very, very much. Thanks to the team, thanks to Renault, all the guys have pushed so hard the last couple of months and I said on the radio, when you’re dreaming at night, you dream about being able to race a car like that. The balance was fantastic, and I was enjoying every lap. That’s why, I think we were has such a big gap to the guys behind – so I’m very, very happy.

    Felipe, we cannot say the race or the podium of your life… but almost. Two years without a podium, now you’re back. How do you feel about that?

    Felipe MASSA: I think it’s fantastic. To come here in Japan, starting tenth, which I was very happy with the car since the practice and then qualifying was not so good. I’m sure I was able to start in the top five so I was tenth. I was able to do a very good start, very clever on the first corner with the accident and everything that happened, and then the pace was very good from the car. Since the beginning of the race the pace was really good. I was behind Jenson and I was quicker than him, when he stopped to do the pitstop I was straight away half a second quicker per lap, so then I was able to push hard and overtake Jenson but also Kamui which was very quick in the front as well. So, for sure the race was much better than I expected. We did a good job, unfortunately Fernando is not here, fighting for the Championship as well, but I am very happy with my race and let’s keep pushing hard to be on the podium now, more than two years but every race now.

    Kamui, you can also speak in Japanese as well today, congratulations, the first podium of your life on your home racing track. Tell us about that.

    Kamui KOBAYASHI: English or Japanese? I think first of all, thank you very much for everyone. Everybody know this is my first podium, in Japan this is fantastic and unbelievable you know?

    PRESS CONFERENCE.

    Sebastian, that looked like a near-perfect race – a near perfect weekend in fact.

    SV: Yeah, as I just said, it’s unbelievable. Since yesterday in qualifying, nothing I think could be better. You come across these kinds of races or weekends very, very rarely. Unbelievable. We had a very good start, obviously it was important as Mark was running into trouble at Turn One and Two, I didn’t see what happened behind him. I saw I had a better start than him and Kamui was probably already past Mark before the first corner, I was focusing on my car and to get through the first couple of corners. But, yeah, obviously very quickly saw the safety car boards. Wasn’t sure what happened. When we came around the first time, surprisingly there was nothing there, so I think the marshals probably did a very good job cleaning up the track. I don’t know how many cars were involved but obviously, yeah, it was crucial to not be in that kind of pack. And after that I had a very, very good race car. It was behaving very well, so yeah, it’s very difficult to describe why. We didn’t have major upgrades for this race. I think it was just the fact of the car suiting to the track, finding the right setup on Friday and then toward Saturday it was just coming together. The balance was there and it was just working. I think we had a fantastic race and I said to the guys, when you have a dream about how your race car should be, that’s exactly what you’re wishing for, so I’m very, very happy and very proud of the team. They stayed very calm all the race. The pitstops obviously we had a big gap so we had a bit of luxury to the guys behind to drop some time – but they seemed very focused. Also, inside the car I tried not to drop too much time, because obviously with the sun coming down, the sun was quite low in the end and there’s a couple of tricky corners, especially Turn Eight, entrance of 13 where we’ve seen cars spinning over the weekend. And it’s very easy to get carried away and think about the corner after the present corner; you start to think ahead and lose the focus and do a little mistake. I tried to stay in the moment and until the end it was fantastic because I had a car where I could control the race and I could push as hard as I wanted to and take care of the tyres, so – not to make this too long – all in all it was… fantastic.

    It seems extraordinary that it’s only your third win and yet it brings you right into championship contention.

    SV: I’m very careful on this obviously, in terms of championships this race was a big step and it helped us but we see how quickly things can change. Look at the last… I don’t know how many races there were since the summer break but four or five; we had a DNF in Monza, if you look last year we had only one race where we didn’t finish, so obviously this year is entirely different for everyone. It seems that we are more on the limit, trying to find a step in the right direction, and that’s true for everyone, so it’s much closer; every weekend can be different and instead of then having a bad weekend and still finishing fourth or fifth, you might then be only tenth, because of guys like Sauber and Kamui, Sergio and other guys – the Lotus is very strong this year – so they all keep scoring consistently but obviously one of us at some point has to park and watch the race from the outside, which is not nice and something you don’t hope for. That is why I say I want to be very careful because it’s still a long way ahead and there’s a lot of things that can happen. I think it was important for us, obviously we did have some pace this weekend and important for us to make use of that.

    Felipe, obviously the start was very important for you, you picked up a lot of places there. Tell us what you saw at the start and how you picked up those places?

    FM: First of all I think my start was very good, I was able to overtake Lewis and then I get to corner one, I saw that Fernando and Kimi went a little bit outside… not outside of the track but very wide after corner one and then I pull inside both, so I was able to overtake both, and then after I saw Mark spinning around, I think a car push him, which I don’t remember very well but I think a car touch him and it push him and he’s spinning in front of me. Then I saw a space and I was able to go on the throttle and take this space and even take the KERS as it was another two cars going out of the corner a little bit slower. I was able to overtake these two cars by using the KERS and going before on the throttle. I think the start was a little bit complicated in corner one but I think we did a perfect job with all these things happening. After that, I was behind Jenson and Kamui, and Jenson was not so quick, so anyway, it was very important. It’s very difficult to overtake in this track, so as soon as they stop I prefer to stay out just to see. And then I improve half a second straight away and a little bit more in the next lap and I think they were a little bit in traffic, so I managed to pass both and then the pace was very good on the hard as well. So, very consistent, very good. Actually, the pace was very good since the whole weekend – unfortunately I couldn’t do a very good qualifying yesterday but y’know I think I was very happy with the car all weekend and very nice to be on the podium again after a little bit of time. Hopefully this is just the beginning of many podiums now in front.

    How much of a relief is it to be on the podium?

    FM: ah, it’s nice! It’s like a relief, y’know? It was great, and a great race anyway, able to push hard from the beginning to the end and show that we are here to fight for victory and for pole and not just to fight for a few points.

    Kamui, how much did you enjoy being on that podium at home?

    KK: Well, it was a fantastic race. We really working hard to get the podium, and you know my team mate has a couple of podiums already but myself, I had a couple of chance in qualifying, I mean I had good position to start, but always I never had luck. I mean we struggle at the start. But this time, maybe it’s good to start third, it’s no front row but the feeling was good because we had a long run on Friday and that was, I think pretty good pace and we had good confidence for the rest of the week. So, I think, when I gained position to second after the start, I was pretty sure to be on the podium. But then some point I think we really struggle a lot to hold Jenson. Especially the last stint was really tough because I change quite early for hard compound tyres but I think Jenson change, I think, a couple of laps later and I think that’s what’s really challenging for us. But if we want to hold Jenson we have to do it. And finally we need to manage tyres, I mean in the last couple of laps. It was within one second and really challenging for us – but I think finally we finish in the points, on the podium and that’s fantastic. Especially in front of my home grand prix, my first podium, that’s… y’know… amazing. Before the race I was joking: a couple of times I have a chance to get podium but I have bad luck and I couldn’t get it. But maybe I get this race in podium, maybe it’s something in destiny, y’know? So I’m very happy for the fans. There’s so many people supporting us. When we look there is so much crowd around the circuit and that’s amazing. Really, thanks to all the fans. I think we need to keep going for the future.

    QUESTIONS FROM THE FLOOR

    Q: (Flavio Vanetti – Corriere della Sera) Felipe, you had a great day and Fernando was unlucky but the question is, do you believe that the pace of the Ferrari is enough to match Red Bull now?

    FM: Well, let’s say not on this track. I think that on this track Sebastian has incredible pace compared to all the other cars. We saw that in qualifying and in the race it was the same. Anyway, I think it changes from track to track. Maybe this was a track where they were stronger during the whole championship. I think we need to wait and see track to track. We need to keep pushing very hard, we need to work very hard in the factory too to bring the right pieces for the car as well and try. Nothing is finished for Fernando. He did many many good races until now. What happened today was not nice for him but these things happen in the championship. It’s important that we push hard and concentrate on the next race. He’s still leading the championship and that’s important.

    Q: (Paolo Ianieri – La Gazzetta dello Sport) Felipe, this was also a pretty important race for you and your future, also for you Kamui. Do think that this podium, for both of you, will help you to secure your seats at Ferrari and Sauber respectively for next season? Yesterday you said that this could be your last Suzuka. Is that true?

    FM: I think so.

    KK: Yeah, I think so too.

    FM: So, we think so.

    KK: We think so together, you know? We will have a good meeting tonight, to speak with our managers.

    Q: (Paolo Ianieri – La Gazzetta dello Sport) Soon?

    FM: Yeah. I think so!

    KK: I think so.

    Q: (Frederic Ferret – L’Equipe) Sebastian, your first title was won by you chasing; the second was you being chased. What is your view on what might be the third one?

    SV: I don’t know. I can answer your question when I’m fortunate enough to win for the third time. Whether that’s this year or not I don’t know. Like I said, I’m very careful. I think we had a long journey so far, and it’s been a tough year. Still there are many races to go so today I don’t want to talk about the championship. I know I finished in front of everyone today, I won the race, so I know that I scored more points than anybody else today but you don’t know what happens next weekend. I think we have a very tough remainder of the season with a very new calendar for all of us, with a lot of back-to-back races. Basically next week Korea, then two races, one in India and Abu Dhabi, and then obviously America and Sao Paulo. I think there’s still a long way to go and as I said, we have to focus on every single race and try to do our best and then we will see whether it’s good enough. The target is to do our maximum in those five races, then we calculate our points. If it’s enough, I think it’s fantastic. If it’s not then it’s not the fault of these five or six races that we will do at the end.

    Q: (Nobuaki Tadaki – Tokyo Sankei Shimbun) Kamui-san, in the closing laps, Jenson was catching you and the podium was getting closer too and your many fans were cheering you. Would you please explain how you were feeling in that situation?

    KK: Well, it was a difficult moment. I think my tyre situation was quite tough. We spent more than 20 laps on them, especially in the last three laps my rear tyres were really getting bad. Of course, I needed to push, I could not slow down to save the tyres. Whatever I had, like oversteer, I had to really push. In the end, into the last lap, I was pretty sure I could hold Jenson because normally, I think, after the main straight, there is no chance to overtake on this track. Apart from that, I think getting on the podium but I was focusing on every lap because if I missed one corner, we could easily have lost my position so I think it was a good challenge for myself. And I think Jenson was pretty fast in the last stint. Finally, we survived and let’s say it was a great job from the team, because they gave us great advice while I was driving, and I was pretty sure to hold him and I was very happy. Every fan was shaking their hands at me, especially on the last lap so it was fantastic.

    Q: (Kate Walker – Girl Racer) Sebastian, since you first started in F1 you’ve been breaking record after record. Today you equalled Fangio on wins, you now have 25 percent victories from your race starts. Do you find these constant statistics – the reminders of these statistics from the press a pressure at all or do you just forget about them and get on with the racing?

    SV: No, I think they’re very special. Obviously I’m not aware of those kind of numbers but I think that’s a special thing about Formula One. We had great drivers in the past, great champions and great characters, and I think for all of us… when I said earlier the last time I was with Kamui on the podium it was probably in Formula Three and both of us had a dream for Formula One but at the same time, you know you are a young guy, you are racing in Formula Three, you know it’s only one or two steps away but then it’s so far away still. There’s only a handful of us, 24 drivers in Formula One. I think first of all you feel extremely fortunate and proud to be one of them and to race a Formula One car, stand on the grid, winning a race, driving for championships. At the time we were racing in Formula Three this was so far away. Obviously I knew these kind of guys, when you talk about records. When I was young I was following Formula One and Michael most of the time. But you never dreamed… imagined yourself being one of those guys and breaking any kind of record, even if it’s just having the best start or something silly which would already make you extremely proud. I think it’s an honour and as I said yesterday already, a circuit like this, where you really get to feel what the cars can do… unfortunately it’s impossible to explain to you how it feels, so it’s only something we share amongst ourselves and I think it’s something we should not forget at any stage, and it’s something very very special. I think it’s one of the best jobs you can have in the world in my – in our – point of view, but then to be successful it obviously starts to feed on itself and makes it very very enjoyable.

    Q: (Ted Kravitz – Sky Sport) Sebastian, how important has qualifying been for you? You look at earlier on in the European season you’ve sometimes struggled to get even close to the front row. Now you’ve really been doing the job in qualifying. How key is that in the championship run-in, and also do you feel that this is finished business after this time last year when you were made to be conservative and not win for the championship?

    SV: I think it’s very important… at the beginning of the season I think there was a little bit of a trend of saying that qualifying was not that important this year because the races were very upside down. Some of the races changed completely in the last ten laps, but I think it still shows how important it is, to be well positioned after Saturday’s qualifying for Sunday’s race. If you then take an average of 15 races or whatever we’ve had so far and you see how important qualifying is still, I think it was important for us to make a step forward on Saturday. Still, I think it’s very easy this year to not have the perfect Saturday afternoon – I experienced it last time two weeks ago in Singapore, how quickly it can change. I had a very good car, I was happy and everything seemed to work as per plan in Q1 and Q2. Then you arrive in Q3 and you don’t understand why you can’t go quicker. This morning I read an article about Felipe, or Felipe did an interview and I think he experienced the same thing yesterday. We do so many new sets of tyres, so many qualifyings and it’s then difficult to say OK, I didn’t get the grip on that run and it just didn’t come together and that’s why I was lacking the speed… because you always want an explanation, you want to find the reason why you weren’t quick enough. It seems this year that cars are obviously much closer together and the window seems much narrower this year, to make the tyres work. You especially feel that in qualifying so that’s why things can change quickly. You might get a messy qualifying even after a brilliant start and then it might compromise your whole weekend, so that’s how quickly it can change.

    Q: (Marco Dell’Innocenti – La Gazzetta dello Sport) Sebastian, at the end of the race, they said to you to be careful and in spite of it you set the fastest lap. Are you sure that nothing could happen, and secondly did you race with the double DRS today?

    SV: Well, today in the race I wasn’t really using DRS, so it didn’t really matter. Fortunately I didn’t have to use it. I think we’ve made improvements over the last couple of races. As I said earlier, qualifying was a bit our weakness and has seemed a little bit better in the last races.

    At the end, I obviously wasn’t trying to take any unnecessary risks. I was trying to control the gap to Felipe. I think last year I was sometimes in a similar situation with a gap of five or six seconds and trying to control the race too much and it got very close towards the end of the race, so I didn’t want to lift at any stage. As I mentioned earlier, I didn’t want to lose the focus and concentration and in the end, obviously I thought to myself maybe it’s not the smartest thing but as I said, I wasn’t trying to do something stupid but you don’t get to race a car like that too often in your life, where you feel in control and the car is balanced and you’re just very happy with what the car does, and how it behaves, so I was able to put some reasonably quick lap times in at the end.

    Q: (Paolo Ianieri – La Gazzetta dello Sport) Felipe, was this the hardest one of the last six races for Ferrari on paper and what do you really have to do, where do have to concentrate the most to try to come back?

    FM: Are you talking hard for Ferrari or hard for me? Well, I would say our car was competitive here, not compared with the Red Bulls, but I think we had very good pace in the race. We had very good pace in practice as well. When I did a long run on Friday I was one of the quickest guys on the track, so I think the car was good here. I’m sure Fernando would have done a good job today. But anyway, we need to improve, we need to bring more new pieces, we need to push in that direction, to improve the car. Just going back to the qualifying, I didn’t have a good qualifying. Actually, I had a very good qualifying until the second set in Q2. Before that, I was always in the top five, top seven and I couldn’t use the tyres. As Sebastian said, sometimes you have that opportunity and you cannot use it, and I didn’t have any grip on the front tyres, and I think that was the biggest problem for my qualifying. I’m sure that starting in the top five would have been as the race was today, because I was fourth after corner three. Starting at the front is very important. The race is easier, you can control your tyres better and use the pace in a better direction. For sure, qualifying is very important.

    Q: (Tetsuya Otani – Car Graphic) Kamui, at the restart after the safety car, you had a pretty big gap in front of you, between Sebastian and you. What was the situation for you?

    KK: Actually I was stuck in gear. It was holding in first gear, it was already on the rev limiter and I couldn’t shift up to second and I need to brake, so I was really surprised. Anyway, I couldn’t fight with Sebastian. I didn’t mind, I couldn’t hold my position. He started pretty early, before, quite far away to the safety car line, so I had enough to recover. But it was a bit of a surprise.

    Ends

  • Grosjean is a `first-lap nutcase’, says Webber

    Suzuka, 7 Oct 2012: Mark Webber has branded Romain Grosjean a “first-lap nutcase” after the Lotus driver slammed into the back of his car at the start of the Japanese Grand Prix and denied the Red Bull driver the chance of a podium finish.

    Starting from second place, Webber made a poor getaway and was passed by Kamui Kobayashi. That left him battling Grosjean, and going into turn two Webber, in front, turned in. Grosjean, however, misjudged the Australian’s pace and collided with the rear of the Red Bull Racing car.

    The accident caused both drivers to head to the pits for repairs. Webber took on hard tyres and opted for a one-stop strategy that eventually allowed him to finish eighth and afterwards he hit out at the Lotus driver’s race craft.

    “I haven’t seen what happened at the start but the guys confirmed it was the first-lap nutcase again – Grosjean,” said Webber. “The rest of us are trying to fight for some decent results each weekend but he’s trying to get to the third corner as fast as he can at every race.

    “It makes it frustrating because a few big guys obviously suffered from that today. Maybe he needs another holiday,” Webber added, referring to the one-race ban Grosjean received for causing a first-corner accident in Belgium. “He needs to have a look at himself obviously. It was completely his fault. How many mistakes can you make, how many times can you make the same error with first-lap incidents? It’s quite embarrassing at this level for him.”

    Grosjean, meanwhile, was forced to retire late in the race and afterwards admitted that the incident with Webber was his fault.

    “Ever since I came back in Singapore my priority has been to be very cautious at the start, and I was watching Sergio [Pérez] on my left to make sure there was no contact with him. There was quite a big speed difference between me and Mark as I came into the first corner, which caught me by surprise and we collided. It was a stupid mistake,” he admitted.

    “Mark came to see me after the race and was obviously not happy, but I apologised and we have to move on,” he added. “We’ll sit down and look at things again before the next race to see what we can do to improve these situations. Not a good day, but we have to look ahead to Korea and a chance to make amends.”

    ends

    Mark Webber slams Grosjean, after the Frenchman creates havoc once again during the opening lap at Suzuka on 7 Oct 2012. Photo Red Bull Racing.

  • Flash: Vettel wins Japan GP

    Suzuka, 7 Oct 2012: “Unbelievable,” exclaimed reigning world champion Sebastian Vettel after a stunning lights-to-flag victory for Red Bull team but not before he made a few hearts to skip a beat with a fastest lap in the penultimate lap of the Formula One World Championship Grand Prix of Japan here on Sunday. The 25-year old who became the first driver to win back-to-back races this year after his Singapore win and is back as a strong contender to win his third straight World Championship.

    Vettel’s heroics and his fastest lap were greeted by a radio message to `calm’ down. The brilliant drive won the German 25 full points and with championship leader Fernando Alonso retiring with a rear puncture in the first lap with a `tiny-touch’ from Lotus’s Kimi Raikkonen, the Red Bull star closed the championship gap to four points and suddenly the Drivers’ championship is wide open with only five races remaining. Alonso leads with 194 points with Vettel on 190 with his fourth win this year. Kimi Raikkonen who is yet to win a race is on third with 157 points and his chances of being a dark horse are slowly vanishing unless he comes up with a victory soon.

    Force India’s Paul Di Resta finished 12th behind Schumacher but Nico Hulkenberg was seventh not to allow Sauber to take too much of a lead with Kobayashi’s well-deserved third place behind Felipe Massa’s who got some consolation for Ferrari. Jenson Button of McLaren pushed home hero Kobayashi in the last few laps but had to be content with a fourth place followed by former world champions Lewis Hamilton and Kimi Raikkonen in that order. Raikkonen is still in third place in the Driver’s championship with 157 points ahead of Hamilton on 152 points. Both have an outside chance to go after the title.

     The next race will be in Korea on October 14 before we move to the Indian GP at the Budh International Circuit on October 28.

    ends

    Sebastian Vettel in Japan. File photo by Red Bull Racing team from Saturday qualifier.

  • Vettel on final assault

    Suzuka, 6 Oct 2012: Reigning champion Sebastian Vettel took his fourth consecutive pole position at the Japanese Grand Prix and is all set to launch a final assault in the fly-away races to keep at a striking distance to table leader Fernando Alonso of Ferrari.  Alonso who won three races this year saw his lead reduce to 29 points after Vettel took his victory in Singapore to inch closer. Lewis Hamilton of McLaren who was in second place then had recorded a DNF to slide back.

    Sebastian Vettel took a dominant pole position at Suzuka and with Mark Webber  second he will be in a much better position to go for a kill. Red Bull recorded their first front-row lockout since last year’s Brazilian Grand Prix.  Alonso will be starting on P6 and with both McLarens much behind it would be a wonderful opportunity for the Red Bulls.

    After topping the timesheet in the final free practice session on Saturday morning, Vettel set about confirming his dominance in qualifying. He was content with a single run in Q1, and another in Q2. His first effort in Q3 set the benchmark of 1:30.839. It was not bettered and he duly collected his fourth consecutive pole at Suzuka.

    “I think we had a very, very smooth qualifying session, nearly perfect, we couldn’t really ask for more,” said the World Champion. “The car feels fantastic around here… and it came together nicely and now obviously we hope for a very good race tomorrow.”

    Alongside Vettel on the front row will be team-mate Mark Webber, the first time the two Red Bulls have locked out the positions this year.

    Sebastian Vettel takes fourth consecutive pole in Japan on Saturday 6 Oct 2012. Red Bull photo

    Jenson Button qualified third but will drop to eighth after taking a grid penalty for a gearbox change in his McLaren. Kamui Kobayashi qualified fourth for a resurgent Sauber, Romain Grosjean was fifth in his Lotus, the second Sauber of Sergio Pérez was sixth, Fernando Alonso a disappointed seventh for Ferarri, Kimi Räikkönen eighth in the second Lotus, Lewis Hamilton a surprising ninth for McLaren, later admitting he made the wrong choice on setup. Nico Hülkenberg qualified tenth, not setting a Q3 time. He also will receive a demotion after a gearbox change.

    Q1 saw many of the front runners stick with the slower, hard tyre but both Lotus and Sauber decided on safety first and did a run on the soft compound. It left Romain Grosjean in P1 at the end of the session. Of those eliminated, Bruno Senna was the midfielder in the unwelcome 18th position.  The Williams driver was heard to complain over the radio that he’d been blocked on a flying lap by Toro Rosso’s Jean-Eric Vergne. The stewards concurred and penalized Vergne three places.

    “It was a frustrating qualifying session as I was held up on my final timed lap at the end of Q1 and couldn’t post the time that I wanted,” said Senna. “However, it’s a long race tomorrow and although this track is difficult to overtake at, we’ve been in this position before and so we’ll give it our best shot to score some points in the race.”

    Behind Senna, Heikki Kovalainen was 19th for Caterham, followed by Timo Glock’s Marussia, Pedro de la Rosa was 21st for HRT, followed by Pic in the second Marussia, Petrov’s Caterham and Narain Karthikeyan for HRT.

    Session two saw the soft tyre come out in earnest as the battle for the top-10 shoot-out intensified. Vettel quickly laid a marker of 1:31.501 with his first run and as those around him failed to make a significant impact on that time, the champion decided to stay in the garage. It was a similar story for Webber and Button, neither of whom took a second run in Q2.

    The big casualty of Q2 was Ferrari’s Felipe Massa, who had been third quickest in FP3. The Brazilian missed out on Q3 by just two-hundredths of a second. Behind him was Paul di Resta for Force India twelfth and Michael Schumacher 13th. Schumacher will drop down the order, having a ten-place grid penalty from Singapore. Pastor Maldonado was 14th, Nico Rosberg 15th and the Toro Rossos of Daniel Ricciardo and Vergne 16th and 17th respectively.

    Q3 looked like being a straight fight between the Red Bulls. Vettel’s lap gave him the early advantage but Webber was denied a chance to respond when Kimi Räikkönen spun at Spoon in the dying seconds of the session. Obeying the yellow flags, Webber lifted, and Vettel was able to abandon his own lap.

    “I had to back-off for the lights and the flags,” said the Australian. “There was no car when I got there, so it was very, very close. Obviously [Button] was behind me and I saw he was still committed to his lap with the DRS etc., so obviously the lights were just cleared for him.”

    ends

  • Vettel happy with the car, hopes for a good race

    Suzuka, 6 Oct 2012: Once again Sebastian Vettel of Red Bull Racing proved his worth taking the pole at the Japan GP.

    The top three drivers attended the FIA Press Conference after qualification included: 1 – Sebastian VETTEL (Red Bull Racing), 2 – Mark WEBBER (Red Bull Racing) and 3 – Jenson BUTTON (McLaren)

    TV UNILATERAL

    Sebastian, your fourth consecutive pole here, you must love this place.

    Sebastian VETTEL: Yeah, it’s not bad. I’m very, very happy with today’s result, I think we had a very, very smooth qualifying session, nearly perfect, so we couldn’t really ask for more. The car felt fantastic from the start. We didn’t really have the best start to the weekend; yesterday morning I wasn’t very happy but then we seemed to get it better every time we go out, so very pleased with the result, very happy, the car feels fantastic around here and I was able to pick up a little bit overnight and it came together nicely and now obviously we hope for a very good race tomorrow.

    It’s the 50th anniversary for Suzuka and it’s a circuit that everyone seems to adore driving around. What’s the best part of the circuit?

    SV: I think you have to say the first sector, up the Esses, obviously we don’t have that kind of combination in Formula One elsewhere. I think it’s unique. I think this place in general is quite special with all the fans around the track. When I was walking into the garage you can obviously see Turn One, Two, Three and the grandstands mostly and you see a lot of people. It’s just, for us, nice to see the excitement people have for Formula One and the support we get. I think they are very crazy – in a positive way – so it’s nice coming here and wonderful to drive the circuit. The rest of the track is very enjoyable: The Degners and then Spoon is very special: you always lose the car a little bit, just when you come off. The lap I had in qualifying in the end was just right in those places, so I was very happy.

    Mark, great result for the team, Red Bull Racing, you seem to have made real progress.

    Mark WEBBER: Yeah, it’s been a good weekend for us so far. Seb and I had a clean run in Q3 when it mattered at the start there. And two pretty big laps from both of us. Obviously Seb got me a bit, so that was a good lap from him. But to be this much further up for us, obviously we’ve had a rough run with qualifying of late, particularly my side with penalties and bits and bobs. It just makes the race much more difficult: you have to start doing wacky strategies and stuff like that. So, I am happy to be on the front row and looking forward to a good result tomorrow. Like you say, for the team it’s just a great tonic for them, at this point in the championship to have the cars towards the front again.

    Jenson, third in qualifying but obviously with a five-place grid penalty.

    Jenson BUTTON: That hurts a little bit. Today was good. This morning in practice I wasn’t that happy but we made some good improvements for qualifying. For me both laps I did in Q3 were good. I was happy with the laps, really enjoyed driving around here, it’s always great with low fuel and new tyres – new soft tyres. It was a lot of fun but we’re just not quick enough. I wouldn’t know what to put my finger on, where that four-tenths is. A good qualifying for us, just a pity we’re starting back in eighth. This place is such a nice place to fight for a win; it’s going to be very difficult for me tomorrow but never say never. There’s always possibilities and I think we’ll have a good race car also.

    PRESS CONFERENCE

    So Sebastian, I guess one of the main factors tomorrow is going to be all about tyres, have you got enough sets left? New tyres, new softs?

    SV: Yeah, obviously we didn’t finish the run in Q3, so saved a little bit there, saved a lap, didn’t push to the end. Before that we had a very smooth session in qualifying in general. We saved as many tyres as we can and I think we have a pretty good car, the balance felt very good in qualifying so I was very happy with the laps I had every time and yeah, all in all I think we should have a good race car as well tomorrow. I think we were able to improve the car from yesterday to today which also helps us on the long run and with tyre consumption. But you never know until you find out. I think we’ve seen a lot of races this year where probably we expected something, and people expected something, other teams had expectations but the last ten laps everything turned around. We have to stay focussed and see what we get from start to finish.

    I guess you were OK in traffic, because particularly in Q1 a lot of people were complaining.

    SV: I was very lucky, I saw a couple of incidents on the screen but I think we found a good gap, and I needed only one lap, which obviously helps. So that was good – it doesn’t always go that way. So, it was helping to save tyres, I’m not sure if we’re going to use that one again – but still it’s good to get through without any trouble.

    Mark, on that last lap, did you have yellow flags at Spoon?

    MW: Yeah, I had to back-off for the lights and the flags. There was no car there when I got there, so it was very, very close. Obviously JB was behind me and I saw he was still committed to his lap with the DRS etc., so obviously the lights were just cleared for him. Would have been nice to have a look at the last chicane, would have liked to have got that a little bit better. I was down a sniff into Spoon but… the hairpin was tricky for us today, trying to get the hairpin a little bit better would have been nice but in general the first sector was very strong, and for both of us to have a strong car here, when it really mattered, to put ourselves right towards the front of the grid, on the front row, is something we’re really, really happy with. We can really race from there and have a good grand prix tomorrow.

    Jenson, is it a bit worrying, the progress they’ve made?

    JB: I think we expected them to be quick. Their race pace especially has been quick over the last few races. Qualifying hasn’t gone their way and Seb looked really quick in Singapore but it wasn’t there, it didn’t seem, at the end. But their pace is very good here. The balance for me felt great, I felt really happy with the car but I just… that was it. Y’know, I felt I got everything out of it on both laps but still quite a long way off these two but a long way in front of everyone else. So, third place would have been nice to start the race because I think with this race you really don’t know what’s going to happen with tyre strategies and degradation and what-have-you. A lot of people are struggling with blistering. But I’m starting down in eighth; it’s not the easiest place to start from. But I still think we can really race well from there. There’s an unusual group of cars in front. So hopefully we can not just get good points – you never know, maybe we can still challenge these two.

    QUESTIONS FROM THE FLOOR

    Q:  (Frederic Ferret – L’Equipe) Question to Seb and Mark: do you have any explanation why you succeed so well in Suzuka?

    MW: In years gone by, I think we’ve had cars that have really enjoyed this type of venue, whether RB5 a little bit, RB6 especially was very strong. We had a very tough Grand Prix with Fernando that year – Seb and I, the three of us, a good race in 2010. JB was quick last year, there was a tight field last year but in general Silverstone, Suzuka, these type of circuits, you just have to look at Adrian’s (Newey’s) record on some of these tracks. You go back to the Williamses with Mansell, Hakkinen, McLarens blah blah blah. He’s always been strong on these type of tracks, so that’s good for us but it’s always challenging, and we’ve had to work like hell to get the car in the window where we would like it and now, this weekend, it seems pretty good so we would be very very disappointed if we weren’t competitive here because, as you say, it should be a track where we can charge for very good results. I think, basically, to answer your question it’s in the DNA of our car, it’s in the DNA of the philosophy of our car. That’s it.

    SV: As Mark said, we worked very hard to get it to where it is now. I think we were struggling this year at the beginning of the year in places, in corners where usually, traditionally, we were competitive, so we didn’t really know what to expect here this weekend but sector one seemed very competitive for both of us all weekend so I think that’s an indication whether the car is happy around here or not. I’m happy we are back to our shape that we had over the last couple of years around here.

    Q: (Dan Knutson – Honorary) Michael Schumacher has announced his retirement; could I have your thoughts please?

    SV: I think it’s a loss for Formula One. It’s a shame, obviously, I think it was good fun to have him around, race against him and joke with him, so I think I will miss that but obviously you can understand his decision and, as I said, we will miss him, but obviously wish him all the best for his future, and hope we still have him around somehow in some function.

    MW: I think it’s pretty obvious that there were two different careers: one phenomenal one and then in the next one the car, everything together didn’t get close to what he did in the past, and that’s how sensitive Formula One can be. He knows that, he took a new challenge on – which you have to take your hat off to – because he didn’t want to be back at home just doing the groceries, and he was also very hungry to challenge himself again. We saw some flash points of what he’s capable of, but he also knows himself, he’s seen some flash points which is the right time for him to stop, so move on.

    JB: Yes, wonderfully put by both parties. I think the last three years, we’ve all been wondering and watching to see what happened to his second career and it wasn’t like the first one, but I think it just shows and proves how amazing the first one was because he hasn’t done badly. It is a loss for the sport, having a seven time World Champion and someone that’s achieved more than anyone else and will for a very long time leaving the sport. He feels that it’s the right time to leave, and good luck to him.

    Q: (Frederic Ferret – L’Equipe) Sebastian, now there are only two people in front of you for the number of pole positions: Michael and Ayrton Senna. Do you think you can catch them?

    SV: As Jenson just said, I think Michael has a lot of the records that will probably stay there forever. You don’t really jump into the car thinking about those sort of things. Obviously, when you end up here and end up with people telling you some things it’s nice for all of us but it’s not the number one motivation that makes you jump into the car. I enjoy what I do a lot and on tracks like this, as Jenson said, on soft tyres, low fuel, you really feel what the cars can achieve and I think our job becomes very very special and unique in the world. That’s what I enjoy most. Obviously if you’re successful then it feeds on itself. I think they are quite a long way ahead as well, so we will see. We have to work, obviously, focus step by step, and not think about those kind of things.

    File picture of Sebastian Vettel courtesy Red Bull F1 pool content.

    Ends