Fernando, you had a difficult afternoon in Monaco – can you bounce back to form at the Nuerburgring? Why
not? Last year, we finished fourth and fifth there so with the R25, there is no reason why we should not be fighting for the podium.
The car had a brand new aero package in Monaco, and I don't think we really saw the benefits of it there – at a more normal
circuit, like Nuerburgring, we definitely will. It will be important for us to be back fighting for the top positions.
What
about the circuit – what is important to go well there? From our point of view, it has never been a perfect track, so it
will be important to prepare well and have a trouble-free approach to the race. The place where you can really make up time on the
lap is in the first sector, under braking and in the slow corners, but you have also have every type of corner at the Nuerburgring
– and they are all important. Renault has not been on the podium there, and I think we have a good shot at it this year.
Giancarlo
Fisichella
Fisico, how do you rate the Nuerburgring as a circuit? It is not the most exciting circuit that we go
to, but I still expect the R25 to feel good and suit the track. You need a lot of downforce to feel confident with the car, and good
traction and rear-end stability in the new section through the first sector. The other factor of course is the weather – even in
summer, it can be very cold, and the conditions are very quick to change in the mountains. It is important to be able to adapt to
whatever the weather throws at you.
Monaco was a frustrating race for you, finishing twelfth. Do you think things will
change around at the Nuerburgring? Monaco was very tough – the car was really undriveable in the last twenty laps and I
have never had such a difficult race. After a race like that, it is hard to be totally confident for a Grand Prix just one week
later, but I believe the Nuerburgring should be much better for us. It will be a much more normal circuit for the car in terms of
its characteristics, and even in Monaco for the first half of the race, we saw that our car was among the quickest in the field, as
it has been all year. I think we can come back strongly this weekend and show our true level of performance.
The Executive
Director of Engineering Pat Symonds looks back at a frustrating race for the team in Monaco - but remains optimistic for this weekend at the
Nuerburgring.
Pat, what went wrong for you in Monaco? PS: The problem we experienced in the race was extreme
rear tyre wear. We are fully aware that rivals using softer tyres than ours did not have this problem, and therefore it must be
something in the way our car is using its tyres. The problem is amplified at a circuit such as Monaco with the heavy demands it
places on the rear tyres, and its magnitude simply caught us out last weekend.
Can you say a word about the drivers'
performance in the race? PS: I think they both did an astounding job – to bring both cars to the finish in those
circumstances, rather than ending up in the barriers, is a significant achievement. There is no criticism whatsoever of either of
them. Fisi certainly suffered from having to wait during his stop, and his tyre wear was even more severe than his team-mate's.
Fernando defended his position with extreme skill to finish fourth.
Is this performance a worry for the next race in the
Nuerburgring? PS: I don't think so – the Nuerburgring is poles apart from Monaco in the characteristics it demands of the
car, and I see no reason at all why we should not be extremely competitive there, as we have been at every other circuit this
season. We learned a lesson in Monaco, and we will be looking at how we can begin applying solutions to the problems from the next
race onwards.
