Fresh from its North American adventure, the F1 circus this week returns to Europe for the French Grand Prix at Magny-Cours. The
circuit, which began hosting the race in the Nineties, is based close to the town of Nevers, but is more often described as being
located well within the French equivalent of 'the middle of nowhere.' Until the grand prix fraternity arrives, that is. Panasonic
Toyota Racing will have something for the local fans and media to cheer as Olivier Panis will be making a special one-off appearance
in place of Ricardo Zonta as the third driver for Friday practice. Panis, who knows Magny-Cours better than any driver in the sport
thanks to his time based there with the old Ligier team, will use that experience to help the team prepare for the weekend. Race
drivers Jarno Trulli and Ralf Schumacher will hope to benefit and make sure the team leaves with yet more points.
NEVERS
NEVERS LAND Jarno Trulli has a long association with France after spending so much time at French teams during his career. He
now hopes Toyota's return to Europe will result in a return to the points after his pole position in the USA.
Jarno Trulli
(Car 16): "I enjoy racing in France and Magny-Cours is the definition of a technical F1 circuit, with pretty much every kind
of corner that you can get. There are some fast chicanes with quick changes of direction, there are slow hairpins and fast sweeping
bends. That means that it is an enjoyable circuit for driving an F1 car. The track is famous for having one of the smoothest
surfaces on the F1 calendar. That makes life slightly more comfortable than usual within the cockpit and means we can push the ride
heights pretty low. The car itself needs to be able to react well to every type of corner. You need responsive handling and a good
change of direction, especially through the faster sections, which are the most crucial parts for improving the lap time. I've spent
a lot of time working for French teams in my career and I also speak French so I have a lot of support in France and it almost feels
like another home race. I'm fairly optimistic and I hope to be able to come away with another good points finish to keep our season
going well."
BACK ON COURS Ralf Schumacher will return to action at Magny-Cours after missing out on the US
Grand Prix as a precaution due to his crash in Friday practice. The German skipped last week's Jerez test and is now back to full
fitness.
Ralf Schumacher (Car 17): "I'm fully recovered from my accident during Friday practice for the US
Grand Prix and I'm looking forward to getting back to racing in France. Magny-Cours is not my favourite track of the year, but the
French Grand Prix is one of six races which I have won in my career so far. I also took my first F1 pole there in 2001. I did not
take part in last year's event, so this week's race will mark my first trip since I won in 2003. After Canada and Indy, two low
downforce circuits, Magny-Cours marks a return to higher downforce levels. The track does not pose any unique challenges to the
driver, but it is characterised by its extremely smooth asphalt. This naturally means a less bumpy ride for us drivers in the race,
but it also means that the performance of the track can differ considerably depending on the weather and track temperature. It is
hard to know how we will perform there this year, but our overall package is still competitive with half of the season now gone, so
we will certainly be looking for more points."
JULY: THE FOUR This weekend's French Grand Prix is the first of
four in July, a month of frenzied activity unprecedented in F1. That makes life especially hard for the teams, but Toyota is ready
for the challenge.
Mike Gascoyne - Technical Director Chassis: "This is the start of the most intense month we
have seen in F1, with events in France, Britain, Germany and Hungary throughout July. Such time constraints add extra pressure on to
the entire team. The race personnel barely have time to find their feet as they move around Europe, and of course the staff at the
factory in Cologne must work at quadruple the rate to develop our TF105. We are prepared for this challenge, though, and will not
get complacent about our level of performance. We have a car that is capable of finishing every race on the podium, so we have to
head to the French Grand Prix with that in mind. Magny-Cours will see us revert back to a standard set-up with fairly high levels of
downforce. There are two medium-high speed chicanes which demand a good change of direction from the car. We have to balance the
wing level to make that possible while retaining good straightline speed into the Adelaide hairpin. It's not easy to pass at
Magny-Cours, so we have to again look at qualifying in the top 6 or 8 and then implement a strong race strategy to make up further
positions during the pit stops. Podiums are by no means out of the question and they should be our target as we head into the second
half of this gruelling 19-race season."
