Q+A Bob Bell
Bob Bell, Technical Director Chassis with the Renault F1 Team is previewing the European Grand Prix at the Nürbrugring this weekend. Here follows the interview with the Technical Director of the World Champion.
"We are delighted with our results so far, but I think the points tally is only part of the story. We are plainly in a very strong position, and in terms of pure competitiveness, I think we are stronger at this stages than we were in 2005."
What was the mood after Imola, having come second to Ferrari?"It was a contrast to last year, when we won. In 2005, the team was on a high after four consecutive wins, but there was a real concern about the tyres after that race. This year, Michelin did a strong job, and those worries were not there. The performance of the car in the race, was such that we were not at a disadvantage relative to our competitors. We are in better shape, and the mood reflects that."
Other teams have been talking a lot about development, while Renault seems to have been rather discreet in this area. How is the development going?"We are doing the normal things, and putting new parts on the car at every race. The work at the factory is diligent, the level of performance is increasing every weekend. The lap-times show that, but equally, we are not taking any advantage for granted."
This is the second year of stable regulations – is it harder to find improvements?"Yes, and I think we are seeing that up and down the grid. You can see in the visual evolution of all the cars, that people are finding it harder to make big gains, and there are more small developments going on the cars. That’s normal when the regulations are stable."
Yet the lap speeds are similar to last year with 200 bhp less, much of which is down to the tyres. After seeing Ferrari bounce back in Imola, what is your opinion on the balance of power between the tyre manufacturers?"Overall, I think the advantage will remain with Michelin this year. Ferrari are clearly very quick, and you can never write off Michael or the team. They will be pushing us all year long. But from the next races, I expect the balance to swing back in Michelin’s favour."
Looking at the R26, how did the team maintain its advantage from 2005"The R26 is a logical development of last year’s car, and we chipped away at the basic factors that improve performance: we made parts lighter and stiffer, and tried to improve the driveability too. We have pushed our processes hard, to improve the efficiency of the wind-tunnel. But there’s no magic to it. You have to work hard on the basics, and take no advantage for granted."
Yet the engine is brand new. Many teams spoke of a radical change from the engine, yet at Renault, the emphasis was on continuity…"Viry had a very calm approach to the new engine regulations, and they have produced an excellent engine. There was no sea change from V10 to V8, just a rational approach to the engineering challenge. It was a matter-of-fact programme that has delivered the results we wanted."
So what is the secret of the R26?"I am not sure there is one! What we do have, though, is a very benign, consistent car. It was something we concentrated on from 2004 to 2005, and have built on again this year. We work very hard to improve the feel and driveability of the car, to give the drivers total confidence to put it right on the limit, lap after lap. We know that with the R26, the level of performance on a single lap, can be maintained consistently on a 20-lap run."
Looking to the coming pair of races in Germany and Spain, what are you expecting?"I suspect they will be Michelin races, and that our main competition will come from the Michelin teams, which means McLaren and Honda. We are not writing off Ferrari, of course, but we have tested strongly in Barcelona, and the car was very quick at the Nürburgring last year."
Finally, what will be the team’s approach?"We have to go out there and be aggressive. The car is strong and both drivers will be using the uprated B-spec engine. There is no change in our approach: we will be racing to win."
