Todt remains confident

Ferrari boss Jean Todt remains upbeat about his team’s chances of winning the World Championship, despite a disappointing race in Hungary, where Felipe Massa finished seventh and Michael Schumacher eighth.

The Bridgestone-shod team lies nine points behind Renault in the Constructors’ standings, and Michael Schumacher lies 10 behind Fernando Alonso in the Drivers’ table.

“It was a very difficult race on Sunday,” says Todt. “We were quick once the track had started to dry out, but we were slow when it was wet; we need to analyse why this was the case.

“There is now one less race until the end of the year, so there’s been a very small variation in the points. It could have been a much bigger variation against us, so it could have been much more disappointing than it was.”

There is a testing ban prior to the next race, the Turkish Grand Prix on 27 August. Bridgestone and their five teams have to base their preparations around information gathered at the last test prior to the German Grand Prix, as well as data gathered at the race last year, when it was a new venue on the calendar.