It's our job to always improve - Nielsen

One week ago in Shanghai, Fernando Alonso lost around ten seconds at his second pit-stop. The nut of the right rear wheel fell from the pneumatic wheelgun: it’s a rare incident, but which can have serious consequences. In order to minimise the risks of a recurrence, the team has reshuffled its organisation for Suzuka.

“Some people have seen the decision as a direct result of the problem in China, and that is to give it too much importance,” explained Sporting Manager Steve Nielsen. “People should realise that we have made 19 changes to our pit-stop organisation this year. It is a normal process: we are always looking to do a better job at every race. The team constantly analyses its performance, and improves it, because that’s our job.”

So did the team find the reason for the problem in Shanghai? “Of course,” concludes Steve. “We see during our practices that you can sometimes lose a wheel nut, and it’s the same for all the teams. They are designed to fit the wheel gun as well as possible, but we can never eliminate 100% of the risks.”