Difficult race for BMW
BMW Sauber F1 Team driver Robert Kubica scored four points by finishing fifth in the French Grand Prix and had to hand over the lead in the drivers’ championship to race winner Felipe Massa (Ferrari). Nick Heidfeld didn’t make it into the points this time as he came 13th in Magny-Cours. In the constructors’ championship the BMW Sauber F1 Team remains second.
Robert Kubica: 5th
BMW Sauber F1.08-03 / BMW P86/8
Fastest Lap: 1:17.172 min on lap 16 (4th fastest overall)
“We didn’t score as many points as we wanted to here in Magny-Cours. Over the whole weekend we tried to minimize the problems we had, and we knew the race would be decided on the first lap. At the start I tried to overtake Jarno Trulli, but did not manage it. I tried again in turn 5 on the outside, but it did not work out. In the end I have to say I am pretty happy. I finished fifth, only 2 seconds away from the podium. We now have to analyse what happened here and see how we can improve for the next race.”
Nick Heidfeld: 13th
BMW Sauber F1.08-05 / BMW P86/8
Fastest Lap: 1:17.716 min on lap 46 (9th fastest overall)
“Having finished 13th is certainly a disappointing result. I lost two positions right at the start and could not get them back. Now we will concentrate on next week’s test in Silverstone and the forthcoming race there.”
Mario Theissen, BMW Motorsport Director: “The race reflected yesterday’s Qualifying. Over the entire weekend here our package did not work perfectly. Robert was stuck in traffic on his second stint and, therefore, lost his chance of a podium finish. Nick lost two positions at the start. Neither driver ever had a realistic chance to attack. We had no technical problems, and the result is four points for our team. From now on we will prepare for the Silverstone race.”
Willy Rampf, Technical Director: “When deciding on the race strategy, we focused on Jarno Trulli and Fernando Alonso. Our goal was to put Robert into a position to finish on the podium. However, in the second stint it was clear this would not work. He got stuck behind Trulli, who had a higher fuel load and was able to stay out longer than him. At the same time, Heikki Kovalainen was able to close the gap to Robert and pass him during his second pit stop. Overall, our pace was not good enough during this weekend. However, we were able to defend second in the Constructors' Championship.”
