Good result important for the whole team - Alonso
The ING Renault F1 Team prepares for the ninth round of the 2008 Formula 1 World Championship: the British Grand Prix, which marks the mid-point of the season. Fernando Alonso believes that a good result at Silverstone will be very important for the whole team as this is the second home race of the French outfit.
"Yes, after the qualifying session I thought that for the first time this year we could aim for the podium, so I was understandably disappointed with the final result. My race didn’t start well as I lost some ground, and after that I was not able to find the pace I had shown on Saturday. The car had good straight-line speed, but I still couldn’t make any progress. I scored a point, which is something, and I’m determined to do better this coming weekend."
How are you approaching the British Grand Prix this weekend?"I am positive because we saw in Magny-Cours that we are making progress, although we know there is still a lot to do. We did three days of testing at Silverstone last week with Nelson when we worked on the set-up of the car, tested some new parts, evaluated the tyres, and so we now have a good feeling for the track. That will certainly help for the first practice session and for improving the car throughout the weekend."
The factory in Enstone is less than an hour down the road from Silverstone…"After Magny-Cours, this is another home race for us and there will be lots of members of the team there to support us on Sunday. A good result there will be very important for the whole team."
What can you tell us about the Silverstone circuit?"It really is a classic circuit on the F1 calendar. The track is very demanding for the cars, just as it is for the drivers, especially through the quick corners where the chassis needs to be well balanced. It’s also quite a physical circuit with lots of G-forces for the driver to cope with. A good lap at Silverstone is always exhilarating because the car and the driver must both be at their optimum."
