With no testing responsibilities prior to Shanghai, both Webber and Rosberg travelled to China for a busy week of marketing engagements, and the three FW28s present in Shanghai will bear the logos of the Royal Bank of China as well as regular backer RBS.
“I like going to China - it’s a very nice city and the track is amazing, probably one of the best we compete at all season," Webber commented, "A Tilke-designed circuit, it’s inevitably very demanding for the drivers and the car, but I enjoy driving there. The race only made its debut on the calendar in 2004, but the fans are getting more and more interested in
Formula One, which is great because it’s such an important market for us. It wasn’t a great result for the team in Monza, so we’ll be looking to finish the season with some points scoring finishes.”
The test team, meanwhile, completed a four-day session at
Silverstone, with Alex Wurz and Narain Karthikeyan sharing driving duties. Using an FW28A chassis, fitted with the regular Cosworth engine, Wurz concentrated on testing a new aero package that will be rolled out for the final rounds of the season, while his Indian colleague carried out the first track test of the Toyota-powered interim
Williams FW28B, completing 745km and experiencing only minor teething problems. All three FW28s will benefit from new front wings and bargeboards in China, as well as other minor bodywork modifications.
“I haven’t raced at Shanghai before, so I obviously don’t know the track at all, but I went to the race there last year, just to see how a grand prix weekend goes in preparation for this year, and thought that the track looks great," Rosberg said, "I’ll have my work cut out on Friday to learn the circuit as quickly as I can but, overall, I’m looking forward to driving there and I’m really hoping we will have a good weekend.”
Honda Racing F1 - Rubens Barrichello (#11), Jenson Button (#12):
Although the Italian Grand Prix began in disastrous fashion for the Honda team, with
Anthony Davidson suffering two engine failures in just eight laps with the 2008-spec V8, and race regulars Jenson Button and Rubens Barrichello having to revert to their 2006-spec units as a precaution, two points finishes provided some succour at the end.
