“The 2006 Brazilian Grand Prix is likely to be the last race for Cosworth as a Formula One engine supplier," head of F1 race engineering Simon Corbyn admits, "The objective from the outset of the CA2006 programme was to deliver the benchmark new generation V8 Formula One engine, and we believe we achieved that in terms of engine performance, reliability and also engineering support to Williams
F1. However, Mark will start the weekend with a fresh Series 6 engine and will run an engine duty cycle specifically for Brazil which will allow the engine to run at 20,000rpm for the entire race. Cosworth will be going all out to add to our tally of 176 wins in 39 seasons of
Formula One.”
For Webber, the race will mark the end of two disappointing years with a team he always dreamed of joining, before he 'returns' to
Red Bull Racing.
“It’s been a long and tough season for everyone at
Williams but, with one event remaining, we’ll be doing our utmost to extract the best possible result from the package we have," the Australian says, "Interlagos will mark my last race for the team and, of course, it would be nice to sign off with a strong result for the boys.”
Team-mate
Nico Rosberg will be making his first appearance at Interlagos, and admits that he ahs a lot tom learn. However, that was the case in Bahrain at the start of the year, and the German left his debut with a point and fastest lap...
"The Interlagos track is completely new for me, so I'm going to need to learn it fast," the inaugural GP2 champion confirmed, "I will probably be at the track on Wednesday to have a close look at it with our engineers but, performance-wise, it’s important that we build on the progress that we made in Japan. I hope that the
Bridgestone tyres are as strong in Brazil as they were in Suzuka.“
Honda Racing F1 – Rubens Barrichello (#11), Jenson Button (#12):
As well as being the home grand prix for
Rubens Barrichello, the Brazilian GP weekend will also be particularly poignant for the Honda team as it marks the final race for former team owner and title sponsor British American Tobacco, after nine years of involvement in Formula One. With that as added motivation, the team hopes to end the season on a high despite being mired in no man's land in fourth place in the constructors’ championship.
