FW:
We worry about the amount of points we collect at the end of every year or have collected. That makes such a difference to the money, of course, and everyone’s morale and the sponsors.
Q:
Norbert, we saw
Heikki Kovalainen have the accident at the Spanish Grand Prix. You have seen a lot of drivers coming back from big accidents in the past. How do you feel he has come out of it?
Norbert Haug:
I think he is fine and that for us, and I think for the F1 community, is the best message of today. He came and settled into the car and just continued like he drove the car before – very focussed. He had a smile on his face this morning which was very positive. He passed the test yesterday in a very good manner, so we are all very pleased that he is back and can do a very good job.
Q:
From an engine supplier’s point of view how much development are you still able to do?
NH:
Very, very limited after the start of the season really – just some stuff around the engine and the outside, but not the inside. As the expression says, it is basically frozen.
Q:
That was not an expression you liked.
NH:
Not at the beginning, that’s right, probably there could be a better one. But in the meantime everybody knows what we want to describe by saying that.
Q:
Do you think the disparity has grown in terms of the power of the engines?
NH:
I think it is difficult to judge really as it is the whole package at the end of the day. If you look at the data and the top speeds and lap times, if anything, it has closed together. I think it is a really, really intense battle – much more so than in the past. F1 was never easy but it is really unpredictable and if we make a mistake we may end up tenth on the grid or whatever. It is really closed together and if you look at the fastest race laps of the recent races, even in Barcelona which is a very challenging track, I think the whole pack came together in a very impressive way. It is the end of a period with a comparable set of rules and that’s always the case, but I think F1 has never been more challenging as it is now and you can name a lot of teams that are capable and invest a lot of money and have good people. But it is a very intense fight.
Q:
To all of you. Your feelings about the loss of the
Super Aguri team.
RB:
I think it is always a great shame to lose any team from
F1, we cannot really afford to be losing teams. I think they showed a lot of character and a lot effort in the past couple of years but circumstances prevailed and they were not able to carry on. But it is a shame that they were not able to find the funding to continue.
