Post-race press conference - Chinese GP - Pt.2.

Drivers: Michael Schumacher (Ferrari), Fernando Alonso (Renault), Giancarlo Fisichella (Renault)

Questions from the floor:

Q: (Anthony Rowlinson ?EUR" Autosport)
Michael, after a race like that, why are you retiring?

Michael Schumacher:
I explained myself pretty extensively at Monza, and it is very nice that you ask the question. It is better to go maybe when you are still asking the question than that you hint that it is time to go...

Q: (Ranran Li ?EUR" Xinmin Evening News)
Someone said that Shanghai is an unlucky place for you ?EUR" do you still think that? What do you think of Shanghai now and will you return as an ordinary visitor in the future?

MS:
Indeed, the last two years weren?EUR(TM)t very good for us, we were not - lucky is not the right word because Rubens won the first year and I had a bit of unlucky moments there losing time and last year we were just simply not competitive and it was very straightforward. I thought yesterday that the way the weekend was going it may be one of the unlucky ones again when things don?EUR(TM)t work out for you, but obviously the pendulum of luck has swung the other way around and hit me and I am naturally very delighted about it for having another win for the championship and for the conditions altogether, just beautiful, and particularly if you don?EUR(TM)t expect to win a race and just think to keep the damage as small as possible. Concerning Shanghai, an interesting city, very interesting people and I would like to express a lot of thanks to all the fans here because they have been extremely nice and enthusiastic all the week I have been here, very nice to see, in particular the tribune at the end of the straight, a beautiful atmosphere over there with all the pictures of my history, my family and everybody. Beautiful. Thanks a lot for this. If I come back again, we?EUR(TM)ll see. It is possible in a way. But I don?EUR(TM)t know yet.

Q: (Mathias Brunner ?EUR" Motorsport Aktuell)
Fernando, I am puzzled by the time you lost after the first stop and how you lost so much time to your team-mate Giancarlo ?EUR" can you explain what happened?

Fernando Alonso:
We changed the front tyres at the pit-stop and the other guys left the same tyres at the pit-stop so when I went back to the track for the second stint the front tyres were graining and it was too dry for the inter, so you need to wear them to take the groove out of the tyre to become quicker and quicker and to find grip and that normally takes in dry conditions that we were more or less running four or five laps to completely slick the tyre and be quick. Today, it took eight or nine and, obviously, it was too many. Giancarlo and Michael came very quick.

Q: (Mathias Brunner)
So you don?EUR(TM)t think there was any tyre-pressure related problem?

FA:
Oh, no. You take the gamble. I think I stopped two laps earlier than Fisi. We changed the front tyres because the left front looks a little bit scary to do another 20 laps and, after my first two laps with the times so high, I think the team decided to leave the same tyres for Fisi because the option was not working very well.

Q: (F1 Express Shanghai)
Fernando, you are one of the new directors of the GPDA, do you think you will work well with Mark and Ralf when you next see them?

FA:
I think so. I think we have 22 drivers and we all have a lot of respect for each other and in terms of safety that is the GPDA main thing I think all 22 drivers work perfectly okay and there is only one direction to go and to promote safety for drivers in Formula One so to work with Mark and Ralf will be good.

Q: (Tony Dodgins - Autosport)
Fernando, did you push too hard in the first stint?

FA:
Yes, I had to push hard because I had a 20-seconds lead so, for sure, I was quicker than other people on the track and you push the tyres more. And there was a small safety issue, also, I think looking back now if we had left the tyre, nothing happened and we would have been okay. But at that point, we had another 20 laps in front of us and with a nice gap that we had I think that to put on some more front tyres and to wait these four or five laps that it normally takes to clean up was the right thing to do. But I think the surprise for us was the time it took to clean up.

Q: (Livio Oricchio ?EUR" O Estado de Sao Paulo)
Some mechanics with tyre pressure instruments showed something to Flavio Briatore and he was very angry ?EUR" did you have any tyre pressure problems?

FA:
I don?EUR(TM)t know. I don?EUR(TM)t think so. The car felt okay. We only had one problem in the second stop, but the rear tyre took a little longer than normal to fit, but other than that the pressures for me driving were okay. I don?EUR(TM)t know what you saw with Flavio.

Q: (Juha Paatalo ?EUR" Financial Times Germany)
Fernando, as you have already said, it must have been quite a terrible moment for you to have problems at the second pit-stop ?EUR" what were your thoughts?

FA:
Nothing, no thoughts at that point. When Fisi and Michael overtook me in the second stint, the race became very hard for us for me and obviously being third and losing time with them we took the risk to put (on) the dry tyres, to be the first of the top drivers to put the dry tyres and maybe I lost even more time there because the first lap, the out lap, was little bit too wet still. I think, I wait another four of five laps. To wait five seconds more in the pit stop was not any more important.

Q: (Huifang Sun ?EUR" Super Car)
Giancarlo, once you overtook Fernando, at that moment what did you think about that?

Giancarlo Fisichella:
It was just great. I was confident in the car and I was concentrating to push and to keep a good pace and to watch Michael behind me, but unfortunately I lost a lot of time with the blue flags and I think I was two and a half seconds in front of Michael and there were three guys in front of me and in the hairpin I lost those two and a half seconds just because of the traffic. Apart from that I was confident and really happy.

Q: (Wuh Shanjing Fan ?EUR" Changjiang Times)
Today you are the champion, so do you give a wonderful kiss goodbye to your Chinese supporters?

MS:
Yes, well, I think so... Chinese fans down here and, in particular at turn 14, all the guys everywhere else who were cheering for us saw a great race and a lot of entertainment and from my side a good result and a little present and give-back for the last two years.

Q:
Michael, Suzuka is one of your favourite circuits and Ferrari and you used to be very fast there ?EUR" how do you analyse the next two rounds of the championship considering your car and the Renault as well?

MS:
It is very difficult to predict the characters of a circuit and then to draw conclusions for the cars, which one it is going to suit better to the circuit and so on. I really puzzle to have a strong feeling. You are right in terms of driving style and so on I love Suzuka. It is a fantastic circuit. Our car has been good and we have to see if we can manage the tyre situation as we have done in other circuits and we have to take it from weekend to weekend because it is difficult to make predictions.

Q: (Yijing Shi ?EUR" Junior Science & Technology)
Fernando, what are you going to do for the next two races to make your car faster?

FA:
We will try to improve and to win every race. Sometimes we can and sometimes not. Today we had a great opportunity and we lost at the end on Sunday with weather conditions that were not favourable for us. For Suzuka and Brazil, we need to believe in our tyre but, at the moment, both cars, Renault and Ferrari, have been since quite similar in terms of performance and each race is dominated by the tyres so hopefully Michelin can give us something more for the last two races.

Q:
Fernando, do you feel today like the moral winner of the race?

FA:
No, it doesn't matter what feeling you have inside. The winner is Michael and he deserves the victory because he finished in front of the other drivers and that's it. I think we lost one big opportunity and I had nine or ten laps in the race when I was completely off the pace and too slow and I think the race finished there.