Nico's Notes from Shanghai
09 October 07
The Chinese Grand Prix was a frustrating race for ATT Williams. We struggled to maximise the performance of Bridgestone's dry tyres and that compromised my pace all weekend.
After setting times inside the top 10 during Friday's two practice sessions, I qualified back in 16th position, which was my worst grid position since the British Grand Prix at the beginning of July. The FW29 simply lacked grip on the option tyre.
In the race, the car performed well when the track was wet and the entire field was on wet tyres. I lost four places at the start, but I made up five places in the course of the next six laps. When a dry line started to appear after 20 laps, my wet tyres began to overheat and I had to change onto dries, on which I suffered the same grip problems as the previous day.
In the end, any chance of a strong finish came to an end on lap 29, when I was forced to pit a second time to replace a punctured left rear. I don’t know what caused the puncture because I didn’t hit another car, but this extra stop dropped me back down the order and I finished the race in 16th position.
When the engineers get back to Grove later this week, job number one is to examine why we weren’t able to maximise the potential of Bridgestone’s dry tyre at the Shanghai International Circuit. You can have the best aerodynamics in the world, but if you can't maximise the performance of the tyre, it's of no use.
It's frustrating to come away from this Far Eastern double-header without scoring any points because the battle for fourth position in the Constructors' Championship is getting quite tight. That's not to say we didn't try our hardest and the wet weather certainly resulted in two extraordinary races.
Away from the racetrack, I had a good time in Asia. I flew to Hong Kong after the Japanese Grand Prix for a driver day with Oris and then stayed in the city-state for an extra day to fill in for Alex Wurz at an RBS function. Alex returned to Europe after Fuji to meet his new son, Oscar, for the first time.
I arrived in Shanghai on Thursday morning. This was my second Chinese Grand Prix, but my third visit to Shanghai because I went to the race in 2005 as a spectator but on team duties, spending the weekend with the Williams guys. It's hard to keep up with the city's rate of development because it changes a lot from year-to-year, with new buildings erected the whole time.
As Alex has now announced his retirement from Formula 1, I would like say a few words. It really has been a good year racing with him. We share the same thoughts concerning the car, but also on many other areas. He just had his third son, so he certainly will be busy even though he won’t be racing. After so many years in F1, I would like to wish him all the best for his next step in his life.
I’m now spending just five days in Europe before heading to Brazil next weekend. I have a PR day to do in Rio de Janeiro prior to heading to Sao Paulo, where I’m determined to end the season on a high note. Bridgestone are taking their soft compound tyres to the race, so I’m hopeful that will return the FW29 to its more competitive state.
Until next time,
Nico
After setting times inside the top 10 during Friday's two practice sessions, I qualified back in 16th position, which was my worst grid position since the British Grand Prix at the beginning of July. The FW29 simply lacked grip on the option tyre.
In the race, the car performed well when the track was wet and the entire field was on wet tyres. I lost four places at the start, but I made up five places in the course of the next six laps. When a dry line started to appear after 20 laps, my wet tyres began to overheat and I had to change onto dries, on which I suffered the same grip problems as the previous day.
In the end, any chance of a strong finish came to an end on lap 29, when I was forced to pit a second time to replace a punctured left rear. I don’t know what caused the puncture because I didn’t hit another car, but this extra stop dropped me back down the order and I finished the race in 16th position.
When the engineers get back to Grove later this week, job number one is to examine why we weren’t able to maximise the potential of Bridgestone’s dry tyre at the Shanghai International Circuit. You can have the best aerodynamics in the world, but if you can't maximise the performance of the tyre, it's of no use.
It's frustrating to come away from this Far Eastern double-header without scoring any points because the battle for fourth position in the Constructors' Championship is getting quite tight. That's not to say we didn't try our hardest and the wet weather certainly resulted in two extraordinary races.
Away from the racetrack, I had a good time in Asia. I flew to Hong Kong after the Japanese Grand Prix for a driver day with Oris and then stayed in the city-state for an extra day to fill in for Alex Wurz at an RBS function. Alex returned to Europe after Fuji to meet his new son, Oscar, for the first time.
I arrived in Shanghai on Thursday morning. This was my second Chinese Grand Prix, but my third visit to Shanghai because I went to the race in 2005 as a spectator but on team duties, spending the weekend with the Williams guys. It's hard to keep up with the city's rate of development because it changes a lot from year-to-year, with new buildings erected the whole time.
As Alex has now announced his retirement from Formula 1, I would like say a few words. It really has been a good year racing with him. We share the same thoughts concerning the car, but also on many other areas. He just had his third son, so he certainly will be busy even though he won’t be racing. After so many years in F1, I would like to wish him all the best for his next step in his life.
I’m now spending just five days in Europe before heading to Brazil next weekend. I have a PR day to do in Rio de Janeiro prior to heading to Sao Paulo, where I’m determined to end the season on a high note. Bridgestone are taking their soft compound tyres to the race, so I’m hopeful that will return the FW29 to its more competitive state.
Until next time,
Nico
Posted at 12:00am on 09 October 07
tagged with nico.
