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Although Ralf finished second in the Canadian GP and got on the podium with Michael, he was disqualified and had all his points taken off him. Race stewards ruled BMW Williams used illegal air ducts on their front brakes. Ralf after the disqualification: What has happened is a pity because it has spoiled what was a good race. I'm now thinking 'what have I done to deserve this'. It's cold comfort that Sir Frank Williams called me immediately to tell me he was sorry. But breaking a rule is breaking a rule and somebody must be punished for that. I have to accept it, even if it really hurts. But I will not bury my head in the sand and I will continue to work hard and remain motivated. The good thing is we quickly have a chance to ease the pain. Ralf just after the race: This result is better than we had expected before coming to Montreal, but still a bit disappointing after I started from pole. The way we performed this weekend is a clear sign that we have some chances to be at the front and this is very encouraging for the team. We took the best we could out of our package this weekend and my car was really strong thanks in no small part to Michelin who supported us here with great tyres. It will take us two or three races to really see the next step improvement. Ralf started last Sunday's Canadian GP from pole position just as he did in 2003. He was more than three seconds faster than last year. His previous pole was 14 races ago at the German GP in July 2003. As he crossed the line he punched the air with joy as though he’d actually won the race... He wore a wide grin and a somewhat stunned look after winning his fifth F1 pole and second in a row in Canada. He covered the 4.4-kilometer course in a track record time of an average speed of more than 217 kilometers per hour. There's various quotes on the news page but I'll just put the Qualifying Press Conference here. Q: Ralf, you had two great laps – fastest in pre-qualifying then pole position. I must admit we are a bit surprised. I had a big struggle on Friday due to brake problems and the team did a great job and just got the car right. Honestly, I did not expect to be as strong but already after Michael was out I thought this could be a rather good one but I didn't expect pole position. Q: When did it all start to come together? Was it this morning or work on the car last night? Actually the first qualifying! That was the first time the car started to feel right to me, to push, really, to be able to get the best out of it. I had some little mistakes in there but it didn't cost me anything really. We expected to be somewhere maybe in the top five but fourth to sixth or something. Q: It looks like a very good lap – quick on the sectors and also quick in terms of top speed. Yes, everyone knows that in Montreal you need the straight-line speed so it is always a compromise and I think we did that quite well. Sector times, well, I think they were pretty good, it is always easy to make a mistake like Takuma did – just touch the kerbs too much and you get thrown off. Luckily it didn't happen. Q: Ralf, as you say, your brother is down in P6 this weekend. What are your thoughts on that and do you think you have a realistic chance of winning tomorrow? Well, from where we are definitely, yeah, we have a good chance of having a great race. Concerning Michael, I think Ferrari realised the Michelin runners were particularly quick in the first laps, or the first few laps, so I guess they obviously changed their strategy a bit. I don't think Ferrari all of a sudden from being the quickest car by a long way is a second slower than us, I have difficulty believing that. I am sure Michael is going to have a great race but from where he is it is a bit difficult. You know, you need to get past first and I will be surprised how they are going to do that. Q: Ralf, you were saying just now it was all a bit of a surprise to you and the team. Just talk us through the changes you had to make from Friday through to Saturday morning and afternoon. Well, on Friday I was more off the track than on the track due to brake problems. Really, we couldn't really work on the car much because I couldn't see anything. Then we went a bit up and down all Saturday morning and had a lot of work to do actually, so it was a bit of a difficult one, I must admit. I think due to the fact our car historically works quite well here and the experience we have got with this circuit, it was not such a problem but it eventually took us until the first qualifying where I was reasonably happy with the balance. Q: So was it a bit of guesswork with the balance? Um, kind of. I mean, we turned the set-up around before first qualifying quite a bit in order to just try and see how it was and luckily, well, not lucky, it was good. Q: What about the brakes? Have they been sorted as well? They have been sorted but, I mean, Montreal is always very marginal on brakes. We know that from the past years but every team is the same, so it is going to be a difficult one, maybe for the race, for all of us, you know, I don't know. Q: And you really picked up time on Jenson - although he said he was a bit slow at the hairpin – you really picked up your time to go quicker than him in the final sector. I am a bit surprised. Again, there, I struggled a bit this weekend because the car is a bit difficult on kerbs but since the cone was away for second practice, it disappeared (laughs), it was a little bit easier. Q: What about the race? Are you pretty confident for that? Um, being on pole position you are always confident you will have a good race but we clearly struggled so far this season, or let's say for the last three or four races, so it is going to be a difficult one and certainly, with Jenson on my tail, clearly so far this year he has a quicker car, I just maybe got a bit better in qualifying. It is going to be a tough one anyway, but we will try our best and maybe I can repeat what I did a couple of years ago. We will see. Q: Ralf, after a disappointing season what does this pole mean for you and your team? Well, as I said before, it is great and obviously it was a bit special for me for qualifying this year. Monaco was decent, I had a bit of a problem in the Nurburgring but I seemed to somehow find the back of it. It is simply great. Honestly, we did not expect it and that is even better just to go into qualifying, have a perfect lap and be on pole at the end. It is clear this year that we have problems with the car but we expect something good to be coming soon so already here to be high up the grid is a good sign. Q: Ralf, what do you recall of last year and what do you do differently to go that one step further like you did a few years ago. Well, let's go into the race. First of all, obviously, I haven't had a chance this year to win a Grand Prix. That might have changed today due to my car suddenly working good but we will have to wait and see. I think and I hope that we have the right strategy and that is going to be a key factor this year, as it was last year when Michael stayed out one lap longer, came out in front of me and that was it, as much as he followed me for the first 20 laps I followed him for the rest of the race. That is the way it simply is, especially here. Although you have a very long straight, if you have similar cars with relatively similar speeds you won't overtake, end of story, unless the guy in front of you makes a mistake. So let's hope we have the right strategy and I somehow manage to stay in front and we will see what the outcome is. Q: Ralf, when you are with a team that is capable of turning in performances like that and giving you a shot of victory and it is not in the overall unusual, I just wondered why would you even consider leaving that team, especially to one that is a lesser team? First of all, if I stay, which is not decided yet, I would have loved for Juan to stay as well because I think the two of us are a great team. We are not the best mates next to the track but he is a great driver and for a team I think nothing better can happen than two drivers like that, I think we have been quite a strong team. Secondly, we all saw this season we were expecting to go for the championship but we are further away than we have been in the last two years if I remember rightly. And that is why it has taken so long – it is a very difficult decision to take and I just want to do it as good as I can. Q: But do you really think the alternative is a better bet? Well, the thing is, short-term there is no other team than Ferrari, in my opinion at the moment, where you can say you are going to go for the world championship in the next year because we haven't proven so far, we might towards the end but we did towards the end of last year and we couldn't go for it this year. So, you never know. Q: Last year when the GP was in question there was a lot of emotion about keeping it on the schedule. Could each driver relay a story about why the track is so popular amongst the drivers? First of all, it is great to be in Montreal. Montreal is a Formula One city, basically, from what I understand. You go there and it is just great. There is a huge crowd out there and it is great for us to be here. I wouldn't mind if the circuit could be resurfaced for next year, that could help us a bit and it would give us less of a headache if someone could find the money for that but apart from that it is really great to be here again. Q: We saw clear advantage from the Michelin tyres in qualifying. What about the race conditions? I mentioned before, it looks like we have a clear advantage this weekend. I don't think we will have any problems in the race. We have seen some very stable and good lap times amongst the Michelin runners this morning as far as I am aware so I don't have any doubt that we will be as strong in the race. So I guess it is going to be difficult for Ferrari this weekend. Let's hope so! Much of Friday's talk at the Canadian GP centered on Ralf's future. Ralf sounded like a driver accepting the harsh realities of a sport: Win or move on, especially in the midst of a difficult sixth season with the same team. "The highlight here had to do with winning BMW's first race (in 2001) The biggest low is simply this season. We were expecting to go for the championship, and we are nowhere near it. We're further away even. We're not happy about that, and that's pretty obvious. Our expectations were clearly bigger, there's no doubt about it" Ralf doesn't stress over his situation. An interview at the Gilles Villeneuve Circuit was light and playful. He was relaxed, insisting he doesn't have to be labeled the No. 1 driver with any team. He also refused to put a timetable on his decision or say what factors will influence him. He refused to call it a career-turning decision. "I'm only becoming 29, so I've still got some time. If I were running around here at 39 or 40, it'd be (different) I want to take the right decision. At the moment I don't know how good Williams is, obviously. I'm looking forward to winning races again. I haven't given up on the possibility to win a world championship one day -- maybe not in the short term, because whatever decision I take, whether to stay or to go, this is not a short-term decision" (source: indystar.com) Williams had a difficult start to the Canadian GP weekend, with Ralf being hampered by brake problems and JPM missing half of the second session due to a fuel leak. Ralf: "I must admit I wasn’t expecting such a Friday at all. Both of my practice sessions were hampered by several problems, not only was I not happy with the brakes, but also making the tyre choice and finding the right set-up have been very difficult. There’s still quite a lot of work ahead of us" (source: f1.racing-live.com) Ralf concedes to being bored at continually trailing behind brother Michael - and feels he could have achieved more during his near six years at Williams. He still harbours the dream of winning a world title, but it seems that will not be at Williams for it is anticipated he will be moving at the end of this season, with Toyota the likely destination. He insists no decision has been made, and that he could yet remain with Williams, claiming he is waiting to see if the team can start to match Ferrari. But if he does leave, he will not look back on his time at the Grove marque with much satisfaction. "I'm not happy with what I've achieved here, but I'm still happy with the team. When I joined Williams my expectations were clearly bigger, no doubt about it. It has been a nice time so far, and if I had to take the same decision [to join] again I would do it in a similar way. But whether I stay or go is not a short-term decision because there's only one team at the moment and that's Ferrari. Apart from that, it's all going to take one or two years at least to be able to run for the championship. I'm looking for an opportunity because I still haven't given up on the fact I want to be world champion one day and I've more than two options anyway. I've been here six years and obviously the intention was to be champion, but after six years you are not going to take a decision as easy as that. At the moment I don't know how good Williams is. It's something we need to wait on. I was looking forward to winning races again, but we haven't due to driver errors, as well as from a car point of view so far. We are all working flat out to turn it around, and that's what I'm waiting for" Ralf continued: "It starts to become boring for all of us that we are unable to beat (Ferrari) We have tried for many years now, but they do something which all of us have not figured out yet" So is it a case of, if you can't beat them join them, and the prospect one day of being in the same team as Michael. Ralf is sceptical, although not completely dismissive, stating: "That's difficult to answer, but I don't think so. I don't know how long Michael will be in Formula One, but I don't see it, although I don't think it would be difficult on a personal level. It would be, and I shouldn't say this, fun. I don't think it would be a problem between us, although if I had the choice to run in Michael's team or somewhere else where I could win a race, I wouldn't think about it for one second. Maybe one day there is a choice and I would do it. I would love it. Why not" (source: sportinglife.com) Ralf has had a tough time of late, he didn't even complete the first lap at the European GP, after that incident with JPM. He acknowledges that his season has been far from great... "Even though things haven't gone right for me recently, I am looking forward to the trip to Canada and the United States. I especially like Montreal as I like the city and the people but most of all I really like the circuit. In the past few years, we've managed to produce some good results there so I'm hoping the track should suit our car again this year. Following this week's tests at Silverstone and Monza, I'm convinced that we have made a step forward, but I don't know how big this will be until we get to Montreal. I am not going to let our difficult start to the season get in the way of future races because you always have to look forward, not back. I am now thinking on a race by race basis and I will always try to make the best out of the situation" (source: crash.net) Ralf left the Nurburgring after giving only a short interview to journalists. At the first corner, JPM knocked him out of the race. Within half an hour, he was in a helicopter, bound for home (Austria) Ralf: "I don't blame Juan but it should not happen between team-mates. But everyone knows that such things can, and do, happen". He jogged back to his motor home to watch the TV replay. Ralf: "I didn't know who had hit me but I soon realised it was Juan. He just braked a bit too late, but couldn't go right because Barrichello's Ferrari was there. So he went left. But that was where I was". Ralf and Montoya got a stern talking-to after Nurburgring by Frank Williams (source: homeoff1.com) Q: Ralf, you won here last year, how do you feel coming here this year? Well, certainly great. It's always nice for us to be back here. It's not snowing, so it's perfect conditions. It's a bit early for Nurburgring, but it's certainly enjoyable to be back. Q: What chances for the race? You can never tell. It's obvious that this year it's a bit more difficult for us but we keep trying, trying to do our best and we will see what the outcome is. Q: Now, there have been some management changes announced at Williams - how soon do you expect those to have some effect? It will take Sam a while. I'm sure Sam will do great things within Williams but there's all the existing structure and things have to be changed. The cars are still the same so you won't turn it around overnight. It will take at least three or four races until we see some slight changes, but the biggest change will certainly be next year. Q: You think slight changes in three or four races then? Yes sure. The car will improve, almost certainly things are going to change, but, obviously, you have to ask Sam himself what he's going to do. Q: What about your own future? Have you got anything to tell us? Nope. Why? Nothing is decided yet. We are still talking, certainly still waiting for what is happening in our team and then I will see what the outcome is. Q: Do you see the end of the road in sight, as it were? Yes. I would consider it quite sure that I will be in Formula One, so that's not a problem, but obviously not where and I will obviously try to be in the best position. Q: Just going back to last weekend and obviously the incident in the tunnel, how dirty off-line was it? From looking at it, it looked to be pretty dirty. There were a lot of marbles out there. As I said in Monaco, it was a shame but it wasn't my mistake, it was clearly his own mistake. To blame me - I didn't take it seriously. Obviously losing third in Monaco is not very nice but it wasn't my problem. Q: Michael, would you have overtaken round the outside - or did you overtake round the outside - in the tunnel? You sort of know, or you should know, that if you do get off-line there it gets very dirty and very tricky and especially in that place. It's easily flat out for us but there's not that much margin to go around the outside. If you see it, as well, there was a lot of space for Alonso to go further inside because Ralf was moving over very close to the barrier and he didn't need to leave that much space between him and Ralf. Q: What about your own incident in the tunnel, to keep the tyres warm, the brakes warm and everything else must be difficult particularly when you've got the entire field behind you and they're relying on what you're doing? Yeah, but this is the point because the guys behind rely on what the guy in front is doing, and that's what you have to watch for and I certainly wasn't watching my mirrors behind because I believed that everybody knows how to accelerate and brake and so it was a bit of a surprise for me. Seeing the pictures, if I had maybe watched in the mirrors then maybe I could have not gone on the normal line but I wasn't expecting him to be there. Q: I suppose to some extent the one thing you don't want to do is go off-line onto the dirty side as well. This is quite true but, well, it's history. We can't change it anyway. Q: What was your reaction to the stewards' conclusion? I did accept it but probably did not agree one hundred percent. Q: Is there anything further you can do about it? I'm sure the GPDA and drivers will discuss certain issues which happened over the weekend and we'll find out how much of a conclusion can be drawn for the future. Q: Now another story that's emerged is this possibility of Mika Hakkinen coming back. I don't know how much truth there is in it, but do you feel he could still be competitive? Does he lose anything in two years? I think it will be difficult being completely out of Grands Prix for two years. Ralf: But he's gained (suggests weight) from my understanding, hasn't he? Michael: Yeah, he gained, but apparently he's lost it all. He has this natural talent. He will always have that but to come back after a long pause and not doing anything with Formula One - even testing here and there - will be difficult. But I think a lot of people will be very happy - and I would be one of them - to see him back. He has been a great competitor. We'll find out, but obviously we're in the silly season, that's the other point! I've only included questions to Ralf but you can read the whole press conference at pitpass.com Q: Ralf, did you have any exchange of opinions or are you planning to have any exchange of opinions with Fernando Alonso about the incident in Monaco No. He had his opinion, which I understand, from his point of view. He was looking somehow to explain his accident. It was simply a bit unlucky, but the team already made an announcement about it and at the end of the day he was 15km/h, nearly 20km/h, slower than the lap before, going off, steering to the right and not to the left so for me there was no more need to explain it really, other than for your questions. It was a shame for him, because he would have deserved to be third, I guess or second, or whatever. Q: (Will Gray - Collings Sport) Ralf, you have a very good relationship with Sam Michael, a long-lasting one. Do you see his promotion as being a) helpful for the team, obviously, but b) helpful for yourself in terms of staying with the team? It was definitely a very helpful step for the team which, hopefully, I'm sure he will prove and whether it has anything to do with my situation I'm not sure yet. That will take a while. I'm simply waiting to decide what I'm going to do. That's all I can say at the moment. |
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