What the drivers say

Reflections on the Hungarian Grand Prix
Nico “From a team perspective, Hungary was another positive weekend. I had a bit of a messy start to the race, and I had to work hard to claw back positions after the KERS cars just flew past me off the line, but I’d gained my fifth place grid slot back before the end of the first lap and then progressed to fourth in the stops, which is where I finished the race. We had the opportunity to fight Raikkonen for second, but we made some mistakes. We need to iron those out if we’re to make the most of our pace and start getting on the podium.”

Kazuki “Something’s got to give soon! It’s very difficult starting from the midfield because performance levels are so close between the teams it’s hard to make up places off the line. If you don’t, and someone with a longer fuel load gets ahead of you, your race can be over on the first lap, which is what happened to me in Hungary when Button got ahead of me. It was frustrating, but I know some points will come my way soon.”

What we’ve been up to during the shutdown
Kazuki “As I wasn’t allowed in the factory due to the enforced shutdown (which was very strange for me as I basically spend all my time there between races, either with my engineers or in the simulator), I flew home to Japan. It was a long enough trip to catch up with lots of friends in Tokyo and to spend some time with my family as well. I kept up my training too as cockpit temperatures tipped 60°C in Valencia last year and I don’t want any distractions this weekend.”

Nico “After the race, I spent a few days in Budapest with friends as I love the city, we then all went on to Ibiza for a few days on the beach. From there, I went home to Monaco to do some intensive training. I covered lots of ground on the bike, on the roads and into the mountains. As I’ve been following the Tour de France, I think I’ve developed a bit of a passion for it!”

Valencia – from a technical perspective
Nico “This will only be our second trip to Valencia and I’m looking forward to going back as the organisers have built a really good track. Unlike what you would normally expect from a street circuit, Valencia has a lot of corners but they aren’t tight and twisty, but quite fast and flowing so the whole lap is quite quick. Combined with the temperatures, it can be a demanding race, but I’m prepared.”

Kazuki “I’ve spent lots of time on our simulator preparing for Valencia over the course of the year so feel I know the circuit quite well. It’s not a typical street circuit, but you have to be really careful around the lap as there are no run off areas. I think the biggest challenges over the weekend are grip levels as it was quite green when we arrived last year as well as cockpit temperatures.”

The city itself: love it or hate it?
Nico “Valencia’s a cool city. The Spanish are really enthusiastic about Formula One, so the atmosphere is usually buzzing. The paddock is in the harbour, right next to the sea, so it’s a little bit like Monaco, maybe not quite as glamorous, but a really nice location for a Grand Prix.”

Kazuki “I enjoyed the trip to Valencia last year and am excited about going back, more so this time round because it feels like a long time since the last race and I want to get back into my car! I never explore much while I’m at a race as I prefer to concentrate on the job in hand, but Xevi, my engineer, is Spanish so I’m sure we will head out for some local food one night.”