Belgian GP Tyrrell preview

18 August 1995 Preview Belgian Grand Prix

Salo can't wait to discover Eau Rouge corner

The nokia Tyrrell Yamaha team tested on Thursday at Silverstone with Mika Salo and one Tyrrell-Yamaha 023 in preparation for the Belgian Grand Prix. Mika drove 35 laps in low down-force configuration and his best time was 1 min 32.50 sec.

"We had a good session at Silverstone immediately after the Hungarian race," said Harvey Postlethwaite, Managing Director - Engineering. "We tested set-up changes which improved the front end of the car and tried a rear suspension development which gave promising results. However this needs further evaluation before we race it. We also worked on new methods of clutch control for starts."

After the test, Mika Salo drove straight to Heathrow airport and flew to Germany where he will drive in the DTM Porsche race on Sunday. "We had a good day at Silverstone. My lap times are insignificant because we ran with the aerodynamic configuration for Spa. Bu I was really quick on the straights and the engine felt very good."

"I am delighted to race in Spa because it's a driver's circuit. I studied the video the Belgian television gave me of the last 24 hours of Spa and the qualifying lap of Ayrton Senna in 1993. The circuit looks fantastic and I can't wait to be flat out through the Eau Rouge corner..."

"This weekend I have been invited to drive a Porsche at the Nurburgring. It's a good opportunity to learn the circuit for the European Grand Prix and we will see what happens in the race..."

Yesterday, Ukyo Katayama was spectating at Silverstone and said: "The team had a good test today and I am always happy to go back to Spa because it's one of my favourite tracks. I like long circuits with fast and challenging corners."

Mike Gascoyne, Deputy Technical Director:" Spa is one of the favourite race venues in the World Championship. It's one of those great old circuits. It's a very long track, with challenging, fast corners and with probably the best corner in Grand Prix racing, Eau Rouge. The cars will be running in medium down force configuration to achieve good speed along the straights and reasonable down force in the quicker corners. The circuit can be fairly bumpy. You need a good engine, a good stability under braking and good high speed balance."

The Belgian Grand Prix will be held on the 6.974 kms / 4,333 miles challenging Spa-Francorchamps circuit near Liege. The 44 lap, 306.856 kms / 190.712 miles race will start at 14.00 hours local time on Sunday 27 August and is expected to last around 1 hour 30 minutes.