Formula 1
Belgian GP: Williams preview
Belgian's Hot Topics Will there be any movement on the driver market? Will it rain or shine? Will Kazuki's luck change? Spa-Francorchamps, Belgium In the slipstream of two circuits that render overtaking all but impossible, Spa offers welcome ...
Published: Oct 2, 2009, 4:19 PM
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Belgian's Hot Topics
Will there be any movement on the driver market?
Will it rain or shine?
Will Kazuki's luck change?
Spa-Francorchamps, Belgium
In the slipstream of two circuits that render overtaking all but impossible, Spa offers welcome relief to frustrated drivers. Fast and challenging, the longest track on the calendar incorporates a raft of passing opportunities and some of the most exhilarating corners of the season, notably Pouhon and Eau Rouge. The weather often generates a little unwanted excitement, too, in the form of sudden cloudbursts. Drivers plump for both one-and two-stop strategies (the latter favoured by the quicker qualifiers), but adverse weather in 2008 meant two or three stops became the order of the day.
What the drivers say
Reflections on the European Grand Prix
Nico "It was a good weekend for us. Again, the car performed really well which is good to see. It's been consistent on every single track so far so I'm pleased with the way the team is working. In relation to other teams, we've done well on the development front as well. We should have been on the podium this race, but McLaren have made an even bigger jump than us which is frustrating, but we are always there and a podium should come soon. Hopefully Kazuki will have some more good fortune on his side for the rest of the season as he was very quick this weekend and he could have scored some points if it weren't for the puncture."
Kazuki "From Saturday on, it was a bad weekend for me. We had a problem with the car in qualifying which ruled me out of Q2 and put me right down the grid in P17. From there, it was hard work to make any headway even though I made up three places in the opening lap. I was running in 13th and racing for 11th when I then had a puncture which was really frustrating. Up until then, it was going quite well considering so the end result was a shame."
What we did after Valencia
Kazuki "We only have a couple of days before heading over to Belgium, so I'll be going to the factory to do some simulator work with my engineers."
Nico "I don't have any plans really. I'm going home to Monaco and will just be relaxing with friends and fitting in some training."
Spa -- from a technical perspective
Nico "Spa should be good for the team. It's a very high speed track, very different to Valencia, but our car goes really well everywhere. This track, in particular, will suit our car because we have a strong aero package for the quick corners so I'm looking forward to it."
Kazuki "It's very different to Valencia with its medium and high speed corners. We struggled a bit there in 2008 but this year's car is competitive everywhere so it should be fine. The weather made it a difficult race last year so hopefully it will be more stable this year."
Belgium: love it or hate it?
Nico "Belgium's in the middle of nowhere really so it will make a change to the places where we've visited recently. Going to different places is what Formula One's about though so it will be nice."
Kazuki "I don't have much experience of the country as a whole, but Spa and the surrounding countryside is really beautiful. It's quiet, but the people are really passionate about Formula One so always really nice to go there."
-credit: williams
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