Formula 1
Brazilian GP: Williams preview
Brazil's Hot Topics Will a Sao Paulo shower influence the race? Will any of the contenders sew up a Championship? What next for the driver market? Interlagos, Sao Paulo, Brazil The third anti-clockwise circuit of the campaign, after Istanbul ...
Edited: Oct 14, 2009, 2:27 AM
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Brazil's Hot Topics
Will a Sao Paulo shower influence the race?
Will any of the contenders sew up a Championship?
What next for the driver market?
Interlagos, Sao Paulo, Brazil
The third anti-clockwise circuit of the campaign, after Istanbul Park and Singapore, Interlagos features a long, long uphill left-hander that places a tremendous strain on drivers' necks -- and tyres. In ordinary circumstances, this is yet another two-stop race: McLaren gambled on a three-stop strategy when trying to revive Lewis Hamilton's title hopes in 2007 and the Englishman dropped more than half a minute to the pace-setting Ferraris. Hamilton and many others subsequently made unscheduled third stops in 2008 because of a torrential downpour, almost a daily occurrence at this time of year in Sao Paulo.
What the drivers say
Thoughts on the Japanese Grand Prix
Nico "It was a strange weekend in Japan. The weather on Friday made things quite tricky as we didn't have much time to prepare the car, then all the incidents during qualifying made for an interesting session as well. What happened in Q2 obviously affected qualifying for me, but then I benefitted from all of the grid penalties. In the end, I started from 7th and ended the race in P5, collecting more points which I was pleased about after Singapore."
Kazuki "Japan was just disappointing for me really. I really went there hoping to score points as I was back home at Suzuka in front of my home fans but it wasn't to be."
What we did after Japan
Kazuki "Work didn't stop when the race finished for me. I went straight back to Tokyo on the Monday for a driver appearance for AT&T in the evening, then I had another event on Tuesday for Accenture. Marketing duties ended on Wednesday and I have spent the week in Japan with my friends and family as I get to see so little of them during the season. I'll travel straight to Brazil from here, so it's been a long trip!"
Nico "I went straight back to Monaco after Japan. As it was a back-to-back with Singapore, it was a long trip away so it was nice to get back home. I'm heading out to Brazil a little earlier, on Monday, as I have a driver day for Allianz in Brazil on Tuesday."
About Brazil
Kazuki "Brazil is very different to Japan so it'll be a complete change going there next week! I like it though. The fans are always amazing; they're really passionate about Formula One, so it's nice to experience the atmosphere. On Wednesday I'm with AT&T, so hopefully I'll get to experience some proper Brazilian culture with them before the weekend begins."
Nico "I love Brazil. It's such a vibrant country and Sao Paulo is cool. It's normally the last race of the year so there are a few parties, but I imagine it will be different this year now it's not the last race on the calendar. Either way, it's a great place to have a race so I'm looking forward to it."
Interlagos from a technical perspective
Kazuki "Interlagos is a fairly challenging track because it's so bumpy and goes in an anti-clockwise direction, but it's really exciting to drive. There are some good overtaking opportunities, which is good because the grid will no doubt be tight because of the shorter lap time and it's important to qualify well. We'll have to do lots of work on Friday to find the right set-up and achieve a strong mechanical balance to cope with the track's layout, but I'm looking forward to it."
Nico "Interlagos is a really fun track to drive as it has a bit of everything -- gradient changes, a complete mix of corners and it runs in an anti-clockwise direction which presents a different challenge for the drivers, especially for our neck muscles. Last year wasn't so great for us because of the rain at the start of the race which left us towards the rear of the field, so I really hope we go there and do well this time."
-credit: williams
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