Briatore keeping an eye on rivals

Renault boss Flavio Briatore is naturally hoping for a good result in today's Brazilian Grand Prix and would like to keep up the score of having both cars in the points. Jarno Trulli qualified fifth and Fernando Alonso a slightly disappointing tenth ...

Renault boss Flavio Briatore is naturally hoping for a good result in today's Brazilian Grand Prix and would like to keep up the score of having both cars in the points. Jarno Trulli qualified fifth and Fernando Alonso a slightly disappointing tenth but Briatore is optimistic.

Jarno Trulli.

Photo by Brousseau Photo.

"In qualifying, Jarno drove a perfect lap," he said on the team website. "He is exactly where we thought he would be. In fifth place, he has the chance to score some points if everything goes to plan. Our strategy seems good, but we'll have to wait for the race. We are the only team to have had both our cars in the points twice this season, but we are still a bit nervous. Motorsport is not an exact science..."

"Fernando had a few mechanical difficulties on his lap, and when the gaps are so small, it's easy to find yourself way down the grid. However, tenth place isn't too bad."

As for the competition, Briatore knows that Ferrari and McLaren are the ones most likely to cause problems: "Ferrari are a big threat, of course. I think they are running heavier than us and are on a different strategy. For me, Rubens Barrichello is the big favourite; if he gets to the first corner first, the race should be his. After Ferrari, McLaren will be a threat. They have good reliability and have had two races already this season."

"As for Williams, I'm not really sure what to think. The FW25s have made progress since Sepang, clearly, but it will be difficult for them to find a way to the front from so far down the grid, even if the cars are good in race configuration."

Jaguar have been on fine form this weekend, Mark Webber taking provisional pole on Friday and managing an excellent third yesterday. "Mark Webber and Jaguar have been in the running all weekend, so I'm not surprised by their performance," Briatore commented. "They will be strong in the race. I know Mark and he certainly knows how to get a result when the opportunity presents itself."

"In my opinion, these are the cars we need to keep an eye on. It will be hard for us to get onto the podium at Interlagos, but we'll do everything we can to make the most out of the circumstances of the race to increase our points tally in the championship."