Portuguese GP Tyrrell preview

September 15, 1995 Portuguese Grand Prix preview

The Nokia Tyrrell Yamaha team tested at Silverstone on Wednesday with one car driven by Mika Salo. Said Harvey Postlethwaite, Managing Director - Engineering: "We continued to work successfully on the fly-by-wire throttle and we did not try to set a time. We will use this system in qualifying at Estoril and maybe in the race. We feel that in the last couple of races we have made goo progress with the 023 and we are looking forward to racing in Portugal because the characteristics of the circuit suit the car."

A delighted Mika Salo said: "I am very happy to stay with Tyrrell next year. I am convinced the team will be successful in 1996 and this year's hard work will be rewarded. The Portuguese Grand Prix is a new start for me because I know all the remaining circuits of the season so it should be easier for me in qualifying."

Ukyo Katayama enjoys racing in Portugal and said: "I like to come back to Estoril because it's a challenging circuit and the Portuguese seafood is excellent! It was good to see the team scoring points in Monza and I hope I'll increase the team's total very soon."

Mika Gascoyne, Deputy Technical Director: "Estoril is one of the most interesting circuits of the season because it has a mixture of fast and slow corners. The long 180 degree corner onto the downhill straight followed by two fast corners makes a quite challenging combination. It's always a difficult track for gearing because of the wind on the straight. One minute it can blow from one direction and the next minute from another. It is crucial to get the aerodynamics right, especially for the race, because it definitely pays off to run with more downforce. But it makes overtaking difficult because there are only two places where you can, so you need to get the right balance between downforce, wind and drag."

The Portuguese Grand Prix will be held on the 4.360 kms / 2.709 miles Estoril circuit near Lisbon. The 71 lap 309.560 kms / 193.393 miles race will start at 14.00 hours local time on Sunday, 24 September and is expected to last 1 hour 45 minutes.