 Cristiano
da Matta - Car Number 16
"We have had two reasonably productive test sessions since Bahrain, at
which we have been working hard to get the most out of our revised package
for the San Marino Grand Prix. We ran some new aero parts at Barcelona, but
what we are counting on is that a number of small modifications will work
well together to give us another step forward. Imola has never been a track
that suits our car, particularly with the kerbs, but we did some valuable
running at Paul Ricard last week, learning how to adapt the car better to
different situations and conditions, so I remain hopeful that our upward
curve will continue in Italy this weekend. We are not where we want to be at
the moment, but we are working on a race-by-race basis to rectify that and
gradually move up the grid."
 Olivier
Panis - Car Number 17
"Our aim for this weekend's San Marino Grand Prix must be to build upon
our performance from Bahrain, where we were again unlucky to miss out on
championship points. Performance-wise, we have struggled at Imola in the
past, but everyone has put in a lot of effort to improve the car since the
last race, so we simply have to try and make the most out of the package we
have. The positive thing is that everybody is now working very well together
as a team. Stability is critical, so together we must keep pushing. From a
personal point of view, I have never really enjoyed going to Imola because
of the tragic weekend in 1994. This year's event is the 10th anniversary of
the accidents of Roland Ratzenberger and Ayrton Senna, so I'm sure their
memory will be especially strong this weekend."
 Ricard Zonta- Car Number 38
"We recently completed some tyre tests for the San Marino Grand Prix at
Paul Ricard, so I am sure we have chosen good tyres for this weekend's race.
I also did two days at Estoril last week, where we simulated wet weather
running together with Michelin. We totalled over 250 laps, easily completing
the programme and that could be advantageous for us in Imola, where we are
likely to face damp or wet conditions. Obviously there are many pieces to
the puzzle, so we have to make sure everything works together. We've come so
close to getting points in the last two races, so we just need a bit more
luck and I'm sure they are within our reach."
Tsutomu Tomita - Team Principal
"Historically, the Imola track has not been favourable to Panasonic
Toyota Racing, but we are hoping for a better result this season. We have
worked a lot on the TF104 since the first race in Melbourne to improve the
aerodynamics, to reduce the overall weight of the chassis and to lower the
centre of gravity. Consequently, I hope that the car should be more
driveable, particularly over the notoriously difficult Imola kerbs, where we
have struggled in the past. I am not going to set any concrete targets for
this weekend's race because we have to look at improvements on a longer term
scale. Instead, I simply expect us to make the next logical step ahead in
our 2004 development and to show another increase on performance, as we
demonstrated at the first three races of the season."
 Mike Gascoyne - Technical Director Chassis
"The
San Marino Grand Prix will mark the next development step of the season for
Panasonic Toyota Racing. We have concentrated mainly on reducing the weight
of the car, whilst lowering the centre of gravity. As a result, we are
heading to Italy with a car that should be easier to set-up and more
adaptable during the weekend. We also have a new front and rear wing,
specifically designed to cope with the demands of the maximum downforce
Imola track. The key to a quick lap time around Imola is use of the kerbs.
This has been a weakness in the past, so we have carried out kerb
simulations at Paul Ricard tests, which we hope will pay dividends. Everyone
knows what we have to do to make the car go quicker and the changes we have
implemented for this weekend should be another small step in the right
direction."
Weekend in numbers:
4400 Number of kilometres completed by Panasonic Toyota Racing during the
first three race weekends of the season
1980 Year in which Imola hosted its first F1 championship race when it
replaced Monza for one year as the home of the Italian GP
812 Number of laps completed by all TF104s during the first three race
weekends of the season
305.609 Length of the San Marino Grand Prix in kilometres
62 Number of laps that make up the San Marino Grand Prix
24 Number of Grands Prix held at Imola since 1980
10 Imola is the first of 10 European races in the 2004 championship
4.933 Length of a lap of Imola in kilometres
4 Panasonic Toyota Racing is one of only four teams to claim a 100%
reliability record so far in 2004
1.23.054 Lap record at Imola |
