Press Conference, with Webber Schumacher

By gf
March 5 2004

Mark Webber appeared in a press conference with Michael schumacher, prior to the commncementof the Australian GP weekend. Here's what he had to say.

Mark, tell us all about the pins and the scheme that has been launched by the Grand Prix Drivers Association to give fans a chance to tour the paddock. What is it all about?

Mark Webber:
The GPDA decided to try and put a little back to the fans and to give them a chance to get a little bit closer to our world. Michael and I had a bit of a discussion about this a few weeks ago about how we could come up with an idea. The helmet pins idea was already under way because I was a patron for Brainwave Australia which is a cancer charity for the young kids here in Australia so we thought we would incorporate the pins and a raffle or a draw on Sunday morning and then six people can come into the paddock and have a photo taken. I think it is a very good idea and I'd like to see if we can do it at five or six races this year maybe with some karting or some football. Its just the way in which the GPDA wants to be able to do something to help the fans a little bit more.

Q:
Are there other ideas in the pipeline?

Michael Schumacher:
Yes, as Mark said, we are planning different things and we will find out something else for the future for the fans.

Q:
So this is really something that has come from the drivers?

MS:
Yes, I think so.

Q:
This is the drivers' giving something back?

MS:
Yes. I think Mark explained it very well. Things have just moved further and further away, but there is no real thing to just open the pit lane and let the people come to you as that would be a disaster so Mark and I sat together and thought what can we do, what is possible. That was the first step and we've gone on from there.

Q:
We saw what happened in Indianapolis last year when the pit lane was open and quite a few of the drivers were available as well...

MS:
I think it is very critical to do things like this as well in my view because you have to imagine if you do that and take the top teams and top drivers and they will be under a big command you only one person against so many and you will make only a few happy and a lot more unhappy because you cannot deal with those. So with having a lot of people to control this in certain countries it would get out of control. So I am a bit sceptical to see this as a general happening.

Q:
Here the promoter has arranged general autograph sessions. Is that something you may be thinking of as well?

MW:
We are still looking at quite a few ideas and the main thing is that everyone wins. We have to please as many people as we can, but we have to draw the line somewhere. And also the charities have got to win as well and we want to try and kill a few birds with one stone and make sure the GPDA can sell off some race suits for the benefit of some of the charities. Clearly, the charity here in Australia will have a good win from what we've done here and more autograph signing sessions is a possibility and Mr Ecclestone has supplied the passes for the winners so everyone is pushing hard.

Q:
You said five or six other Grands Prix, but could it extend to the whole championship?

MS:
We'll see how it goes and then we'll take it from there.

Q:
Are there any other GPDA concerns at the moment?

MS:
No, not really. We have some little issues that we deal with internally, but otherwise things are going smoothly.

Q:
Michael, looking forward to the coming season, you had a fantastic test at Imola.

MS:
Not only at Imola!

Q:
Tell us about it...

MS:
We had good test session all winter long. The car came out with no serious trouble and we were running very competitively in our view and reliably too. That was the impressive thing. You can't stress that enough. To achieve what we did straight out of the box is tremendous.

Q:
How much of an improvement is it on last year's car?

MS:
It is an improvement, but exactly how much, and where, we don't know because none of us - Rubens [Barrichello], Luca Badoer or myself - has stepped into the old car and back into the new car to do a real back to back straight comparison. We know its better but how much we will find out here. You have to take into consideration the temperature and the circuit condition and in the winter time it is different from how it will be here.

Q:
At Imola the particular run was 14 laps at about three degrees I understand?

MS:
It was three degrees for the others as well. Its not a concern. We don't know. Nobody knows. That is why we are here. We will find out. That is why we are here. It will be a thrill to get behind the wheel and get the new car going.

Q:
A thrill? No apprehension?

MS:
No, none at all. It is just pure pleasure and thrill. One hundred per cent.

Q:
And confidence?

MS:
Yeah.

Q:
That's really worrying.

MS:
Not for me.

Q:
What about the Bridgestone situation. People say they are on their own with Ferrari, but what are the advantages and disadvantages?

MS:
You can argue in two ways. I have heard from the competitors side that when they are alone it is an advantage, but now there are so many teams it gives them an advantage that way too. You can argue the same way for us. At the end of the season, you look at the points and then you can see what is right.

Q:
Do you feel there is enough feedback?

MS:
We work very closely with Bridgestone and having Sauber the way they are cooperating now and doing the tests it is very helpful. Sometimes it is quality work rather than quantity work. Sometimes you are not able to do enough. It is possible, but I don't see that problem for us at the moment as we have been able to work through all of the programme we wanted and we have done a very methodical job in sorting out the directions and separating things and I am pretty confident. Bridgestone have certainly raised their game.

Q:
You have noticed an improvement?

MS:
Yes.

Q:
In what way? In the way they work as well?

MS:
Yes, because they are much closer to us so it keeps on improving. The relationship of Ferrari and Bridgestone is going on and on.

Q:
New people?

MS:
Ask them.

Q:
What about the new schedule. How will that effect you, particularly, with Sauber, tomorrow? Will they work for you to some extent in the morning?

MS:
No. I don't think there is a third car for either of the two teams. I am not involved in this honestly.

Q:
What about the new schedule for qualifying on Saturday?

MW:
Well, to be honest, I thought Friday was a very strange event last year. The circuit was always very dirty and the guys who were doing well in the championship always had a difficult situation. That may have flattered some of the other people on a Friday and given us a good slot for Saturday but I think it is nice to have both sessions together. I think the new 100-minutes session is good, ten minutes in between, what fuel level you run in the first session is down to you and as for the second one it is first stint fuel and race set up so I think the changes they have made for qualifying are good for the fans and good for the teams in general.

Q:
Michael, your feelings?

MS:
More positive than last year because the way the circuit has been most of the races on Friday in the first qualifying session I thought it was in bad shape due to other cars running after our last free practice, before qualifying, and I think this is not the case on the Saturday and there is no racing happening and so the circuit should be consistent and should be a fair chance to the first drivers out for the first flying laps and help you settle in for the runs straight after.

Q:
Mark, how do you feel things have gone?

MW:
I am very happy with the R5. We have made some good progress over the winter. We didn't get the mileage we would have liked at first, but the guys worked very, very hard at the factory to make sure that when we got the new car out... The last few tests went very well. We always did about 120 or 130 laps per car which is not easy with good tyre testing with Michelin as well and the vices we had on the R4 last year, we tried to chip away at those areas - you know, tyre management and chipping away at the aero and the brakes and things so we were doing it in a very controlled manner and it was very disciplined testing. We are not kidding ourselves. Clearly, in Valencia, we did a very reasonable lap time, but that wasn't the real pace of the car and we were concentrating on the long runs as well. And we've made a good step on that too in this year's car.

Q:
So, have you succeeded in getting to where you wanted to get to?

MW:
Yes, I am very happy with the progress we have made with the RG. Initially, we couldn't get the running we wanted, but at the end we could and we could fine tune a few things and start to work. We have a bigger balance window with the R5 and we can move things and make things easier for us to balance the car and make it better for us or globally better over a Grand Prix weekend, or over the 18 races of the season. So, yes, we have made clear progress and there a few departments doing a very, very good job with the car and I am very happy for them.

Q:
Michael said he faces the season with total confidence. What about you?

MW:
I am very, very confident as well to be honest. I probably won't get as many points as Michael, but I am looking forward to the season. It is a building process from last year and I thoroughly enjoyed last year. The reputation of the team has made it easy for me and I did the easy job in driving the car and I think this season will be phenomenally competitive and there are a lot of teams up there doing a very, very good job. The level in Formula One now is very impressive.

Everybody is pushing very hard. Not that they weren't in the past, but it just seems very compact at the front. If we can hang on the back of that, it would be nice. We have full respect for our opposition, but we try and get amongst them when we can.

Q:
There must be a lot of pressure on you at this race?

MW:
There is and it is getting worse every year in terms of the off track activities and we are trying to control it as best we can. Its always something very special for me to come and race in Australia and not just because it is the first race, but to compete in front of my home nation is special. When I watch other sports I like to see Australians do well and I suppose they like to see the Aussie do well down here as well so that's important for me to get the best result possible here. Probably a few more percent than other races but always pushing very hard at all races so once I'm in here, once I start I obviously focus on the weekend and I'm in the car, then I am working with the engineers, I could be at Valencia, Jerez, Brazil, it doesn't really matter, I'm getting the most out of the package.


Mark, what work is Bjorn Wirdheim going to be doing for you?

MW:
Bjorn is going to do a lot of running tomorrow in both sessions. Clearly, it doesn't matter how much mileage he puts on his engine, compared to the two race-cars. We are expecting to do some good mileage tomorrow, even on my car and Christian's car to confirm things for ourselves and I think we will see the one engine thing changing slightly in the next two or three months in terms of what teams do, just to build a bit of confidence with the new regulation. We will see when we get back to Europe - in terms of maybe laps completed or how aggressive they are even with the general running of their engine. Like Michael says, there are lots of ways to adjust the engine so it's feeling happier when it's on the track than when it's highly stressed. So, we have done some good work in testing to make sure that we have enough laps to prepare for the Grand Prix and also make sure we get to the chequered flag on Sunday.

Q:
Is the third car going to be a big advantage?

MW:
I think it's nice to have in your pocket, definitely. Ideally, it would be good if Bjorn had more experience under his belt in general, just before he came to this race, but that wasn't possible, unfortunately. So, I think he will do a good job for us tomorrow, but he will learn in general because his experience in the next few events can make it better for us as team. But it's great for Michelin that he can fulfill our work for us.