Formula One news
Kovalainen salvages two points for Renault
09 September 2007 / Results / PhotosRenault endured a difficult afternoon at the Italian Grand Prix today in Monza. With drivers Heikki Kovalainen and Giancarlo Fisichella starting seventh and fifteenth respectively, the team expected a tough race. In race conditions, however, it soon became apparent that the competitiveness of the R27 in low-downforce Monza configuration was not sufficient to be able to do so.
 |
|
"I was on the limit every lap today, and we just didn't have the pace over the full race distance to make up any ground," said Kovalainen. "I got a fantastic start, passed Kubica and was fighting with Heidfeld going into the Curva Grande, but he put me on the grass and I had to back off, which meant I lost a place to Kubica as well. After that, it was quite a lonely race. I passed Robert at the first stop, and kept him behind me for the middle stint, but we just didn't have enough pace to come out ahead of Rosberg after my last pit-stop. Everybody did a good job today, and there were no mistakes at all. But unfortunately, this was the maximum we could do."
 |
|
Giancarlo Fisichella commented, "I made a really good start, then got blocked out by several cars - and ended up losing position to Davidson because of it. Coulthard hit the back of my car on lap two I think, and it damaged the rear endplate on the left hand side. I also had understeer all through the race, so the balance wasn't perfect. In the first stint, I was losing time behind the Aguri, but it was only near to the pit-stops that I had enough extra pace to pass him into turn 1. After that, we all had pretty much the same strategy, and there was nothing much to do to gain positions. So we turned the engine right down, and looked after it because I have to use it again in Spa. Hopefully, things will go better for us there."
Team boss Flavio Briatore added, "There is not much to say this afternoon. Monza is a unique circuit and other people did a better job than us when it came to finding the right package. But Heikki's performance showed where we are at the moment, still behind BMW and fighting against Rosberg, like at the last few races. The team did the maximum today, and there were no mistakes, which shows that people are still motivated and working hard."
more news
- 08 Oct.
- 07 Oct.
- 06 Oct.
- 05 Oct.
- 04 Oct.
- 03 Oct.
- 02 Oct.
- 01 Oct.
- 30 Sep.
- 29 Sep.
Homepage
Barcelona