Turkish Grand Prix, Preview

The ING Renault F1 Team prepares for the fifth round of the 2008 Formula 1 World Championship: the Turkish Grand Prix.

Nelson Piquet: “We must continue moving forward”

The last Grand Prix was a bit disappointing…
Yes, it’s always disappointing to retire from a race, especially as a result of contact. The car was performing well and we were aiming to score points, which I think would have been possible. But we should not dwell on this, we must continue moving forward and I will keep learning. I will now try to put those lessons to good use in Istanbul so that I don’t make the same mistakes again.

You already know the Istanbul Park circuit and have some good memories there… I won there in GP2 and also took pole position and the fastest lap. It is therefore a circuit where I have some happy memories. So it will certainly be easier for me to attack this weekend and to get my car working well.

Do you think that Turn 8 will be a lot more impressive behind the wheel of a Formula 1 car?
Turn 8 is certainly one of the more interesting on the calendar. It is extremely fast and a tough test for the driver. I don’t know if it will be more difficult in a Formula 1 car; maybe on the contrary because of the superior performance of the car, especially with the aerodynamic grip available. To be honest I cannot wait to see what it is like from my cockpit.

The team seemed to have made good progress in Spain. What will be the objective for Turkey?
We have progressed well, but there is still a lot to do and the whole team is working hard. I hope the weekend will allow me to keep learning and reaching Q3 will once again be my goal. I will need to work well with my engineers during Friday practice in order to get the most from my car so that we can approach the Grand Prix calmly.