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2005 CHINESE F1 GRAND PRIX

2005 F1 GP: R18 of 19, 2005 CHINESE GP, Oct 9

CIRCUIT: SHANGHAI

• Inaugural race last year (2004)
• New circuit, designed by Hermann Tilke; cost $250 million US dollars
• 5.45 km circuit
• 7 left turns; 7 right turns
• 1.17 km straight; expected av top speed 325 kph
• downforce: high
• 2004 winner: Rubens Barrichello , Ferrari
• 2004 pole: Rubens Barrichello , Ferrari 1m 34.012s
• fastest lap: M Schumacher, Ferrari, 1m 30.22s; 2004
• 2004 RACE RESULT
• 1 Rubens Barrichello , Ferrari 56 laps, 3 stops
• 2 Jenson Button , BAR Honda, 2 stops +1s
• 3 Kimi Raikkonen , McLaren Mercedes, 3 stops +1.4s
• 4 Fernando Alonso , Renault +32.5s
• 5 Juan Montoya , Williams +45s
• 6 Takuma Sato, BAR
• BEFORE RACE, RAIKKONEN: "It is going to be an exciting race and we will all do what we can to take the title (manufacturer)."
• MINARDI TO BE RENAMED: as "Squadra Toro Rosso" in 2006

2005 RACE RESULT

• WINNER, ALONSO: "This is a fantastic feeling. I didn't think anything could equal winning the drivers' championship, but seeing our people celebrating, it's just as good! I am really so happy today, and there is only one word to say to them: thank you. The race was actually very easy. We only used full power on the engine in the first part, and we saw we were quicker than everybody so we turned things down and went conservative for the second part. Honestly, it was like the opening races when we had an advantage and could manage our pace. But today is about the team, they deserve to win, and now we are team and drivers champions. We showed that when we want to push, and take the risks, we can win races.
• 2ND, RAIKKONEN: "Today was not our day and finishing second was the best we could do but obviously it was not enough to take the title. The car was not quick enough at the start of the race and when it really came on towards the end it was too late. I don't know why this was the case as we have been quick throughout the weekend."
• "The Safety Car was deployed due to the loose manhole cover. The lap before Juan Pablo hit the cover I saw it was at a strange angle and just managed to avoid it the following lap. The whole incident brought out the Safety Car which meant that we were not really able to use our strategic advantage. We did what we could this year but it was not enough so congratulations to Renault but next year we try again and I can't wait."
• 3RD, R SCHUMACHER: "That was a great way to cap off an excellent first season with Toyota, especially coming after a pretty hard weekend. The car was really difficult to handle in qualifying and at the beginning of the race but the first safety car came out at just the right time for me."
• "I think I was due a bit of luck after what happened at last week's Japanese Grand Prix and this time it paid off. The team did a good strategy and after the second safety car period I was in second. At that point the handling was incredible and I was almost able to keep up with Alonso and pull out the gap I needed."
• "The pit stops were excellent today and I'd like to pass on a big thank you to all the team. I've scored points in 14 races out of 19 this year and I look forward to pushing even further up the grid next season."

• 1 Fernando Alonso (SPA) Renault
• 2 Kimi Raikkonen (FIN) McLaren-Mercedes +4s
• 3 Ralf Schumacher (GER) Toyota +25s
• 4 G Fisichella (Renault)
• 5 C Klien (Red Bull)
• 6 F Massa (Sauber)
• 7 M Webber (Williams)
• 8 J Button (BAR)
• 9 Coulthard
• 10 Villeneuve 11 Monteiro 12 Barrichello 13 Pizzonia 14 Doornbos 15 Trulli 16 Albers
• DNF: M Schumacher, Karthikeyan, Sato, Montoya

RENAULT REPORT:

• Flavio Briatore, Managing Director: "A great victory for Renault and the whole team. We managed the drivers' chase well this season, and after that people built up the constructors' championship as if it was the most important title in this sport. So to come here this weekend and dominate the race shows we have done the job right this year, both with Fernando and as a team."
• "We have shown speed, reliability, and the whole team at Enstone, Viry and in Renault has worked flat out to make this happen. I also want to thank our sponsors, who allow us to go racing, and the Renault group for their fantastic support at every level."
• "All those people are the reasons why we are world champions today. The last word goes to our drivers: Fisico drove brilliantly this afternoon, and after he was criticised in Japan, he put in a splendid performance; Fernando was, as always, superb. I think this a Renault team is a dream team.

McLAREN REPORT

• Ron Dennis: "Not the result we would have preferred, but that is motor racing. I think everything seemed to work against us today, and the Safety Car period meant that we were unable to take full advantage of our strategy."
• "It's frustrating not to achieve the result we want at the end of a season where we have finished on the podium 18 times and claimed 10 victories. Both drivers have done a good job this season as has the team and we will work hard to ensure that the momentum continues next season."

TOYOTA REPORT

• Tsutomu Tomita - Team Principal: "It has been a very good year for us and to finish on the podium is a fine way to finish it off. So I would like to offer my thanks to everyone on the race team and at Cologne as well as everyone at TMC in Japan and all our partners. Thanks to both drivers for a great season."
• "Jarno has been unfortunate several times and again today he didn't have much luck. He pitted the lap before the safety car and it ruined his race when he wasn't waved past. He had to make a late stop because of a bad tyre problem but I'm grateful to him for bringing the car home."
• "Ralf was unlucky with the safety car at Suzuka but today went much better. We made efficient use of the pit stop and kept him out on the second safety car period hoping that traffic would hold up the field, which worked out perfectly."
• "Our fifth podium is a great end to a great year. We are not yet able to compete with the top teams so we need harder development to overtake them. But we already have some excellent data from the ! B car and this podium will provide excellent motivation over the winter."

QUALIFYING (vs: 2004 pole (wet) 1m 33.542; 2003 pole 1m 31.317)

GRID, OCT 15, 2005

• 1 Fernando Alonso (SPA) Renault 1m 34.080
  "It was a perfect lap, and I have been surprised at how good the car has been this weekend. The circuit has improved a lot, and we have made a lot of changes as well to improve the handling. We have been conservative in our developments for a lot of the season, but for these final races, we have been able to be aggressive and it is paying off. I am in a perfect position to fight for the win tomorrow."
• 2 Giancarlo Fisichella (Ita) Renault 1m 34.401
  "I am really pleased to be second, because I was struggling with the car this weekend and didn't expect to be on the front row. We did some changes at the last minute that really improved things, and I was quite pleased with the lap; maybe I was a bit conservative in the first sector, but I felt very confident after that. The new engine has performed really well, and we are on a good strategy for tomorrow."
• 3 Kimi Raikkonen (Fin) McLaren-Mercedes 1m 34.488
  "We knew before qualifying that we would struggle to get pole position today, but I don't think we have anything to worry about. Our strategy should be strong and whilst the car was not perfect on the qualifying lap I'm confident that it will be as good as it has been throughout practice. Both Juan Pablo and myself are in strong positions to get the results we need to win the Constructors' World Championship."
• 4. Jenson Button, BAR-Honda
• 5. Juan Pablo Montoya, McLaren-Mercedes
• 6. Michael Schumacher (Ferrari)
• 7. David Coulthard (Red Bull)
• 8. Rubens Barrichello (Ferrari)
• 9. Ralf Schumacher (Toyota)
• 10. Mark Webber (Williams)
• 11. Massa (Sauber) 12. Trulli (Toyota) 13. Pizzonia (Willliams)
• 14. Klien (Red Bull) 15. Karthikeyan (Jordan) 16. Villeneuve (Sauber)
• 17. Sato (BAR) 18. Albers (Minardi) 19. Monteiro (Jordan) 20. Doornbos (Minardi)
• RENAULT QUALIFYING REPORT
• Pat Symonds: "After a season as successful as ours has been in 2005, this is a great way to finish the final qualifying session of the year, annexing the front row with Fernando and Giancarlo. Both drivers made progress with the balance of the car this morning, and were much happier by the time qualifying began. As always, though, we must think of qualifying not as a separate challenge in terms of our strategy, but as the first lap of the race. We will have to see how the strategies pan out tomorrow, but before this weekend, we promised to take the fight to McLaren and keep the pressure on them. Without a doubt, that is what we are doing."
• McLAREN QUALIFYING REPORT
• Ron Dennis: "We came here to win the race and that is what we intend to do. As always it's strategy that counts. Both drivers did a great job, but a small mistake by Kimi possibly cost him a front row position. Juan Pablo's lap was exceptional considering the circuit conditions. The whole team is looking forward to tomorrow."

FRI PRAC, OCT 14, 2005

• 1. *Pedro de la Rosa (SPA) McLaren-Mercedes 1:33.463
  2. Rubens Barrichello (BRA) Ferrari 1:35.303
  3. *Ricardo Zonta (BRA) Toyota 1:35.373
  4. Kimi Raikkonen (Fin) McLaren-Mercedes
  5. Michael Schumacher (GER) Ferrari
  6. Juan Pablo Montoya (COL) McLaren-Mercedes
  7. Fernando Alonso (SPA) Renault
  8. Mark Webber (AusAUS Williams-BMW
  9. David Coulthard (GB) Red Bull
  10. Jenson Button (GB) BAR-Honda
  11. Antonio Pizzonia (BRA) Williams-BMW
  12. Takuma Sato (JAP) BAR-Honda
  13. Ralf Schumacher (GER) Toyota
  14. *Vitantonio Liuzzi (ITA) Red Bull
  15. Felipe Massa (BRA) Sauber-Petronas
• *reserve driver

2005 RACE PREVIEW:

BAR - BRIDGESTONE - FERRARI - JORDAN - McLAREN - RENAULT - SAUBER - TOYOTA - WILLIAMS

BAR-HONDA PREVIEW:

• Jenson Button: "The Chinese Grand Prix has become one of my favourites, so it's great to be heading there this week for the final race of the season. The Shanghai circuit is quite challenging and fun to drive. We were on the podium last year and we know it's a track that should suit this year's car."
• "We did some good work in testing for the last couple of races and though I'm reluctant to make any predictions after a disappointing home race for the team in Japan, I think we will be stronger in China. We have a busy week ahead though looking at where things went wrong for us and what we can do to make sure we can step up again to end a tough season on a high note. I am looking forward to it."
• Takuma Sato: "I am absolutely determined to have a strong race in my final grand prix for BAR Honda. Shanghai is an extremely impressive circuit in terms of the facilities and challenging track layout. Last year I had a good race from the back of the grid, and there are a number of good overtaking opportunities at this circuit. After positive tests during the past month, we believe we should have a strong package, so I am very excited about the last race of 2005."
• Gil de Ferran, Sporting director: "We are really looking forward to going to China for many reasons. It is the last race and that always has a special taste. China itself is fascinating and the circuit is fantastic. Obviously we are still licking our wounds from a difficult race in Japan, however we are hoping to be able to do a better job and finish the season on a high after a lot of analysis in the week ahead. Taku has the latest development engine which we think will be beneficial."

FERRARI PREVIEW:

• BARRICHELLO:

BRIDGESTONE PREVIEW:

• Hiroshi Yasukawa, Director of Motorsport:
• Hisao Suganuma, Technical Manager:

McLAREN-MERCEDES PREVIEW:

• Norbert Haug, (Mercedes-Benz Motorsport):
• RAIKKONEN: "I am hoping for a less eventful race this weekend in China! However, I am prepared to battle together with the team as much as we did in Japan, and more if necessary, to get the result we need. It is going to be an exciting race and we will all do what we can to take the title."
• "I enjoyed driving at Shanghai last year, as it has a good mix of challenges, such as the really long straight with overtaking opportunities at each end, which saw some interesting racing."
• "The track is generally very wide, however there are some places where it narrows down, including through the long turn one, which gets tighter and tighter. Following the Japanese race, I flew to Tokyo for a couple of days, and will travel to Shanghai on Thursday."
• MONTOYA: "Following Japan, I hope I am able to have a more productive race in China to help try and win the Constructors' title with Team McLaren Mercedes. The MP4-20s are still awesome and with the team, I want to be able to make the most of that."
• "The Shanghai International Circuit has a little bit of everything. I always like Tilke circuits; they seem to suit my driving style. The long back straight, where we reach over 330km/h, has a hairpin at the end, which is a great place to pass."
• "Turn four is also fun, you need to get a good exit to get a good lap time, and it immediately goes into turn five, which is very long and you pull lots of g forces. I arrived in Shanghai on Monday and have spent my time relaxing in preparation for the race."

SAUBER RACE PREVIEW:

• Jacques Villeneuve:
• Felipe Massa:

TOYOTA RACE PREVIEW:

• TRULLI: "The first session on Friday will be slightly strange to be finding my way around a track that everyone knows - but of course I have done that many times before during my first season in the sport. It makes the weekend slightly more interesting than usual but it doesn't affect anything. You just take ten laps to get used to the lines and that's it. From then on the weekend will be like any other."
• "I don't really know anything about the circuit yet. I watched last year's race on the television but you can learn very little from that, just as you can't really understand anything from circuit maps and simulations. The closest I have been to China was when I raced in Macau when I was in F3. So I'm looking forward to my first visit to the country and hoping that we can finish the year on a high."
• R SCHUNACHER: "Last year's Chinese Grand Prix was my race return after three months away, so it was quite a challenging weekend in many respects. I found the Shanghai International Circuit to be really well designed with some unique characteristics, especially the long corners. It's a nice combination of being a technical circuit without being high speed. Turn 1 is a challenging corner coming almost full circle. You need to be committed through here because it is easy to make a mistake."
• "Turn 13 is another very long corner, coming onto the long back straight which leads to arguably the best passing point of the lap at turn 14, a tight first gear corner. The circuit is wide and there are other chances to pass so driving there was good fun last year. Now I am looking forward to returning with Toyota for what promises to be an exciting end to a successful 2005 season."

WILLIAMS-BMW RACE PREVIEW:

• Antonio Pizzonia: "Shanghai is another new track for me, just like Suzuka, and another learning curve. I went to last year's race though so I have some idea of what the track looks like. To get to know the layout a bit better I've been on the simulator in Grove and will watch last year's GP, as I always do before a race."
• "Most of the drivers say they enjoy the circuit so I am really looking forward to this, the last race of the year. Hopefully we can close the season with a good result for the team."
• Mark Webber: "Last year's inaugural Chinese Grand Prix was one I enjoyed a lot. I went to Beijing beforehand and visited the Forbidden City and the Great Wall. All those monuments and venues are very interesting and one really must go and see that part of the world."
• "I think it's a good thing that China is hosting a Formula One race, especially in Shanghai, which is an incredibly modern city.
• The circuit itself is unique, especially the first sector which has a great layout and includes a long back straight where you can get some good overtaking done."
• "The facilities are world class and the atmosphere at the track is better than we anticipated it to be for a new venue. I enjoyed last year's event and I'm now looking forward to returning.
• Sam Michael (Technical Director, WilliamsF1): "Shanghai circuit has a unique layout, particularly at the first corner, with a good mixture of corner speeds and straights. It is quite twisty in areas and the back straight leads into a corner where you can overtake under the right circumstances. Strategy will be straight forward as we can apply the rule changes to last year's race results."
• "After Suzuka, we are looking forward to finishing the year well. Although this year has not yielded the results that would be satisfactory for WilliamsF1, it has given us added incentive to correct our position in 2006. In China, we also bid farewell to BMW with whom we have enjoyed many successful races over the last six years."
• Mario Theissen (BMW Motorsport Director): "In Shanghai, both cars will have fresh BMW P84/5 engines for the very last time, as the Chinese Grand Prix will be the final race for the V10. No doubt we will shed some tears over the end of this era but are now looking ahead to the challenges we will face with the new V8s."
• "China also marks the last race with our long-term partner, WilliamsF1. We have a six year history together, during which both parties benefited and learnt a lot from each other. Together, we have won ten Grands Prix and, in 2003, we were fighting for the Constructors' title right up until the last race of the season."
• "Unfortunately, we did not reach our mutual goal of winning the World Championship together. I'm hoping for a good final race to close our partnership.
• "China is one of BMW's fastest growing markets with enormous potential. BMW actually produces cars in China. Compared with 2004, our sales have grown by 25 percent in the region. In 2003, BMW started its first motor sport project in China with the Formula BMW Asia Championship."
• "Ho-Pin Tung, who won the series' first drivers' title, later became the first Chinese driver to ever test a Formula One car when he drove the Williams BMW FW24 in 2003. Formula BMW will again feature in this year's support package. In China, curiosity and interest in motor racing are intense and it's going to be exciting to see how this will develop in years to come."

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