BMW WilliamsF1 Team-French GP Preview
French Grand Prix - 19/20/21 July 2002 - PREVIEW After the vagaries of the British summer made for a gripping race at Silverstone last weekend, the warm summer conditions allied to the remarkably even surface and fast corners make for a more predictable expectations from the French Grand Prix at Magny-Cours. In spite of the weather, the British Grand Prix produced encouraging results for the BMW WilliamsF1 Team. The WilliamsF1-BMW FW24¹s new aerodynamic package, introduced at Silverstone, proved to be a decisive step forward with Juan Pablo Montoya achieving his fifth pole position and concluding the race on the third step of the podium. Ralf Schumacher thrived on the Magny-Cours circuit last year when he started from pole position and finished second. With both a strong performance last weekend and an established record in France, the BWM WilliamsF1 Team is approaching the 11th round of the FIA Formula One World Championship in confident mood. Juan Pablo Montoya: "I think Magny-Cours is a pretty good circuit and it should prove to be a strong race for us. It's Michelin¹s home ground and this makes it even more interesting. According to the development schedule, the team should benefit from some new tyres which will allow us to perform more consistently in the French GP. Last year the race was not so good for me and I retired from second place, so I am hoping to score some points this time. My priority is to improve my position in the Drivers World Championship standings." Ralf Schumacher: "Putting aside the problems we experienced with the fuel rig at Silverstone that we will solve, last race showed that we have taken a considerable step forward in dry conditions. The new aero package and our hard work testing tyres and traction control have pushed us forward and have made us more competitive. We are improving step by step and the same should be true at Magny-Cours as well. To be honest, I don't feel like congratulating my brother on his World Championship victory in France. I would prefer to delay this as much as possible!" Sam Michael (Chief Operations Engineer, WilliamsF1): 'Magny-Cours should be a competitive circuit for the BMW WilliamsF1 Team and with the improvements we have brought to the car we are confident of a strong performance. The circuit has one high speed section and a couple of high speed chicanes, as well as a couple of slow and medium speed corners. Traction will be important and the tyres will tend towards the soft side because of the smooth tarmac. For the same reason the set-up can be run stiffer to give high speed support without too much compromise at slow speed. The strategy is usually clear due to the typical tyre degradation and the pit lane at Magny-Cours. Overtaking is also possible at the end of the long back straight." Gerhard Berger (BMW Motorsport Director): "In Magny-Cours we will be facing a medium speed circuit and most likely a true summer race. At the last race in Silverstone we managed to make it to the podium again and we are hoping for good results in France as well. In view of Ferrari's current performance, Michael Schumacher might win the championship in Magny-Cours. At the same time, we also want to make a step forward in our ambitions to strengthen our second position in the Constructors' World Championship in relation to McLaren. The new aerodynamic package we used for the first time in Silverstone should help us as well as the tests which are focused on the tyre development in order to perform more consistently in the race." Facts and Figures … WilliamsF1 has won four of the eleven Grands Prix held in Magny-Cours since 1991 and also secured six pole positions on the circuit, the latest in 2001. … Last year the BMW WilliamsF1 Team celebrated the first pole position of their partnership in Magny-Cours. Ralf Schumacher claimed pole on his birthday when he set a qualifying time of 1m12.989s … The 2002 race will be the 52nd French Grand Prix. The French Grand Prix has had seven homes since the first race in 1950 the other venues being Reims, Rouen, Clermont-Fèrrand, Le Mans, Le Castellet and Dijon-Prenois. The only country to have held more races at different venues is the USA with a total of nine … There is a high probability of hot summer conditions at Magny-Cours which are demanding for the car¹s cooling systems. In 2000,the average temperatures during the race were 30°C (air) and 35°C (track). Last year 28°C air temperatures and 46°C track temperatures were noted as average during Sunday¹s race. The circuit is 2.642 miles (4.251 km) long and the 72 lap race will be held over 190.109 miles (305.886 km) … The lap record was set in 2001 by David Coulthard in a McLaren-Mercedes with a time of 1m16.088s (201.130 km/h) … Ferrari¹s Michael Schumacher won last year¹s race ahead of his brother, Ralf. Juan Pablo Montoya did not finish the 2001 French Grand Prix … The race will start at 14.00 local time (12.00 UTC) on Sunday, 21st July. … The historical pit stop windows for a two-stop-strategy are between laps 22 and 27 for the first stop and between laps 44 and 50 for the second stop. Tyre degradation is classified medium for Magny-Cours. … There are just four days between the chequered flag on Sunday in France and the first day of practice for the German Grand Prix. The cars will be stripped down and the engines and gearboxes will be changed in the garages in France. The mechanics will load the cars on Monday morning into the trucks for the journey to Hockenheim. There is no time for the cars to be sent back to the WilliamsF1 factory in Grove for the usual strip down, and any parts needed will have to be sent directly to the German track where the mechanics will start working on the cars on Wednesday. This schedule will reduce the usual time they have for Grand Prix preparation from an average of six to about two days. Ralf Schumacher #5 Juan Pablo Montoya #6 DOB 30/06/75 - Hürth (DEU) 20/09/75 - Bogota (COL) Nationality German Colombian Residence Salzburg (AUT) Monte Carlo (MCO) Marital status Married to Cora, one son (David) Engaged to Connie Freydell Height 1.78 m 1.68 m Weight 73 kg 72 kg F1 debut 1997, Melbourne 2001, Melbourne Poles 1 8 Wins 4 1 Points (total) 165 62 Points 2002 30 31 Fastest laps 6 6 2002 Qualifying Race Qualifying Race GP Australia 3rd accident 6th 2nd GP Malaysia 4th 1st 2nd 2nd GP Brazil 3rd 2nd 1st 5th GP San Marino 3rd 3rd 4th 4th GP Spain 3rd 11th 4th 2nd GP Austria 2nd 4th 4th 3rd GP Monaco 4th 3rd 1st Dnf GP Canada 4th 7th 1st Dnf GP Europe 2nd 4th 1st Dnf GP England 4th 8th 1st 3rd Reuters provides the BMW WilliamsF1 Team with graphics that are supplied copyright free for editorial use. These graphics are available for viewing at www.bmw.williamsf1.com. If you wish to use these graphics contact Stephanie Jordan at Reuters who will provide you with high resolution copies. E-mail: stephanie.jordan@reuters.com