BMW WilliamsF1 Team-San Marino GP-Preview
San Marino Grand Prix 18/19/20 April 2003 - PREVIEW After the lottery conditions encountered in Brazil, the BMW WilliamsF1 Team is eager to find a more consistent platform to demonstrate its true performance potential, which to date this season has been tempered by a variety of different factors. The start to the European season provides a perfect opportunity to re-establish the team¹s competitiveness, and the approach for the forthcoming San Marino Grand Prix is distinctly confident and bullish. Juan Pablo Montoya: "I am glad to be back racing in Europe, and especially at Imola. Although I have never managed to make it onto the podium there, it is a race that the whole team looks forward to. "The most noticeable change we will have to respond to will be the temperatures in San Marino which will be colder than the first three races. But this should not be a problem as we are confident about this as the Michelin tyres have considerably improved for cold conditions. I think the FW25 should work ok at Imola and we might be able to make up for the mixture of bad luck, difficult circumstances and mistakes that have not got us off to the best start this season." Ralf Schumacher: "My disappointment about the outcome of the Brazilian Grand Prix was short-lived. I am now focused on what is ahead, because the job at Imola will be difficult. I remember last year that we did not have the smallest chance against Ferrari. This time circumstances are different and the most recent test at Le Castellet has taken us another step forward. Improvements in testing are important, as the aim is now not only to beat Ferrari, but also prevent McLaren from opening up a lead. "All this said, Imola may not suit our car perfectly but it is always nice coming back to the location of my maiden F1 win. Perhaps this positive feeling might support me on the way to a good result." Sam Michael (Chief Operations Engineer, WilliamsF1): "After a wet race in Brazil, we have been testing in the wet at the Paul Ricard circuit in France with Marc and Ralf. We have also been working on chassis setup and aero developments. "San Marino can also be quite cold and wet. It is a circuit that rewards downforce, engine power and a mechanical setup that is good for the curbs without compromising high speed stability. The Imola circuit has medium to high speed corners, a couple of chicanes and requires a lot of braking. Aside from the demands it places on the car, it also presents a big challenge for the drivers. "Traditionally Imola is a multi-stop strategy due to the relatively short pitlane, but whether the new rules will lend themselves to this remains to be seen. We are confident that we are strong in our pitstop times based on the team¹s performance so far this year. "We have been conducting a lot of tyre testing to improve our position relative to the competition, using the pre-season Imola test as a baseline. It will be interesting to see how far we have progressed." Mario Theissen (BMW Motorsport Director): "After three turbulent long distance Grands Prix, we hope for a more straightforward beginning to the European season. Hopefully in Imola we will race under more representative conditions which would allow a genuine comparison of everybody¹s competitiveness. "We have several good reasons for looking forward to Imola. For the first time this season we will not have to work out of containers as we will have our trucks and motorhomes in the paddock. This makes logistics easier and improves our working conditions. Furthermore, the landmark BMW¹s first victory after its return to F1, achieved by Ralf Schumacher in Imola in 2001, is unforgettable. "Imola is a challenging circuit, not only for the brakes but also for the engines. Due to high downforce settings and uphill sections, a powerful engine is important. In Italy we will be running the latest version of the BMW P83 that we ran in the Friday qualifying sessions in Australia and Malaysia and entered in the race in Brazil for the first time." Facts and Figures - The Autodromo Enzo e Dino Ferrari in Imola is steeped in history and first staged a Formula One race eleven years after opening in 1952. It was dedicated to Dino Ferrari in 1970, and Enzo's name was added to its official name after his subsequent death in 1988. - The town of Imola in Italy¹s Emilia-Romagna region forms part of the province of Bologna and has 63,300 inhabitants. - Together with the Interlagos circuit in Brazil, Imola is the second Grand Prix circuit in the calendar in which the race direction is anti-clockwise. - The track length is 3.066 miles (4.933 km) and the race distance will be 62 laps or 189.937 miles (305.609 km). - The Grand Prix commences at 1400hrs local on Sunday, April 20. - Rubens Barrichello in his Ferrari holds the lap record of 1m24.170s set in 2002. - Pole position was taken in 2002 by Michael Schumacher (Ferrari/1m21.091s). He was also the winner of last year¹s San Marino Grand Prix. - In 2002, the BMW WilliamsF1 Team had a respecable race, finishing in the team¹s qualifying positions. Ralf Schumacher was third and Juan Pablo Montoya fourth. - The previous year, the San Marino Grand Prix on 15th April 2001 marked the maiden F1 victory for WilliamsF1-BMW partnership, scored by Ralf Schumacher - In total WilliamsF1 has recorded eight victories in Imola since 1987. Juan Pablo Montoya #3 Ralf Schumacher #4 DOB 20/09/75 - Bogota (COL) 30/06/75 Hürth (DEU) Nationality Colombian German Residence Monte Carlo (MCO) Salzburg (AUT) Marital status Married to Connie Married to Cora, one son (David) Height 1.68 m 1.78 m Weight 72 kg 73 kg F1 debut 2001, Melbourne 1997, Melbourne GP starts 37 103 Poles 10 1 Wins 1 (01 ITA) 4 (01 SMR, CAN, DEU, 02 MYS) Points (total) 89 183 Points 2003 8 (5th) 6 (10th) Fastest laps 6 6 2003 Qualifying Race Qualifying Race Australian GP 3. 2. 9. 8. Malaysian GP 8 12. 17. 4. Brazilian GP 9 DNF 6 9 Paddock Media Briefings: Thursday 14:00-14:30 JPM (TVs followed by print media) - HP motorhome 14:30-15:00 RS (TVs followed by print media) - HP motorhome Friday 15:45 RS (five minutes of TV interviews) - back of the garage Saturday 5 minutes after Qualifying 5 minutes of TV interviews (both drivers) - back of the garage 16:30-17:00 JPM (TVs followed by print media) - HP motorhome 17:00-17:30 RS (TVs followed by print media) - BMW motorhome 17:30-18:00 Frank Williams / Gerhard Berger (print media only) - BMW motorhome Sunday 10:00 Official Team Photo (pit lane) 30 minutes after Race Sam Michael available for media questions (15 minutes) - WilliamsF1 motorhome