BMW Sauber F1 Team - Chinese Grand Prix

BMW Sauber F1 Team - Chinese Grand Prix - Preview

Chinese Grand Prix

17th – 19th April 2009
3rd of 17 World Championship races

Preview.

Munich/Hinwil, 9th April 2009. Following the spectacular PETRONAS Malaysian Grand Prix that saw Nick Heidfeld take second for the BMW Sauber F1 Team, the Chinese Grand Prix is now next on the weekend of 17th to 19th April. Previously always held in the autumn, the GP will this time take place in spring.

Robert Kubica:
“It’s the first time we’re going to Shanghai at this time of year, when there is a high chance of rain. That can have a major impact on the whole weekend, of course. The circuit is very challenging with long straights and hard braking. Plus there are several high-speed corners, for example the slightly banked right-hander you take at almost full throttle and that leads onto the back straight. It’s one of the longest straights on the whole race calendar. And, of course, the combination of turn one and two with the blind apex and the long braking is a real challenge. So far Shanghai hasn’t brought me any luck, but I’m hoping that will change this time round.”

Nick Heidfeld:
“This year’s race is scheduled much earlier than before, so we can probably expect considerably lower temperatures. That will make a difference to the tyres in particular, but it will also bring with it a different atmosphere. We’ve seen some good races in Shanghai, and I hope that will be the case in 2009 as well. The first corner is the highlight of the circuit. You go into it at high speed, and to begin with you stay on the throttle, but then it keeps tightening up and you have to drop down to second gear.

“The city of Shanghai is just as exciting. We’ve been racing there since 2004 and you can really observe how the city is changing from year to year. On the one hand there are extremely poor districts, while on the other you get smart restaurants along the Bund with a great view of the Pearl Tower and the Shanghai skyline. The traffic is unpleasant, and we’re not allowed to drive ourselves here. Last year my driver had an accident on the motorway on Saturday night. You quite often get cars unexpectedly stranded on the road, and obviously it was too late for him to brake. Fortunately it wasn’t serious, but traffic conditions in Shanghai are really terrible.”

Mario Theissen, BMW Motorsport Director:
“After a short Easter break, we look forward to the second back-to-back of the season. Shanghai is a booming city of millions, and the sheer scale of the race track and its facilities are unsurpassed. From the point of view of BMW as a car manufacturer and all our partners, the Chinese GP is of significant commercial interest. This region has enormous growth potential.

“China is our biggest market in Asia and the fifth largest worldwide. Since 2004 BMW has also run a production plant in China, where BMW 3 Series and BMW 5 Series models are manufactured as part of a joint venture. Unlike last year, this year’s race takes place early on in the season. In Shanghai we hope to continue on from our successful result in Kuala Lumpur.”

Willy Rampf, Head of Engineering:
“The Shanghai circuit has several fast corners that demand a great deal of downforce and high vehicle stability. Due to the restrictions on aerodynamics introduced this season, we will probably be running with maximum downforce. But there are also long straights where maximum speed is of the essence. Because the track is very wide and the run-off areas are mostly tarred, a bit of a slide doesn’t necessarily mean you’re out of the race. That’s an incentive for the drivers to overtake, so we can look forward to quite a spectacular race. Good car balance is important, particularly in the first turn combination. The drivers go into it at very high speed and brake deep into the corner. This section is undoubtedly one of the highlights of the season in terms of testing driving skills. All in all, Shanghai is a very challenging circuit.”

History and background:

Shanghai is located in the Yangtze Delta facing the East China Sea. Population figures vary considerably for a city which has for years now been booming and growing – literally – thanks to land reclamation. Approximate averages indicate ten million living in the municipal area and a further five million in the suburbs.

Formula One has been coming to China since 2004. After an elaborate drying-out project, the vast circuit complex was built on reclaimed marshland outside the city. In designing the track layout and the complex as a whole, emphasis was placed on local colour. The layout recalls the Chinese character “Shang”, which translates as “high” or “above”. Traditional Chinese style elements were integrated into the architecture of the immense pit lane buildings and grandstands.

BMW Sauber F1 Team - Chinese Grand Prix - Qualifying

Weather: dry and sunny, 22-25°C Air, 33-38°C Track


Shanghai (CN). The BMW Sauber F1 Team faces a challenging Chinese Grand Prix with Nick Heidfeld having missed the final qualifying session by just a hundredth of a second and Robert Kubica starting from only 18th.

The evaluation of the data from Friday’s Free Practice sessions indicated using KERS would not give Kubica’s F1.09 a lap time advantage at the Shanghai International Circuit. The Pole will therefore not have KERS on his car for the rest of the weekend. Due to its advantage Heidfeld will go into the race with KERS.

Nick Heidfeld:
BMW Sauber F1.09-04 / BMW P86/9 (KERS)
Qualifying 11th, 1:35.975 min (3rd Free Practice: 11th, 1:36.702 min)
“My first and quickest lap in Q2 was the best I could get out of the car, and it was a really good one. I was hoping to get an even better lap time on the second run just because the track conditions always improve during qualifying. But then for some reason with that set of Option tyres the grip wasn’t there. We have to find out why that was. I missed the top ten qualifying by just one hundredth of a second, but nevertheless it is obvious we have a lack of pace. We hope an aerodynamic update, which will come for the Spanish Grand Prix, will help us. For now we have to get the most out of the situation and for tomorrow there is a chance for rain which would be great. We will think carefully about our race strategy now. As I’m out of the top ten I’m free to choose my fuel load.”

Robert Kubica:
BMW Sauber F1.09-05 / BMW P86/9
Qualifying 18th, 1:36.966 min in Q1 (3rd Free Practice: 12th, 1:36.742 min)
“The car had no grip and was not at all easy to drive. I struggled with the softer tyre compound. After this morning’s session I didn’t expect this at all, as the gap between softer and harder tyres was bigger then. Additionally I made a mistake braking in turn 12 which cost me my lap time.”

Mario Theissen (BMW Motorsport Director):
“Today’s qualifying was very disappointing. Data evaluation from Free Practice indicated our car would not work on this track. Both drivers complained about lack of grip, and we didn’t manage to solve this problem. Because of these circumstances, both drivers had difficulties driving a perfect lap. This also affected our grid positions. We now have to get the best out of our situation with a good race strategy.”

Willy Rampf (Head of Engineering):
“We expected something completely different after the results of the first two races. Of course with these disappointing starting positions we cannot be happy. In comparison to other teams, we have lost some ground. Now to get closer to the top we have to reduce the gap with an intensive development programme.”

Edited by Melvyn Pettit - 18 Apr 2009 at 1:22pm

Think some of the GP teams have lot of work to do this year - but good to see some other teams getting some points rather than the usual teams

And - 1st full race under wet conditions for Brawn. Very good set up/result considering very little testing under these conditions.

Yes  Red Bull does have the budget, and their young driver team in the states is hoping to bring on a USA driver.