Jarno Trulli
Monaco is a race that demands physical preparation. What is your
approach for this?
Since the weather is always good at Monte-Carlo, we have being
performing with the team trainers a five-day session involving lots
of cycling and jogging out in the open. Then we also have being doing
gym work with special exercises to strengthen the arms, which is the
part of the body that is put under the more strain than usual because
of the unique characteristics of the street circuit. At Monaco, the
drivers use the steering wheel a lot which, when you add in how bumpy
the circuit is, means the arms suffer quite a pounding. As well as the
physical exercises, the trainers also get us to do mental exercises to
get us to improve or even increase our level of concentration during
a race. At Monaco you need to concentrate even more than for other
circuits, and it'll punish the slightest mistake. So you need to be
constantly working on your concentration!
What is your favourite part of the circuit?
For me Monaco is kind of a home circuit, because I used to live there.
That is how I got to be familiar with it and enjoy it, but my favourite
part is definitely the swimming pool area. It is quite a fast section,
and this year they've made some changes to it. I haven't seen it yet,
which is why Thursday is test session will be even more important than
usual, because that's when we'll be familiarising ourselves with the
changes to the circuit.
Fernando Alonso
Do you like the Monaco circuit?
Monte-Carlo is a really special circuit for all the drivers, and can
rightly be considered a reference in the Formula One Championship.
I don't think Monaco is very technical ñ there are more technical
circuits than this one ñ but when it comes to concentration, Monaco
is the most demanding. You can never let up for a moment, and you've
always got to be giving over 100%! The slightest mistake can be very
costly for the car. I've only raced at Monaco in Grand Prix twice in
my life: once when I was in Formula 3000 and the other time was two
years ago now when I was with Minardi. But I had gearbox trouble and
couldn't finish the race! My favourite part is the second section after
the tunnel. This is a pretty fast section of the track and the most
beautiful and spectacular.
The Monaco Grand Prix is traditionally a huge media affair. What kind
of state of mind do you approach it with?
Personally I'm not very jet set, but I do think that because of its
history, the great sporting moments and atmosphere it has witnessed,
Monte-Carlo is one-of-a-kind. I feel that winning at Monaco means more
than winning anywhere else. Monte- Carlo is part of the legend of motor
sport, which makes me want to do well here even more. And I'm confident
the car will be competitive. Last year it did well and I'm optimistic
we'll do well again this year.
Allan McNish
- Test driver
Allan, how are you going to use the extra two hours to fine tune the
cars?
At Monaco the extra two hours will be very beneficial for both the
chassis and tyres as well as for the drivers. It's a street circuit
so it takes time for it to get the right level of grip. The two hours
of testing will give us a good idea of what we need, particularly
concerning the tyres. Also, for the drivers, all additional testing in
Monaco is vitally important.
As a resident of Monaco this is a home Grand Prix for you. How do you
feel about that?
For me, Monaco is a unique experience. It's where I live and I see all
the changes to the town throughout the two weeks leading up to the
Grand Prix, during the Grand Prix and after the event. It's weird how
you can drive the same route as the F1 cars during the race weekend.
For example, I'll be driving my Renault MÈgane through the same Monaco
streets the day before the race. It's one of those situations that's
perfect and paradoxical at the same time!
What will the track conditions be like?
Usually the circuit is slippery because it's in the city of Monaco
and used every day. This year they've just changed the route ñ which
means it's good to have an extra two hours!! Before you went past the
swimming pool then left before sweeping round into the Rascasse turn,
which was really hard. Now it's been changed and everyone's going to
have to learn the modifications by heart. Every time I drive at Monaco,
I feel like Aim driving in a tunnel: the barriers are so high and the
cars so low that you always feel you're in a tunnel, only at speeds of
up to 280km/h! It's really like a video game!
Mike Gascoyne
- Technical Director
Monaco is traditionally a circuit where your cars work well ñ do you
think they'll be competitive again this time?
Since the start of the season we've been aware that this circuit should
suit our cars well. Last year we were very competitive here and we hope
that will be the case again this year. To do well on this track, there
are two key elements: chassis behaviour and downforce. We've made a lot
of aerodynamic changes to the cars for this race, which have made me
pretty confident about the level of performance we'll be able to reach
at Monaco.
The R23 is known to be aerodynamically very effective. Is this an
important factor at Monaco? In what other areas of the car is the track
demanding?
At Monaco, aerodynamics is essential to get the maximum downforce,
and that's where you can leverage the maximum effectiveness. This was
already the case at Barcelona where, with the right aerodynamics, we
managed to get very good downforce. And, of course, you need a chassis
that's mechanically effective.
How would you sum up last weekend's Austrian Grand Prix?
The race at Austria was both hard and, in terms of the end result,
disappointing. Throughout the whole weekend we were pleasantly
surprised by our level of competitiveness, given that the track didn't
really suit us. Having said that, it was a tough weekend because we
didn't manage to get out cars in the right shape to complete the race.
So it was a Grand Prix to forget, but also one that's made us even more
raring to succeed in Monaco!
Last week you did another round of testing at Paul Ricard. What work
were you carrying out on the cars?
We mainly tested tyres ahead of the Monaco Grand Prix, but we also
tried the new aerodynamic package we'll be using for this Grand Prix.
Pat Symonds
- Executive Director of Engineering
And so the Monaco Grand Prix has come around again. How will the extra
two hours of testing on Friday be used?
These two hours will definitely be vital. Monaco is such a unique,
special circuit that even though the drivers love racing here, they
still need to spend as much time in the car as possible. The drivers
often use the free-test sessions at Monaco to get in as many miles as
they can in order to familiarise themselves as much as possible with
the track. But despite that, I think the advantage of the extra two
hours on Friday morning will be on the one hand that our drivers will
be able to get more used to the track and adapt to it, and on the other
hand it will give us the chance to fine-tune the race strategies we
might use.
This is a circuit that's very demanding on the transmission and
gearbox. Will you be making any special changes to them, or just
adapting them to the circuit so they can cope with the enormous
stresses?
Yes, you could say these two elements are highly stressed at Monaco and
are both essential. Especially the gearbox, because the surface of the
circuit is bumpy and slippery, and that's a problem for an automatic
gearbox. As you shift up the gears you have to be careful the engine
doesn't over-rev on the bumps. Then as you shift down, the gears have
to change smoothly so they don't lock up the rear wheels making the
cars hard to handle for the drivers. Usually we bring special gearboxes
which are as smooth as possible. Then the circuit's really hard on the
transmission, which is why we reinforce certain components against the
stresses they'll be put under.
What impact do the tyres have on the overall performance of the cars on
this circuit?
Monaco is a tough circuit insofar as it's totally unique among all
the other circuits in the calendar. Because it's a street circuit,
it's really slippery, dirty and extremely bumpy compared with a normal
track. Over the weekend, track conditions change so quickly it's hard
to get the most out all the data we collect on the tyres and the car.
The tyres best suited to this circuit are the ones with the softest
rubber compound in the range, even if sometimes it's hard to make the
right choices.
Monte-Carlo is unique not only because of where it is but because it
poses the biggest problems of the season when it comes to deciding on
the right strategy. This year this problem will be even bigger given
the new regulations. Overtaking at Monaco is virtually impossible. In
the past there have been plenty of times when fast cars were held up by
much slower ones and you could do nothing about it. Which is what makes
the qualifiers so decisive, because a car that's in a good position on
the starting grid has a better chance of being in a good position at
the end of the race. That means the strategy you use and the tactics
you choose are absolutely key to success in the race. There are lots
of strategies you can use, but only one winning one. All this has an
impact on the way you work, too. Good lap times don't necessarily mean
that the car is set up right, it could just mean it's the driver whose
found the better line. So it's going to be very interesting to see
which team makes the best choices.
Remi Taffin
- Engine Race Engineer Car n 8
Engine preview
Owing to its unique layout, Monaco is not a circuit where the most
powerful engine represents a significant advantage. A light, compact
engine design represents a much more significant help.
It's a very slow circuit, with an extremely small amount of the lap,
about 35% spent at full throttle, explains Remi Taffin, engine race
engineer for Fernando Alonso. Engine revs can drop as low as 5.000 rpm
on this circuit, notably at the Loews hairpin (taken at 45 km/h), yet
comfortably exceed 17.000 rpm at the exit pf the tunnel (300 km/h).
Furthermore, the race is the shortest of the season, just 260,52 km,
with a significantly reduced level of fuel consumption.
The race therefore demands a flexible and driveable engine. Flexibility
in an engine is defined as the availability of power from low revs,
increasing progressively rather than suddenly. Driveability indicates
that the engine works well under all conditions, meaning the drivers can
avoid certain risky gear- changes on the twisty circuit.
We also have to change the engine's intake configuration at Monaco,
continues Remi Taffin. Instead of maximum power at very high revs, we
look to create torque from low revs. It's the only circuit where the
engine revs drop so low so often.î
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