Canadian GP: Friday Press Conference

08/06/2012

Antonio, today there was an incident in the pitlane with one of your mechanics and Pedro De la Rosa. Just to clear up any misconceptions or any misunderstandings, can you tell us how your mechanic is?
Antonio Cuquerella: The mechanic I think, happily, is OK. He just got some bruises and a swollen knee. So, it looked worse when it happened but luckily he's going to be back with us tonight from hospital. Some checks have been done but nothing important. He's going to have some pain but in a few days he's going to be back to work.

No broken bones?
AC: No, no.

Andrew, your drivers are expecting updates, at least Paul Di Resta told us so yesterday. What's the situation? Are you going to be able to deliver those updates?
Andrew Green: We're going to follow the same plan as last year, which is we'll continually bring new part to the track every race, as a strategy that we've followed before, as most teams do. Yeah, we will deliver what we can, that's our target. There are updates here, there will be updates in Valencia, there will be a bigger one at Silverstone. That's the idea. We'll keep pushing. It's incredibly tight and fractions of a second can mean multiple places on the grid. It's harder than ever. There's a big push back at the factory - more than ever.

Both drivers very well placed in Monaco, and today as well. How well are those two working together and how good is it to have two competitive drivers, perhaps pushing one another as well?
AG: Very important. It's also important that they're both team players. They know that they want to push the team forward, they're not just individuals, and they work as a team. We all work as a team pushing the team forward and they get pulled along with that. They both work together very well. It's good that they both push each other. They're both very talented, extremely talented. We're very very happy with the way they work. It's a nice place to be.

Antonio, you've been in our new premises now for over a month. Are you beginning to see the benefits of that?
AC: Absolutely. Now we are all together under the same roof and that has been a massive step forward for us. The factory is a much better place. It's a place we can work together and communication-wise it's of course much better. Assembling the cars, engineering, marketing, finance, all departments are together. It's normal for everybody but it wasn't for us, so it's a big step forward.

I guess it's not working at 100% of what you hoped, so what sort of percentage is it?
AC: Well, we still have two big departments that are recruiting people, you probably have seen a lot of advertisements, but I would say we are probably at 60 per cent. I hope that at the end of the year we should be at 90%.

Graeme, same thing with you really. You've moved into new premises. How much of a difference has that made?
Graeme Lowdon: It has made quite a big difference. Three years in Formula One and we're on to our second factory already. I think the main thing, that has already been said, is that it improves communication and that's been a big help. So, we're quite happy with the location we're in now.

I believe you're going to the Fan Forum in New York on Monday. What are the thoughts behind that?
GL: I think all the teams are pretty much the same. Effectively, we're racing teams but we're manufacturing businesses working in a global market and you can't ignore North America. No company with global aspirations if you like can ignore such a big market. Formula One has been out of North America for a few years now and I think it is a very important marketplace. One thing we do know is that there is a huge response from the fans. They want to get close to the teams, they want to understand what's happening and it's a really good thing that we can take our drivers, talk to the fans, interact with them and really understand what it is that they enjoy about Formula One and try to give a little bit back. And, as I say, it's such an important marketplace with its heritage and its history, and you look at the car manufacturing base in North America as well, I think we have to make a really big effort and try to put on a great show for all the fans.

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