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Italian GP: Thursday Press Conference Part 1

NEWS STORY
31/08/2017

Sebastian, let's start with you. There seems to have been a real bounce. If you can fight with Mercedes, especially at Spa, then you can fight them anywhere. Has the success of the updates you brought to Hungary and Spa given you clear belief as far as the Championship is concerned?

Sebastian Vettel: No. It wasn't necessary. I think there was always belief. If you're going to come into the race and you don't have the feeling, or belief that you can achieve something for one race or many races in succession then there's not much point. But, to really answer your question, I guess, the form we showed in Spa was real and the speed was there in particular in the race which weeks ago, on a similar type of track, maybe wasn't the case. So that's very positive. Obviously, we had a smoother weekend all around but still, I think we've made improvements on all fronts. So, I was very, very happy with the performance last week.

It's been a while since a Ferrari driver came to Monza leading the Drivers' World Championship. With the new commitment that you've just made to Ferrari for three more years, do you feel now the full force of tifosi support and is it worth a tenth or two, do you think?
SV: Well it's worth something! Obviously, we get out tomorrow and then we see for the first time how many people show up but I guess it ramps up also during the weekend. This morning was fairly quiet but considering - I walked the track - but considering it's only Thursday there were still a lot of people with flags around the track - definitely more than in other places. So, yeah, difficult to quantify but I guess there's something there. Obviously, it's a grand prix that the whole team enjoys and it's very special to be part of. So, need to make sure we enjoy it.

Sergio, coming to you, your battle with Esteban has been one of the stories, one of the talking points of the season. Things started to get a little tricky in Canada, then obviously in Baku there was a collision, a little bit of contact in Budapest and then obviously, we had Spa last weekend. Why have things escalated and what's your side the story?
Sergio Perez: We've been racing very closely lately. As you say, we've had a couple of incidents in the last races. I think, I had a really good conversation with him, personally, between him and me, and I think it's time to move forwards. Everyone had his opinion of what happened. The engineers have one opinion, the fans, us... have different opinions on what has been happening. The most important thing is that, from now, we move forwards. The main objective as a team is to finish fourth in the Constructors' and we cannot afford to lose any more points. I think we've lost quite a lot of points in those races you've just mentioned, so we will move forwards and I'm very sure that these things will not happen again.

Esteban, what's your side of the story. Why did things escalate, and escalate particularly during the race in Belgium?
Esteban Ocon: We've been racing really closely, as Sergio was saying, we're always fighting for the last tenths in qualifying, or in the race so, for sure, it's really close between us. But yeah, what has happened before has happened. Now we can't change what happened before. We have to move forwards. As Sergio was saying, we had a talk this morning together, just us two. Yeah, it is time we forget all that, that we work hard for the team. It's important - that's what they deserve as well - that we behave as professionals and yeah, we want to keep challenging the others, keep pushing them and we have to keep that fourth place until the end.

So, you look forward. Sergio, the team has indicated they won't let this happen again, that instructions will be given. As the more senior driver, how would you like that to be managed?
SP: I think we are both mature enough. Esteban has been racing for a long time as well and I think we both know how to handle things. Yeah, although there will be some instructions coming out for us, I think we will put everything in place to make sure the interests of the team come first before us.

And Esteban, is it important for your development that you'll be allowed to push to the maximum at every event - and how will team instructions affect that?
EO: No, I mean, it doesn't matter if I'm a rookie or if I have experience or not. At the end, what matters at the end is the result for us, the result for the team and yeah, if there is a team instruction, I will follow it. There is no other points.

Sebastian, quick one for you, at your previous team, you experienced a similarly tense battle with your team-mate. Does there come a point in a relationship where a line is crossed that you can't go back from - and how do you avoid that?
SV: No, I don't think... I think you can always talk to each other. On track, let's be fair, you have occasions where things may not turn out the way both want to. I don't think any driver ever has really bad intentions over his team mate or any other guy but for sure the duel with your team-mate is a bit more intense. You're driving the same car, you are therefore naturally fighting for the same position around the track. So, yeah, you want to stay ahead. I think inside the car you want to be the one that is in front. At the time maybe you don't care much about what else is going on, as they both mentioned. Obviously, the team behind, they don't really care which driver because they see their cars. It's a tough line in terms of, y'know, you have to be, in a way, egoistic inside a car. Equally, you want to do the best for the team. But there's never a line, I think, you cross you can never can come back from. They obviously took the opportunity to talk to each other and y'know, if I look now with Mark, obviously, I guess that's the one you're talking about, I have a very good relationship with him and we talked also about stuff that happened years ago with a lot of distance and y'know, now we can laugh about it. We both have our views, I think we both have different views, maybe now on some things that we had back but that's normal as you go forwards. That's why I think you can also cross a line again.

Quick question to all three of you: it is Ferrari's 70th anniversary, as Sebastian's hat tells us. A quick specific Ferrari memory, either from your childhood or your racing career, any special Ferrari Formula One memory.
SP: I think the one that's comes to my mind was the first test that I did for Ferrari when I was a member of the Ferrari academy. Was a very special day and that will stick with me forever. Ferrari is the team that we all admire, that we all want to do well as a Formula One fan. So that moment was very special.

EO: Yeah, also, I tested for Ferrari back in 2014, at the end of the year. It was just magical. Testing in Fiorano on that beautiful track, driving a Ferrari, working with Italian engineers, Italian mechanics. I also speak Italian, I've lived in Italy, I've raced a lot in go-kart in Italy and you know what Ferrari is for motorsport. It's something massive. I'm also a big fan of Michael and I was watching on TV when I was really young and I will also remember looking at the Ferrari ahead.

And finally Sebastian, you've obviously got a pretty decent scrapbook of your own memories of Ferrari - any before that in particular?
SV: Yeah, as another big admirer of Michael, most of my memories as a child of watching Formula One are linked to Michael and in that case linked to Ferrari. So, big admiration for him but for the car he was racing, for the team and obviously the dream came true when I was able to join the team - but yeah, lots of memories. Childhood, I remember I was always racing with toy cars and the red car always won. Don't know why! It's sort of what I was taught by the world around me, I guess, is that that car should be in the front, or has to be in front. Yeah, and obviously since then when I had the opportunity through Michael to be in the Ferrari garage for the time, I think Nurburgring 2003 for a short time. Just magical to see the guys moving around, everybody dressed in red. These kind of things really matter to you as a child and make a difference. Now, obviously, I'm there whenever I want to be, which is quite nice. So, lots of very, very special memories.

Questions From The Floor

(Frederic Ferret - L'Equipe) Question to both Force India drivers. Can we know when you talked to each other and what was the talking about. What have you said?
SP: It was this morning and it was mainly... I went to Esteban's room and I had a talk with him. We basically said like... I mean... the engineers have their view, it's pointless going again through each of the incidents because everyone has their point to say, so let's just move on together. Let's forget the past and go forwards together. I believe that a new relationship can start from now on and I really hope that from now on we can be working as a team and we can put the interests of the team first, and we both came to that agreement and it was quite simple.

Esteban?
EO: He said everything.

(Dieter Rencken - Racing Lines) To both Force India drivers. Obviously given the fact you're so closely matched in the same cars it's inevitable you're going to be together, whether it's this year or next year. Is it not possibly time that one of you considered going elsewhere. You're both in the frame for a Renault drive - who's going to sign first?
SP: I think that's not the way I look at things. I want to do the best for the current team that I am with and I want to do the best results. I think we both know that we have done wrong in the past for this team so my main target, I'm not thinking to run away. I believe that working with Esteban is still possible. It can still be a successful partnership and I'm not thinking to move elsewhere.

EO: I think I'm not thinking of that at the moment. There is a big challenge ahead. We have a car and a great team behind us, which we can score points at every race doing a great job, so at the moment I'm focussing to the drive with Force India and not to next year - but I fully trust my management side and I'm sure I will have an opportunity to drive F1 next year.

(David Croft - Sky Sports) Sorry guys, another question for Esteban and Sergio, who mentioned the points that Force India have lost this year. Esteban you say you need to behave as professionals. Do you both feel that you haven't behaved as professionals on the track at times this year. Is that a fair comment to make?
EO: I think we both crossed the line, that's for sure. We touched so of course something was wrong in there. I'm not going to argue because it's all behind now and we want to move forwards but for sure we crossed the line and we can't do that in the future for the purpose of the team and even for us.

SP: Same.

(Marco Privitera - LiveGP.it) A question for Seb. We have seen a big fight in Spa with Lewis in the final part of the race. If you would be here in Monza in the same situation, would you attack him in a stronger way in order to make a special gift to Ferrari's tifosi, or would you rather think about your championship hopes?
SV: I think you are racing to win the race. I think that has priority. Obviously you need to be aware of what you are doing but it wasn't like I was saving myself. I tried everything I had at the time. I stick with him the whole race, so I was battling, I think the whole race with him. Maybe not wheel-to-wheel but it was really close and intense from a driving point of view. So I enjoyed that a lot but obviously he had the upper hand in the end. So there can be only one of the top step of the podium. I think there are some things that I learned from Spa, that we learned as a team but I learned as a driver. Things that I would do a bit different. But at the time it felt like the right thing to do, with hindsight it was a bit more clever. Here I think it's a different track. Generally it's possible to overtake. We'll see where we are in the race. I think going into this weekend we need to be fair and say that the track layout suits Mercedes but the performance that we showed last week gives us hope. So, we tried to do the best. Obviously, yeah, there should be quite a good atmosphere and a lot of support so for sure we try to give all the love and passion that we've received so far this year, we try to also give something back from our side.

Check out our Thursday gallery from Monza, here.

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