Team Representatives: Simone Resta, Adrian Newey and Pierre Wache.
Welcome, everybody, to our team press conference ahead of the FIA Formula One Hungarian Grand Prix. From left to right today, we're joined by Simone Resta, Adrian Newey and Pierre Waché. A very warm welcome to you all. Adrian, if we could start with you, please. You're running a heavily revised car here. How's it going? What feedback have you had from the drivers so far?
Adrian Newey: We only really got properly running, with data acquisition, first of all, and then, with Fernando, we got onto soft tyres near the end. Very early days in terms of understanding the new package.
What's your gut feeling about how it's going and what you're seeing?
AN: Provisional results are promising. It's only part of the package, so we'll have some more steps in Zandvoort and then further in Monza/Baku. It's the first part of our planned upgrade. We're very short on parts, so we're being careful with it and trying to learn all about it.
How would you describe this upgrade? Is it an evolution of what you had before, or is it radically different?
AN: It's an evolution, inasmuch as the chassis is the same, the layout's the same, the front suspension's the same. So, it's very much an aerodynamic evolution. We were very short on research time prior to the launch of the car back in Barcelona in February. So, it's really been a matter of taking a step back, trying to understand and going forward with this package.
Final one for me, Adrian. What performance goals have you set, both for this weekend and going forward in the second half of the season?
AN: I've never been a fan of setting goals. I'm much more a fan of working logically through problems, getting everybody working together, getting the culture together, and then, at that point, you end up where you end up. What I have found over the years is, when you're not winning, it seems an impossible mountain to climb. When you are winning, sometimes you're not sure how you got there, because you're not actually doing anything different, or you don't feel as if you're doing anything different.
Adrian, thank you for that. Now, Pierre, if we could come to you. Given Max's pace in qualifying at Monaco, just how confident are you coming into this Hungary weekend?
Pierre Wache: I'm not fully confident, to be honest. The other competitors have improved a lot since Monaco. We see plenty of changes on different cars, plus the track layout is quite different to Monaco, and the different problems and compromises you have at this track are different. With this new car, you see a different problem every time you go to the track, when you put the car on the ground. We try to maximise it, but no confidence.
Max was feeling very positive yesterday about the momentum you've built in recent races. What about you? How pleased are you with the progress you've made with the RB22?
PW: Yes, some positives. I think the main aspect is that we started behind and, for sure, we have progressed. I think it's a very good job from the team to progress and to arrive where we are. We still aren't where we would like to be, but, as Adrian mentioned, you try to do your best, try to understand what is not working and what you can do better, and after that you see where you are. But the main thing is that the progress was interesting as a team.
You say you started behind. Is some of that due to the fact that you developed so late into last season?
PW: It's difficult to say. At the end, I think some others just did a very good job. For sure, we fought until the end, and like the other team, McLaren, I think we are a little bit behind, both of us, based on what we did last year.
Pierre, thank you for that. Simone, Pierre just said some others have done a very good job. Mercedes have dominated the season so far. What aspect of your car's performance has pleased you the most?
Simone Resta: Good afternoon, everyone. I suppose the car has been quite competitive in all conditions. So there is probably not a single aspect that is really dominating all the others, but I think the car is well balanced in all aspects: the chassis, the suspension, the power unit integration, the cooling, all the various aspects and the tyre management. So far, it has been good in all conditions. Of course, we know how difficult it is to land the car well at every track from the first session, and we've probably got some things to clean up going into FP2 and onwards.
A lot has been made of George's deployment issues. Are you confident that you've overcome those now?
SR: As we all know, it's a very complex new set of regulations with the power unit. It's quite early days. We've just done 10 races so far, and there is a lot to learn. We are still learning a lot together, ourselves and our colleagues at HPP. We found a bug in our software, and we had to react to it. There was already something there at Silverstone, but the issue was more evident at Spa, which is one of the tracks with the highest laptime for power delta. We think we've finally understood it and nailed it coming into Budapest.
Final one. Can we talk about the development race this year and how ferocious it's been? If you took your car today back to Melbourne, how much faster would it be?
SR: I couldn't quote all the numbers, and this exercise is probably worth doing and then checking it. Ultimately, I think we tried to have strong development for the first race from the winter test. Then we have had, at almost every race, a little step here and there, and then another big step in Canada. We always try to keep bringing little steps here and there at every race. Of course, we have seen teams bringing more stuff than us, which is great for them, and we are still trying to bring some items at every race. Probably, after the shutdown, we will try to focus on having something more sizeable on the car. So, we are clearly focused on trying to develop the car at every event, but also trying to think bigger by bringing another step to the car.
Questions From The Floor
(Craig Slater - Sky Sports) A question for Adrian. Adrian, how much of a priority is it for you to retain Fernando Alonso for next season? What kind of conversations have you had along those lines so far, and how confident are you that you will?
AN: Obviously, Fernando is an amazing driver. He brings huge amounts to the team, both in his feedback and his ability. So, for us, of course it's important. I'm pretty confident that Fernando is enjoying his time with us and that we will continue with our relationship.
(Ted Kravitz - Sky Sports F1) Also for Adrian, can you explain what happened with Lance's suspension issue? The team said there was a suspected left-rear suspension issue. Do you have any concerns? We saw the mechanics working on that area of the car before his run. Are there any concerns for the other car, and any consequences or remedial action you might need to take?
AN: As you can imagine, everybody is feverishly trying to understand exactly what went wrong and what happened as we speak. It's only once we have an understanding that we can comment on what we do next. But we obviously need to have a position fairly shortly, ready for FP2.
(Christian Menath - Motorsport-Magazin.com). Another one for you, Adrian. On the suspension problem as well, you don't know what happened, but we know a lot of the update was about getting some weight out of the car. Did you try that with the rear suspension as well? And how is the situation with spares on the rear suspension?
AN: The area involved was actually not changed. We are short on spares because the cladding and so forth is different, so there are some minor changes in that area. In that sense, it's very unexpected. As I say, until we have an understanding, it's difficult to comment further.
(David Schneider - Shiga Sports Japan) A question for Adrian. Since Australia, you have now had half a year working together with Honda's power unit. From what we can hear and see from Mike Krack and Orihara-san, the partnership has massively progressed. From your perspective, how has this partnership progressed? And what do you look forward to in the second half, considering that in Zandvoort they're coming with a new power unit?
AN: I think what's really progressed is actually the word you just used: relationship. Out of what can only be called a disastrous start, the positive of that, because you're always looking for positives, is that it's brought Honda and ourselves, AMR, into a very close working relationship. We continue to develop that in all areas. So, I'm very happy with the progress we're making from a relationship point of view. Normally, if relationships improve, then performance also improves.
Check out our Friday gallery from the Hungaroring here.
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