F 2008

Kimi Raikkonen: “I know what the team wants from me”

Maranello, 6th January 2008 – At the conference room of the Fiorano race track Kimi Raikkonen met the accredited journalists for the presentation of the F2008. They immediately asked him about things, which will be of huge importance, when the new season starts in Australia next March. Asked about his expectations for 2008 Kimi said: “We will definitely try to win the Drivers’ and Constructors’ Championship again. We have to see how the test sessions and the first Grands Prix of the season will go. The most dangerous competitors? McLaren will be there for sure. And then there’s BMW. It will be a difficult year. It’s my second year at Ferrari. I can feel that everything is going really well. I know the people I am working with and I really like the team.”
There is a new car and the rules have changed a lot compared to the last season. What are his impressions behind the wheel of the new car and as far as the new rules are concerned? “We have already tested the new system before Christmas. There is no traction control anymore. And we have to adapt to this fact, which is quite something. There are also other control systems missing, which we were still using during the last year. But we are really satisfied with the new car and its modifications. The cockpit of the F2008 is tighter and also the car is smaller. We have to be ready for these changes.”
As far as the competition is concerned, Kimi said that there could be major changes compared to the year 2007, when Ferrari and McLaren were ahead, as there are many teams with improved single-seaters this year. In the first races of 2008 one will see what surprises there may be.
Kimi was also asked if he might modify his driving style, because there is no traction control in the car anymore, which is especially important when coming out of the corners. Kimi said: “Without a doubt I’ll become better. Because now I know what the team wants from me. But as long as you’re not racing, you don’t know what will happen.”
As far as the personal security is concerned, after Kimi won his first World Championship title, he said: “I am not feeling too safe. I have waited for this moment for many years. Maybe this year will not be too difficult to get along. But I do not feel too safe. If I’ll have more fun without the traction control? It will be much more complex to drive, that’s for sure. Especially on wet tracks. But it will be also much more fun.”
A journalist asked the Finnish driver what he expects from the future and from the upcoming season: “That’s quite difficult to tell now. I have still two years left and if I go on having fun, I’ll stay here. I really like Formula One and I have a brilliant team. We’ll see. We want to start really well into a great season. We want to win again the world titles and we want to avoid retirements. This is the main feature to win against McLaren. That is how it was and that is how it will be in the future.”

Felipe Massa: “It’s like a boy being born”

Maranello, 6th January 2008 – “Seeing the car for the first time is like welcoming a boy in a family. It is important to work to make him grow in the best way.” These were the first words of Felipe Massa when he met the journalists, together with his teammate Kimi Raikkonen, at the presentation of the new single-seater. “The first impression of the car is that it is really beautiful. Just like every other Ferrari. But that is not enough. The looks are important, but the performance and the reliability are even more important. The team has to work to make the car immediately fast and reliable. We have to do some more work on it before the first race and we want to check its performance before we make any further comments.”
As far as the different driving style caused by the missing traction control is concerned Massa said: “It really is different now. You have to take care of the accelerator; even more than of the brakes. The driving style has to be softer and less aggressive. To the question of how much it weighs on him that Kimi has number 1 on his car, Felipe replied: “The number doesn’t change anything. The most important thing is what we reach by the end of the year. 2007 was really great. I won races, but I also had some problems, which cost me some precious points. We have to learn from that and try to win again. I am really motivated; the team is absolutely fantastic. I’m married now and I turned into a man and I am more serious now. I am ready to fight. More than ever.”
As far as the new rules are concerned and because he already has experience with cars without traction control in other racing series Massa said: “I don’t think that this will be an advantage. Although many things changed. Also the revs have a certain influence. The V8 is more aggressive and difficult than the V10. When you are driving under these conditions you want more stability and grip and you try to drive more aggressively and closer to the limit.”
“When there’s less grip you can use the tyres much better. That is really important, as there is no traction control anymore.” As far as the new qualifying rules are concerned Felipe said: “To be honest I think that absolutely nothing will change here; we won’t have 3-4 laps to use the old tyres. We’ll start with new sets of tyres and with the right amount of fuel to get the right lap time. Almost nothing will change for me here.”
Felipe confirmed that: “Jean Todt is still there and he will participate in many important events. There’s Stefano now, who has a very important role after many years he has been working here. I am happy for him and I hope that the team will be as it always was. After all it is the mentality that is important and that it remains as it is.”
And the incorrect things in 2007? “That has been some kind of school for me; to teach me that these kind of situations should never ever happen again for any team and the Championship. We all have to work bearing in mind that this sport is based on rules, which we all have to follow.”

The Technicians: “We’ve worked a lot on the aerodynamics”

Maranello, 6th January 2008 – Mario Almondo, Director of Operations, Aldo Costa, Technical Director, and Gilles Simon, Head of the Engines and Electronics Department, presented the latest modifications of the F2008, which will be used during the season 2008, to the international press.
When Aldo Costa was asked, what the main characteristics of the new single-seater from Maranello are, the Technical Director said: “For the F2007 we mainly worked on the aerodynamics, which are completely different to the ones from the season 2007, but there are still some elements which are identical to the F2007. All the aerodynamic surfaces have been completely updated. The body is more concave, the engine cover has a different profile to improve the efficiency and resolve some problems we had on circuits such as Monte Carlo, Hungary and Canada. We’ve also done some major work on the electronics and the control systems. This year we have to use an integrated central system and an MES (McLaren Electronic System). Thus we had to review the electronic layout of the car and try to figure it out without any help from the drivers, such as the traction control and some other controls. We’ve been working a lot on the gearbox, which has to be used for four races in a row this year. We changed the dimension to improve its lifetime; but we’ve worked also on the suspension, to improve the lifetime of the whole car.”
Gilles Simon spoke about the unification of the engine and electronics management: “This new organisation is already looking ahead to the year 2009, when we will develop a kinetic system to reuse the energy produced by the car. This will take up a lot of our time this year. To combine the two departments is an obvious thing to do. We will do many test sessions inside and outside of the works. This is already the second year that we are not allowed to further develop the engines. From March 2008 on the engine will be completed and approved. What we have actually done is concentrated our work on everything that is sitting above the cylinders; such as the inlets and also on the improvement of the lubrification. We also developed a new kind of fuel over the last winter in collaboration with Shell. The rules of 2008 set a limit of 5.75% of bi-components in the fuel. We’ll use the biofuel already at the tests in Jerez next week.
Mario Almondo explained the organization of the Director of Operations: “Well, in the world of High-Tech my role is quite traditional. At Ferrari that means working on technical things, which are not part of the planning, such as logistics and strategic planning of works and investments, managing the race tracks and the buying, technical, technological and quantitative development of our partners. And then there’s the management of the A1 GP, which will start with a collaboration by Ferrari in the next year. For us the start of this Championship is a great business opportunity and the possibility to consolidate our brand in the Far East.”
As far as the Formula One car and the performance level of the F2008 is concerned Costa said: “The evolution of the aerodynamics is excellent. The team has done some fantastic work, although it is the fourth year in terms of stability of the rules in that sense. Nevertheless we managed to have further progress. Without judging the others I have to say that our car has many hidden features, which we hope will pay in terms of reliability and performance.”
A journalist asked if there will be a further improvement to the seamless-technology in 2008 as far as the gearbox is concerned; which might be a kind of advantage for those who are responsible for the hardware and know the code; Costa replied: “We don’t want to slow down, we want to keep up our performance level of 2007; we want to further develop the seamless system. We have to produce a gearbox, which will last for four races, while we have to reduce its weight and its dimensions. Changing gear will thus depend now more on the drivers.”
Mario Almondo was asked how many improvements of the F2008 are foreseen for now: “In 2007 we had four major developments of the car and many minor developments for each race according to the different race tracks. Simulation and the wind tunnel are very important here, but also the tests in the works play an important role. From the first GP on we try to keep a straight line in terms of development, to eliminate all the problems caused by the single circuits.”

Luca di Montezemolo: “It will be an important year for Ferrari”

Maranello, 7th January 2008 – “Happy New Year to all of you,” Ferrari President Luca di Montezemolo said. “It will be an important year for all of us, for me personally and, I hope, also very important for Ferrari; because as we have seen by the end of last year and with the first laps of our new single-seater, the existing rules of this season made the car really different. Personally I think that this is a positive change for our sport. I’ve been with Formula One for 30 years now and the nice thing in this sport is the continuous research in innovation. This year the driver plays a much more important role and we have two drivers plus one, with Michael, who has done some tests during the winter with the new car and who can give us some important support, also thanks to the experience he has driving cars without traction control.
We can count on two very strong drivers. The aim is to win again, but it will be very difficult. I’m not saying that because of superstition. First of all because there are new rules (traction control, the gearbox has to be used for four races in a row, the McLaren system, the new Qualifying), which means that things really change; and then there is our fierce competition, the biggest car manufacturers in the world; this is the big difference to the Formula One we knew in the last millennium. There will be fierce competition, which will make especially the start of the season very exciting; the third point is that we have to deal with a Championship where everybody tries to beat Ferrari. Ferrari has won 7 Championships in 9 years; obviously our aim is to win 8 out of 10. But that also means that we need to work hard on our partners, on simulation, the team and all the details. This year the team takes its last steps in terms of reorganization, confirmed by Todt by the end of 2006. In the year 2006 there was the first change, the year 2007 was full of surprises and we didn’t have Michael anymore. At the end we managed to win both World Titles. Already during the sabbatical year of Ross (Brawn) we had young and capable people at the track. This year Stefano Domenicali is head of track operations, next to the three key players Aldo Costa, Mario Almondo and Gilles Simon. This second step takes the team where it will stay for the next years without any traumas happening, rewarding those who knew how to manage our team during difficult times. Our team manager will be Baldisserri and there are many people working in the simulation department. Further we can count on the precious collaboration of Rory Byrne and Fainello’s experience. For that I want to thank Jean Todt, to whom I had given only one aim: a dynamic stability of our team, to leave people at the top, able to take their own position. At the beginning of the season I want to add that it will be one without mysteries. And I have to acknowledge the Federation’s efforts to manage that Formula One didn’t lose in credibility this year thanks to the right decisions.
The race track of Fiorano is very wet today and it is significant to drive under these conditions without traction control. Here at Fiorano we can find Ferrari very confident in its own strength, knowing about the difficulties ahead. But we follow our path and there is lots of work to do. We thought we might not tell too much about what we are going to do. We prefer to go on the track, work and give our best. Referring to his own near future the President said: “I think in two and a half months I’ll be much more present here, when I finish my other duties. The company is growing and we have a new site to build road cars, young engineers who follow a program of three months, where they work in the works, while Formula Uomo is still a huge challenge for Ferrari. With 2007 we finished a record year in terms of turnover and we are working with the knowledge that there are many opportunities for Ferrari all over the world, while we have to keep an eye on the finances, considering that exclusivity is our strong point, which pays well. Considering the races we want to win! We will give it all. There is an intensive program and the team is concentrated and motivated. Raikkonen, who won the World Championships in the first year with Ferrari, something only Fangio managed to do before him, now knows all the men and the team, while Massa showed in his last race that he knows how to win but also thinks of the team. The team is our priority, because the string point of Ferrari has to be the team.
“What did you have to delegate over the last years and what will you take back into your hands,” one journalist asked. “Todt had a minimum of contact to me over the last years; maybe once per day via phone; Todt and Felisa knew very well how to manage the activities and share with me some decisions of medium or long range. It will be different once I’m physically back to Maranello, because I am convinced that the development of the company is still very strong and has to be expressed in some way, especially outside of Europe and North America, the regions where Ferrari was represented most until now. Today, when you’re in Macao or Abu Dhabi you can see new shops and we will also have new models, apart from the fact that I want to stress the internationalization and not only in the area of the automobile. The theme park we are setting up is a good example, and also the Internet will become more and more important also in terms of commercialization. We are working on a world-wide internet shop and the possibility of simulations via Web at the Fiorano race track and a virtual visit of the works in Maranello.
Ferrari CEO Jean Todt added as far as the new role of Stefano Domenicali is concerned: “In October 2006 I became General Director of the company and interim Director of the races; so I held this position just for a certain period of time. Domenicali is a bright, intelligent man with many years of experience in administration, human resources and races. He has no technical experience but his role doesn’t need that. We prepared him very well for his new role.”
As far as the fans are concerned the President added: “I’ve been to New York for three days and there were many Italian and Spanish Ferrari fans, who stopped me on the street. Winning 8 out of 10 is something we have said already in the year 2000: feet on the ground, hard work. The fans are the most wonderful thing in our work and they’ve always been there, even in difficult times. I want to underline that we have a lot of humility and we do not think that we will win easily.”

Kimi Raikkonen: “Very positive impression”

Fiorano, 7th January 2008 – “The first impressions of the new car were very positive,” said Kimi Raikkonen to the press after his first outing with the F2008 on the Fiorano circuit on wet tarmac. “I don’t think we have to make any improvements at the moment. There were some problems today and we still don’t have the final tyres; but the impression was really fine. Next week we have further possibilities to see how the car behaves.”
The Finnish driver replied to the question if a lower and maybe shorter car, without traction control, could influence its driveability: “I don’t have many points of reference. I can only compare it to the last car. I did a test without traction control before Christmas and I have to say that first of all you have to drive very cautiously and consider that a car with traction control is fast and might respond a little bit faster. Surely the first impression is really positive and you can handle the car even without the traction control. The weather could have been better today, but it is really nice to drive this single-seater.”
Kimi Raikkonen drove a total of 55 laps on standard rain tyres, with the fastest lap in a time of 1.00.897

Shakedown at Fiorano for the F2008

Maranello, 7th January 2008
Circuit: Fiorano track, 2.976 km – short course 1.413 km Driver: Kimi Raikkonen Car: F2008 Weather: air temperature 2/3 °C, track 4 °C. Misty, damp track.
This morning, at the Fiorano circuit, Scuderia Ferrari Marlboro debuted the F2008, the car with which it will compete in this year’s Formula 1 World Championship.
During the course of the day, Kimi Raikkonen completed 55 laps, all on the long version of the track, the quickest one in a time of 1.00.897.