TEST

Jerez de la Frontera, 13 February

–Over three thousand kilometres – 3,195.594 to be precise – in one week is a sound

start to the work of developing the Maranello newborn, the Ferrari F150th Italia.
Fernando Alonso is well aware of that and happy about it, after ending the second of
the four test sessions in the run up to the start of the 2011 World Championship.

“The best thing about these first two test sessions is definitely the reliability,” said the
Spaniard when he met the media at the end of the day. “Both myself and Felipe have
been able to always do at least one hundred laps a day, which is very positive. Our
aim in these tests is to make the car as tough as possible and then, when we get to
Bahrain, introduce some developments aimed at performance. As I often said
recently, there is no point in looking at the time sheets, but it would be very surprising
if any teams other than Red Bull, McLaren, Ferrari, Renault and Mercedes are
fighting for the wins. Red Bull ended last year with an advantage of around half a
second over the others and it would be strange if they were not the strongest in
Bahrain.”

The main task at this test was increasing understanding of the Pirelli tyres. “It is the
biggest change of the year and there is still a lot of work to do to adapt the car set-up
and driving style to these tyres,” said Fernando. “From what we have seen so far, we
will need to run different strategies with more pit stops. We managed to do around
forty laps, not all at one go, on the same set of tyres, but we know that in the much
higher temperatures of Bahrain, the situation will be very different.”

The topic of overtaking and the moveable rear wing aimed at making it easier is still
an especially hot topic. “We were able to try the adjustable wing in race conditions,
but it is still too early to understand clearly if overtaking will be easier,” explained
Fernando. “We need to see if the 600 metre limit set by the FIA is not too restrictive,
but we know this situation is still able to be revised. From the little we could see, I
think it will still be very difficult to pass a car with similar performance to your own.
The system works well on our car: we never had any problems, not even under
braking.” Fernando and Felipe will be on track again tomorrow: no, it’s not an extra
day’s testing granted to Scuderia Ferrari Marlboro, but a day dedicated to promotional
filming for the Scuderia’s partners. Development work on the new car will resume on
Friday 18 at the Catalunya Circuit, on the outskirts of Barcelona: it will actually be
the Spanish driver who will get the session underway, with Felipe taking over from
him for Sunday and Monday.
Fernando Alonso: "I’m always putting lots of
pressure on myself”
Maranello, 28 January 2011 - Fernando, let’s imagine a situation where in Bahrain
three cars are right one behind the other. What can happen?
The mobile rear wing can only be used on one straight on a lap, so the most important
thing would be to arrive at the last corner with less than 1.5 seconds behind the car in
front, which is really difficult. I don’t see the possibility of many overtaking
manoeuvres. I think that it will still be difficult to overtake. And overtaking will still
include taking risk.

You will have one month and a half with 15 testing days. How will you use the
time when you’re not in the car?
I think that also the days I’m not testing will be very important and I’ll be at the track
anyway, when Felipe is in the car, following the tests and the development. The data
he can collect will be also useful for me and vice versa.

Do you think that all the commands on the steering wheel take a little bit the fun
out of driving?
I think more than anything else that all these commands make driving more difficult.
It’s much more difficult than you can imagine driving a Formula 1 single-seater. As
of this year there are two more buttons: to control the wing and the Kers. Driving a
GT is much more fun and you can concentrate more on driving.

Do you have your perfect weight to drive this year? The driving position is
higher than last year. Will this change your style?
I started with my preparations and I count on it to be 100% in shape for Australia,
because we want to be perfectly fit for the races in Australia, Malaysia and China.
Last week I rode my bike a lot, went to swim, ran and did exercises for my neck. The
weight is fine. I don’t think that I’ll have any problems with the Kers, also because the
car’s minimum weight has been upped to 640 kg. The seat and the driving position
won’t change the driver’s perspective too much.

Could the new parameters like the tyre wear influence your driving style?
I don’t know. We still have to test. We’ll find out if the higher tyre wear is just mere
speculation. Naturally one pit stop instead of two means a lot in a race, because for
one stop you loose 25 seconds, which you might regain in 30 laps.

What pressure do you apply to yourself? Which team do you think can set up a
car, which can compete with Ferrari?
The pressure I put on myself is high. The motivation in the first months of the year is
the same as every year. I think I’m part of a unique team and also this presentation
proofs it. The other teams will present their cars at the first test, just before they start
to drive, and nobody will say anything, neither the drivers nor the Chairmen.
To answer your question I think that Mercedes might have the possibility to build a
competitive car, but also McLaren and Red Bull; we have to fight with them.

How much of yourself is in the car for 2011?

When I arrived in 2010 I found a very different car compared to the one I had driven
before. This year I contributed and I think that also my driving style had an influence
on the development. Now I also know the people in my team and I’ve got a good
relationship with them and I’m always putting them under pressure.
Felipe and Fernando, actors for the day
Jerez de la Frontera, 14 February – Saint Valentine’s day was a working one for the
Scuderia Ferrari Marlboro drivers, albeit a rather different one to usual. After four
days of testing from Thursday to Sunday, developing the Ferrari F150th Italia, today,
Felipe Massa and Fernando Alonso were back at work at the Jerez circuit, in southern
Spain, shooting a series of promotional films for the Scuderia and its partners. The
work behind the wheel could hardly be compared to the past few days, given that it
only required fifty kilometres. However, it was a nice opportunity for the drivers to
spend time with the team in a rather more relaxed atmosphere, far removed from the
usual frenetic activity of a test.

It meant that Scuderia Ferrari Marlboro was therefore the last team to leave the
Andalusian track to head north for the Catalunya Circuit, where the third test session
prior to the start of the 2011 Championship gets underway on Friday. Fernando will
be the first to drive, with Felipe replacing him in the cockpit of the new car as from
Sunday.