Gary Anderson, Director of Race and Test Engineering
“Nürburgring has changed a lot over the years but it’s a good track and enthusiasm is high in Germany because of the Schumacher brothers!  It is quite demanding to get a good balance at this circuit as there are some quite long corners flowing into one another.  In last year’s European Grand Prix our cars ran into each other at the first corner so I would certainly hope we can improve on that result. We had a good tyre test with Bridgestone in preparation for this race and we will be using a tyre we haven’t raced before, which we feel is reasonably good. We want to get ourselves back to scoring points, and we need to push pretty hard this weekend to achieve that.”

Giancarlo Fisichella
“Before my win in Brazil, the only time I was really close to winning a Grand Prix was Nürburgring in 1999.  I led the race for a while before my headrest fell into the cockpit, disturbing my drive and forcing me off the road.  So I have good and bad memories about this track.  With our package at the moment it’s probably a bit ambitious to hope for glory and I’m looking forward to the introduction of a new aerodynamic package next month. The car is not performing as consistently as I’d like and I always have to hope for cool or unusual conditions to see if we have a better chance. I know the team is working hard to give me a quicker car and this is keeping me well focused on my job."  

Jordan Ford drivers, Ralph Firman and Giancarlo Fisichella were already whizzing around a track at the Nurburgring today, but it wasn't the race track and they weren't in their EJ13s. The two F1 stars were experiencing Ford power of a different sort, when they got a unique insight into the black art of rally driving. Their teacher for the day was none other than Markko Martin, Ford's driver in the World Rally Championship. The Estonian is a rising star of the sport and recently won the car-breaking Acropolis Rally, his maiden victory on a World Championship Rally. Fisichella, also a first time winner in F1 this year, really enjoyed being hustled round the short tarmac stage, just outside the Nurburgring proper, before getting behind the wheel himself, with a nervous looking Martin in the co-driver's seat. "It was a great experience," said the Italian afterwards. I competed in the Monza Rally in 1997, but not in a car as good as this, which seemed to be as responsive as my F1 machine."
Ralph was equally enthusiastic, and attacked the jumps on the track with gusto, getting "good air" on several occasions. Firman, who naturally is more used to being on his own in the car, found listening to pace notes read by Markko's regular co-driver, Michael Park, a novel experience. "Having someone tell you which way the road goes certainly gives you confidence," said Ralph, but when he started telling me what was coming up a few corners further on, I couldn't remember what he'd said. The car handled superbly, even though there was a bit more understeer than I expected."

Giancarlo Fisichella and Ralph Firman were 9th and 14th in first qualifying, Fisichella setting his time in dry conditions and Firman completing his flying lap on a wet track as rain fell continuously throughout the second half of the session.  

Gary Anderson, Director of Race and Test Engineering, said “It is a bit difficult to judge where we are compared to everyone else because qualifying was split in two with the weather change.  I have to say that we weren’t looking very competitive with Giancarlo’s time as far as dry weather conditions are concerned.  We need to improve our complete package – chassis, engine and tyres.  Ralph did a competent job in the conditions.  He had to get a lap in to make sure he’s not out first tomorrow, which is important - if it’s wet tomorrow, as forecast, there will be a few cars out before him to move some water off the track.”

Giancarlo Fisichella and Ralph Firman got the most out of the car-tyre-engine package at their disposal to post times within three tenths of one another on their way to 13th and 14th places respectively.

Gary Anderson, Director of Race and Test Engineering, “Qualifying didn’t turn out too bad.  As always it’s hard to know how we compare to the rest, with different strategies, so we’re just doing what we think is right for us.  Having two cars side by side on the grid is reasonable, as it just shows that is the pace of the car.  Ralph’s come on well since the beginning of the year, to be up there almost matching Giancarlo.  He’s less than three tenths of a second off and I think it’s a pretty creditable position.  We are hoping for a nice safe first corner, a good race and some points if we are lucky.”

Ralph Firman and Giancarlo Fisichella finished the European Grand Prix in 11th and 12th places after a difficult race in which they had to contend with considerable oversteer, both drivers reporting that the car’s balance was affected by track conditions which differed greatly from yesterday when the cars were set up.  The team’s three-stop strategy was not fruitful and Fisichella had to stop for a fourth time two laps before the end because of a puncture to his right rear tyre.

Gary Anderson, Director of Race and Test Engineering, said, “That was a tough race. Three stops here penalised us - all the cars that did three stops ended up together in the results so that proves something about the strategy.  We thought it was worth a shot to see if we could pull anything out of it, but it didn’t work.  I’m impressed with our reliability, but the reality is we need to be faster to score points.”