Ferrari preview the Turkish GP

KIMI RAIKKONEN

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Thursday 8th May 2008

Felipe Massa is chasing his third successive Turkish GP victory this weekend while Ferrari are looking for their fourth of the season.

Kimi Raikkonen: "It was nice that I was able to relax a bit with my good friends in Finland, before leaving for Istanbul: we were really lucky, because we had very good weather.

"We didn't have any tests after the race at Barcelona, but I bet that our competitors have worked hard to be prepared as good as possible to beat us at Istanbul. But I'm not worried at all: we worked and I'm convinced that Ferrari can be really strong there. And when you have a look at this year's tracks so far, the one at Istanbul is very similar to the one at Sepang and Sakhir, where we could win. That makes us think that we'll be competitive over the weekend.

"Barcelona was a perfect weekend for me and the Team. Now we want to keep that rhythm and we will push very hard. The Pole Position helped a lot and it seems that starting ahead of everybody else is a necessary condition for winning the race at Istanbul, too. Last year I made a mistake in Q3 and I paid a very high price.

"I like the Turkish GP's circuit, it's the best of the new circuits. You go uphill and downhill and it has some very challenging corners. You get a great feeling, especially when you get turn eight right. We are racing anticlockwise for the first time this season and it will out our neck muscles under pressure.

"I won two out of four races and got one second position. With my 29 points I'm leading the Championship by 9. I'm very happy how things have gone so far, but the situation can change in a second: we need to push 100% to stay ahead of our competitors. I won't change my approach. It's too early to think about anything else than a victory. I want to bring home as many points as possible; I like to race with this aim in mind.

"We're leading the Championship, but that is not important at the moment; what counts is that we're leading at the end of the season. If we want to stay ahead the easiest thing is that we keep the others behind in the races. Our goal is to get another one-two win as hard as the Finnish ice-hockey team at the World Championships in Canada at the moment.

"I'm glad that Heikki Kovalainen is well: the safety standard of our racing cars is really high, which is good for all of us and for our sport."

Felipe Massa: "With no testing since the last race, I have enjoyed a quiet time at home in Monaco, although as usual, I have had plenty of contact with the factory in Maranello and I have also been going through my daily training programme. Now it's time to head for Istanbul and the fifth round of the championship, at a circuit which is obviously a bit special for me. Why? Because, it was here in 2006 that I scored my first ever Formula 1 victory and then I repeated myself last year, on both occasions starting from pole.

"Apart from these two reasons to look forward to the weekend, I have to say that Istanbul Park is a fantastic track and I enjoy driving there a lot. I think we have a good car in the F2008 and I feel it can be quite strong this coming weekend. There is every reason to think we can fight for the win. Like my home circuit in Sao Paulo, the Istanbul track runs anti-clockwise and in many other ways it is a special circuit. It has some quick corners like Turn 8 and some medium speed corners, but you also have a very tricky final sector which is quite slow where you need plenty of downforce. So you need to find the right combination of speed and downforce. By far the best corner is Turn 8, which seems to go on forever. It is very challenging for the drivers and very nice to drive through when you get it right. It is really fun from a driving point of view.

"I have mentioned aerodynamic downforce, but with the slow speed sections, it means that your car must also be efficient in terms of delivering mechanical grip. You also need good traction and a well balanced car, which is why finding the right compromise during free practice on Friday is so important for the rest of the weekend. Because of those long corners, tyres can have a hard time, especially on the right front, but since Bridgestone became the sole supplier, this situation has eased a bit as they bring a harder tyre than if they were competing against another manufacturer. We will have cooler temperatures this year, as the race is much earlier in the calendar, but I don't expect this to produce any unexpected situations.

"Turn 12, the hairpin after the long straight is the best passing opportunity and the long back straight helps also, but it is still difficult to get past another car. There are a few more opportunities here than at some other circuits. This track is not very hard on engines and for the engine in my F2008, this will be its second race, while the gearbox will also be doing the last of its four races. This should not be a concern, as the rules in any case allow for several of the components, such as the ratios to be changed when necessary.

"You do not need to be a mind-reader to work out what is my target for this weekend: I want to record a hat-trick of Turkish victories! It might be possible, but you can never be sure. At the last race, starting third on the grid, I was unable to win on a track where overtaking is very difficult. At the moment, I am enjoying a tough competition with Kimi and my second place in Spain was still a good result. But I will be trying everything to go one better this Sunday!"

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