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Thursday Press Conference  [2004-07-October]

Drivers: Takuma Sato (BAR), Mark Webber (Jaguar), Jenson Button (BAR) and Jarno Trulli (toyota)

Q: Mark, we are coming to the penultimate race in a not very long and not very glorious career for the Jaguar team but it must be very difficult to keep the motivation going for these last two races. What’s the mood like in the camp?
Mark Webber: China was very impressive, actually. The guys were in a good frame of mind. We did a good job there; I think it was as good as we could have done with that track layout and the whole situation with tyres and things, it was a good result for us, nice and reliable. Yeah, but even if everything is going well, this time of the year is hard for most teams. It’s a long season, any job you have, as a journalist or a photographer or whatever in Formula One, it is a long season, but I think there are a few offers floating around so the team are still in a pretty good frame of mind and looking forward to finishing with a high. These guys don’t know how to work any other way, you know, you have to work as hard as you can and hope we can have a good finish to the season.

Q: Now, I gather you have the new chassis here this weekend. What’s it like, and how come Christian ran it in the last race rather than you?
Mark Webber: I tested it in Monza and we made a decision that I would stick with what I knew for China and Christian decided he would take it, so I have got it here. It’s not a chassis that is, you know, two or three tenths of a lap quicker, there’s probably not much in it at all. It’s probably more looking for next year for the team, so it’s an interim chassis, if you like; it’s not a big step over this year’s car.

Q: Of course, it will be an interim to nothing now…

Mark Webber: Not necessarily, not if the team is bought by someone who is passionate about going forward with the whole team next year. So, it’s not an interim at all.

Q: You are all done and dusted, you are moving over to Williams. They say the secret to getting on there is having a good relationship with Frank and Patrick, so have you taken any advice from your fellow countryman Alan Jones, who always got on famously with them?
Mark Webber: Well, I saw Alan in China and he was full of advice on how to deal with Frank and Patrick and it’s nothing that really surprised me, of course. They are racers, they’re straight up and down, good people I believe, and that is why I am so motivated to go and drive there for the future. It’s a dream for me, to drive for Williams, an absolute dream. The team has had a tough season this year, for lots of different reasons, and next year we have to go forward together. It’s a great opportunity for me and getting on with Frank and Patrick, I am sure the lap times will help, that’s one of the easiest ways to get on with them if you are performing in the car.

Q: Does it bother you that at the moment you are not quite sure who your team-mate is going to be there next year?
Mark Webber: Not really. I am not really worried about who will be in the other car, that’s how it is. I think it would be good if we had Jenson, for Williams, but yeah, I just hope it is settled sooner rather than later.

Q: Takuma, everyone assumes you do well here, which you did last year and the previous time, because you are Japanese but I gather you have hardly ever raced here. Is that the case?
Takuma Sato: Well, Suzuka is very special, but as you said I don’t have as much experience as anybody has because although I drove in the Suzuka Racing School when I started motor racing when I was 20, the next time I raced here really was when I raced in Formula One in 2002 and surprisingly, or accidentally, I had a big opportunity to race again here last year as a third driver, but really that’s all. This is going to be special again, because this is the only circuit I have been to and raced three times so it is probably better than the other circuits.

Q: I gather earlier this week in Tokyo the team confirmed you will be driving for them in 2005, which must make you feel very good, but at the moment it looks like you are the team leader. Have you got any thoughts about who you would like as your team-mate next year?
Takuma Sato: Not really. At the moment we are just concentrating on this Grand Prix and then Brazil, obviously, this season. It is not surprising they confirmed me for next year because obviously I had a three-year contract already at the beginning of 2003, one year of testing and obviously second and third as a race driver option and automatically it should be confirmed, so to me it is not a surprise. But it is good to have it confirmed now because the team really needs stability through the development programme, so I am looking forward to the winter testing and to next year.

Q: Now the big problem you have had this year has been your engines, and it’s a mystery to all of us because I think you have had six failures including one in China and Jenson has had hardly any. Nobody seems to come up with a good reason for why this is happening to you, is it something to do with your driving style or the way you use traction control or are they trying different things in your engine to Jenson’s?
Takuma Sato: No, I mean, everything is the same. At the very beginning of this year our approach of traction control and engine management was different as every driver has a different driving style. But because I kept having failures we decided to try exactly the same traction control and the way to shift down the engine and everything. We tried it but still had it (problems) and that is why we call it a mystery because I didn’t know that and Honda obviously couldn’t prove what was the problem and also we had to move forward. So as we developed, we fixed some problems. By the middle of the season, I think we were confident with reliability, but unfortunately I had another engine failure at the last race in Shanghai, which was nothing to do with specification probably just something unfortunate. But no, Honda is now confident they are reliable and also we had very successful testing at Jerez last week so we should be able to be very strong again here.

Q: And some general thoughts about this weekend. You will be under more media attention, more pressure, but have more support from the fans than the other 19 drivers. How do you feel about that?
Takuma Sato: It feels great, always great to come back to your home Grand Prix. Every single driver who has a home Grand Prix is going to find it really special for him. After Shanghai, I came straight back to Japan, had a relaxed time with my family and all my friends but also had lots and lots of attention from the media and we had so many functions. But it is good for us because Formula One is always enthusiastic in Japan in the past but I think this year, it seems to be the people who had never heard about F1 or motor racing or were never interested, who have started to become very interested, which is very important for us, particularly in Japan, and if you look at Suzuka this weekend there will probably be a lot of fans coming, 160,000 or whatever. So it is all great news and, of course, we will have extra pressure but also we will have extra support, which is great.

Q: Jenson, here we are at Suzuka which is a great track with average facilities and across the other side of the world we have Silverstone which fits the same description. As a British driver what’s your view on the fact that there might not be a British Grand Prix next year?
Jenson Button: From a driver’s point of view, it’s disappointing. Your home Grand Prix is very very special. I have loved Formula One for many years, from when I was a youngster and the only race I used to watch was the British Grand Prix because it was my home Grand Prix and it would be devastating, I think, not just for myself but for all the fans in the United Kingdom, if we didn’t have a Grand Prix. For me, Silverstone is a great circuit and if it’s not on the calendar I think we would be losing a great race. There are obviously lots of reasons why it might not be there but that is not for me to comment on.

Q: Now you made your decision to switch to Williams a long time ago, and now we’re nearly at the end of the season. A lot of bookies are allowing you to bet on races and championships, putting Ferrari out of the equation. Now if we do that you’re the World Champion and so is your team. In the time since you made that decision, have you had any second thoughts about leaving BAR-Honda for Williams?
Jenson Button: I am not going to comment on that because this is not the correct place to be commenting on that, I don’t think. On the 16th October, we will know where I am next year or we’ll know the decision of the CRB (Contract Recognition Board) and then I can talk about it a little bit more but at the moment I don’t think it’s correct for myself or either team.

Q: Yeah, but I am not asking you to say where you’re going, I’m just saying in your own mind, we know you want to go to Williams, that’s fair, but have you looked at the performance of your team and that of Williams?
Jenson Button: I haven’t compared them, but I think that in the last few races, as a team, we have done a good job. We have had some very good results but that doesn’t change anything.

Q: This is obviously a sort of home race for your team with the Honda engine but I guess you get to play second fiddle to Takuma here in terms of all the attention that he gets. Is that nice for you? Is it a bit of a weekend off from the media side of things, the PR, the promotions and everything?
Jenson Button: It’s still a busy weekend; it is for all the drivers, but especially Taku. I have been watching him so far today and it’s been very busy for him and we will be able to see how he performs under pressure. I think he will do well, but it is always very tough, your home Grand Prix, especially how much of a following he must have after a reasonably good year. So it is going to be tough for him but we will see what he is made of.

Q: Now there is a lot of talk of a lot of rain heading this way for the weekend. This is a bit of an old fashioned track; it looks quite dangerous in the dry… Maybe Jarno, after Jenson, would like to comment on it as well. What are your views on racing here on a wet track?
Jenson Button: I think on any circuit you are a little bit more nervous racing if it is wet because you can’t see 20 meters… even five metres in front of the car because there is so much spray if you are in traffic. Wherever, it’s pretty scary and I don’t think this is any different. I do enjoy driving in the wet, just not when you’re in the middle of a pack. I think we had a very good race in Monza - I know it wasn’t wet wet but it was damp and the car seemed to work very well. So I think we will be quick here if it is wet but again, for the drivers in the race, it’s not a nice situation if it rains.

Q: Jarno, would you like to start by giving us your views on that as well?
Jarno Trulli: As Jenson said, it is never nice to be racing in wet conditions, especially here in Japan at Suzuka. As you said, it is an old fashioned circuit, it probably needs more run-off areas but we have been quite committed during this season, trying to improve what we have but we are a little bit limited, there is not much space we can gain. Naturally it’s a very high speed circuit so none of us will enjoy it as much as we can enjoy the track in dry conditions. That’s all I can say.

Q: And you’ve only tested the car twice so far, the Toyota. Where are you in your learning of the new car?
Jarno Trulli: Pretty much zero! When you jump in a new team and you go to a race after three days’ testing it’s not going to be easy, especially here in Japan at Suzuka and especially with a wet track. But I am very confident and I am motivated to do well because the team is nice, I have had a very warm welcome and all we have to get is experience.

Q: And there is a lot of extra pressure for you in some ways because you are coming in from nothing and this is Toyota’s home race as well.
Jarno Trulli: It doesn’t matter where you are, what you are doing, there is always pressure and it’s part of the job. It’s going to be a home race for Toyota and we all want to show good things but obviously we know our limits and we will try our best for the weekend.

Q: Both of you have experienced the pleasures of being sacked from Renault at some stage. Jarno, looking back now, it’s a few weeks on now, do you think the whole thing could have been handled better by the team?
Jarno Trulli: I think neither of us has been sacked, to be honest. I’ve just left the team.

Q: Alright maybe I used the wrong word, but do you think the situation could have been handled better?
Jarno Trulli: I am not going (to comment) on this matter any more because I think everything has been said – a lot – and I’m looking forward to this new experience, new adventure and we’re pleased to be joining the Toyota team, that’s all I can say.

Q: I guess you must have watched the Chinese Grand Prix on television. Do you think Jacques Villeneuve did a better job than you could have done?
Jarno Trulli: Jacques did what he had been expected to do. He has been away for a long time before driving the car again and it is never easy when you stop for a year to jump in a new car and then do an extremely good result. I think Jacques did what he could do and you can always argue that he could do better or not, but I am sure he would improve his performance nowadays because he’s got a bit more experience in the car. I can only say that it was nice to watch the Grand Prix from the television.

Q: Next year you’re staying with the team and you have another new team-mate. You’ve always got on well with your team-mates in general. How do you think you’re going to get on with Ralf Schumacher?
Jarno Trulli: Well, to be honest, we already started pretty well. The other day I met him at the hotel, and just stopped to have a chat with him, telling him about what I thought of the team, the little experience that I’ve had in these first few days testing and honestly I cannot see any problems, any reasons and even Jenson has had quite a good relationship (with him) in the past. It depends on the way you approach people. It depends on what you expect from people. We are not all the same and we have somehow to deal with the positive and negative things. We cannot be nice for everyone. I am a very nice person but I’m sure not everyone likes me in the paddock.

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