Team Peugeot Total aim to maximize their full potential at the Estering.

PHOTO CREDIT: FIAWorldRallycross.com

Team Peugeot Total returns to competition at the penultimate round of the FIA World RX championship this weekend in Germany. The Estering track should suit the Peugeot 208 WRX Evo.

Estering track is fast and contains a lot of variety in terms of speeds and grip, as well as many challenges for the drivers. The circuit is 952 metres long and contains a 60-40% asphalt to gravel split, with the track width varying between 10 and 16 metres.

“Germany is quite challenging. It’s a track where you fly a lot because there’s not much grip at all, either on the asphalt or the gravel, and this makes it particularly tricky," said Loeb. "It’s reasonably narrow but it's interesting."

Sébastien Loeb and Timmy Hansen kept up Peugeot Total’s track record of progressing to the Finals, last time out in the United States. They were classified in 5th and 6th respectively. 

The Estering may not be the Frenchman's favourite track, but he aims to maximize the full potential of his Peugeot 208 RX Evo. "To be honest it’s not my favourite place, but I hope with our latest evolutions that the car will be competitive there and we can get a result," says Loeb. "As usual, the objective will be to have a clean weekend from the very start and avoid running in traffic: this is the real key to success in rallycross."

Loeb's teammate Timmy Hansen really had a tough weekend at the World RX of USA, and has dropped out of contention for second place in the championship after taking a second engine penalty, which sees him 30 points down, from his teammate Loeb. Despite the difficult weekend in the United States, Hansen is ready to go racing. 

"After the weekend in the United States, where it’s very difficult to overtake, Buxtehude will be a bit different; anything can happen," said Timmy Hansen. "I’m looking forward to being there: it’s the sort of place where you throw the car into the corner, get on the throttle, throw up some gravel and enjoy yourself." 

Timmy sets his sights on victory in Germany: "I was second in Germany last year, so it’s clear that there’s only one way to improve!”

After his promising performance in the USA, Timmy's younger brother and Peugeot Total's junior driver Kevin Hansen is eager to join his teammates in the Final once more this season. After securing a place in the final, in the last 2 years Kevin is raring to have another opportunity to prove himself.

"I’ve been in the Final for the last 2 years there, so I really have a good feeling with the place and I hope to do well again now," said Kevin. "Traditional gravel like you have in Germany is much looser, so you have to slide the car more and be quite aggressive with it: that’s great fun!”

GRX Taneco have high hopes and targets a spot in the final.

PHOTO CREDIT: FIAWorldRallycross.com

Privateer entry, GRX Taneco are entering the final phase of there World Rallycross Championship apprenticeship campaign.

The two Hyundai i20 Supercars’ debuts main focus was always about development and the Finnish team has comfortably fulfilled its expectations by qualifying for the semi-finals every round. 

However, after qualifying for the final on three occasions, culminating in Niclas Grönholm’s fourth place in Latvia, the team is now looking to build on the gains made over the season.

The Estering track is famed for its fast, narrow straights and tight bends. With 60% asphalt/40% dirt track, anything can happen – its one of the shortest tracks at 925 metres in length. The lap record stands at 35.227 seconds, set by Johan Kristoffersson. 

Timur Timerzyanov already has four European Championship and four World RX races at the Estering track under his belt. His best result came in 2014 when he placed seventh in the World Championship round.

"Germany is one of the traditional Rallycross venues. It is an unusual track with very narrow portions and many tight corners," says Timerzyanov. "The team has worked hard to get the cars ready since we returned from the US. We need to score some points this weekend and I am determined to do my best to achieve this."

Grönholm on the other hand will be competing in the World RX of Germany for the third time. Fifth overall in 2017, he will pull out all the stops in his quest for a place on the podium in the penultimate race of the season. "The Estering is a circuit I both love and dread!," says Grönholm.

The Finn highlights the difficulties of the Estering track. "I have always enjoyed driving here, but when there are five cars on the starting line, the narrowness of the track exacerbates the difficulties and the opportunities to overtake are extremely limited," said Grönholm. "On the other hand, it is a circuit where anything can happen which promises lots of thrills for the drivers and the fans."

"I hope to come through the qualifying rounds unscathed as I have my eye on a podium place and I’ll do my utmost to get there."

PREVIEW: The ‘Gloves are off’ in Germany as four drivers battle for the runners-up spot.

PHOTO CREDIT: FIAWorldRallycross.com

PSRX Volkswagen Sweden driver Johan Kristoffersson clinched his second consecutive drivers’ championship in the USA last time out, and now all sights are firmly turned towards the fight for second in the FIA World Rallycross Championship, as Germany’s Estering welcomes the penultimate round of the 2018 season.

The Buxtehude track is the oldest on the World RX calendar – having hosted international events since 1973 – and while one of the shortest laps on the schedule, it is also one of the fastest with a long downhill run between turns one and two. The 2014 edition witnessed the closest finish in rallycross history, with just five thousandths-of-a-second separating the top two at the chequered flag.

The 2014 round was won by two-time World RX Champion Petter Solberg, who is one of four drivers currently in a tight tussle for the overall runner-up spot. The PSRX Volkswagen Sweden driver and team owner – who has two further podium finishes to his credit at the Estering – was on fine form in Texas just over a week ago, topping the intermediate classification, winning his semi-final and only narrowly missing out on victory to team-mate Kristoffersson.

Solberg was similarly Top Qualifier in Germany [Hockenheimring] 12 months ago, meaning the Norwegian is one of the pre-event favourites, while a number of his rivals also have cause to fancy their chances at World RX of Germany.

Last year’s winner Mattias Ekstrom is two points ahead of Solberg in the title table and has been consistent this season. The other two contenders in the fight for second -  Andreas Bakkerud and Sebastien Loeb – have tallied 11 podiums between them this year so can never be discounted, although the Frenchman has yet to reach the final at the Estering. 

Just nine points cover second-placed Ekstrom down to fifth-placed Loeb in the overall standings – setting the stage for a battle royale.

Intriguingly, newly-crowned champion Kristoffersson has never reached the podium in Germany in four previous starts, with the Buxtehude event the only one on the current calendar he has yet to win – and the only one last year in which he didn’t progress through to the final. The Swede will be determined to overturn that trend this weekend – while his adversaries will be eager to capitalise at what could be regarded as the Volkswagen driver’s ‘bogey’ track.

Swedish siblings Timmy and Kevin Hansen – both competing for Team Peugeot Total, the latter as an individual entry – have been evenly-matched in recent rounds, although Timmy has fallen out of contention for the second-place battle due to engine change penalties that he received in Latvia and the USA. Timmy finished second in Germany last year, and will require a similarly big result this time out and a significant slice of bad luck for his rivals if he is to keep his runner-up hopes alive. Younger brother Kevin has made it into the final in both of his previous World RX of Germany starts and will be targeting a hat-trick.

GRX Taneco Team’s Niclas Gronholm finished fifth in the World RX of Germany last season and has been one of the stars of 2018, sitting seventh in the standings, while team-mate and former Euro RX Champion Timur Timerzyanov is keen to conclude the campaign on a high note over the remaining two events.

GC Kompetition will field a three-strong stable of Renault Megane Supercars for the first time in World RX, with team owner Guerlain Chicherit joined by both Liam Doran and Anton Marklund, who debuted for the team in Texas last month. Doran boasts the best record of the trio in Germany, winning there in 2012 on his way to the runner-up spoils in Euro RX.

Two other drivers with excellent form at the Estering are Olsbergs MSE pairing Kevin Eriksson and Robin Larsson. Eriksson produced a spectacular ‘round the outside’ first corner move to snatch his maiden World RX victory there two years ago, while Larsson took the chequered flag third in 2014.

“Germany two years ago was without doubt the best moment of my World RX career to-date. It’s always special to win, but to do so at the absolute pinnacle of the sport and against the very best drivers in the business is an incredible feeling," said Eriksson. "The first corner was the key for me. I had visualised the start in my head so many times, and when it came to it, I swallowed some brave pills and just went for it – and it paid off!"

The 20-strong entry list is completed by Team STARD’s Janis Baumanis, Sebastien Loeb Racing’s Gregoire Demoustier, Briton Oliver Bennett in his unique MINI, home hero Rene Muennich for ALL-INKL.COM Muennich Motorsport, Norway’s Kjetil Larsen and reigning RX2 International Series Champion Cyril Raymond.

ENTRY LIST IMAGE CREDIT: FIA World Rallycross.

Solberg sets his sights on victory at the Estering.

PHOTO CREDIT: FIAWorldRallycross.com

Last time out in Texas, its safe to say Solberg is back! The Norwegian was quick all weekend, and was on the brink of claiming his first win of the season, but it was not to be after sliding wide. His teammate clinched victory! 

Solberg heads to Germany, a circuit where he claimed victory in 2014, by the smallest of margins: +0.005s. “I won at this track in 2014 and I really like it," said Solberg. 

The Estering track in Buxtehude, Germany is 925m in length, with 60% being asphalt and 40% gravel. "There’s a lot of gravel in there and it’s quite technical," the Norwegian explains. "We’ve seen in the past that it suits our car quite well – but it also suits the Audis." 

In 2017, Solberg returned to racing at the Hockenheimring, with a broken collarbone following his crash in Latvia. "It was the first race back after the crash in Latvia and I was competing with a broken collarbone," says Solberg. "For sure, it was a little bit painful, but the result was incredible and a real boost for me."

The Norwegian went to finish fourth in the final. 

Can he do one better this year? Or, even claim victory? Solberg certainly thinks so, he targets a win this weekend. 

“I want to go for that win this time," says Solberg. "I’m feeling confident, I showed good pace in America and with my training back on track now I’m feeling much more like myself. I feel strong again."

Petter is in a thrilling race for second in the championship, with nine points separating four drivers. Mattias Ekström second, with 204 points, Solberg two points down on him with Andreas Bakkerud a further two behind while Sébastien Loeb starts the weekend on 195 points.

“A win would be the perfect way to chase second place and the silver medal," says Solberg. "I know [Mattias] Ekström, [Andreas] Bakkerud and [Sébastien] Loeb, they’re all going to be strong. They have all got good speed at this track, but we’ve been strong in the past.”

World RX Champion Kristoffersson aims to help Solberg secure second place in the championship.

PHOTO CREDIT: FIAWorldRallycross.com

Two-time FIA World Rallycross World Champion, Johan Kristoffersson is primed and ready to go racing in Germany. The Swede aims to help his team-mate Petter Solberg seal second place in the World RX championship. 

Kristoffersson's record breaking run continued in Texas, with nine wins in a season (and counting). The Swede has never secured a podium finish at the Estering track, and he aims to change it this weekend. “I never made the podium in this race, so that has to be my number one aim for this weekend," said Kristoffersson.

The Swede is aiming to remain focused, despite all the media interest since successfully defending his second title. 

“It’s been a little bit crazy since we won the championship in America, with a lot of media and a lot of interest," says the Swede. "I’m looking forward to getting back in the car and driving again."

"It’s nice to go there without the pressure of the championship on my shoulders, but at the same time there is a different pressure now – we want to win the teams’ championship as well!"

The PSRX Volkswagen Sweden team arrives in Buxtehude, Germany with a 79 point lead ahead of nearest rival EKS Audi Sport. The teams championship can be wrapped up this weekend in Germany. “It would be fantastic to do that at Volkswagen’s home race in Germany," says Kristoffersson.

Kristoffersson has often credited team-mate Solberg for helping him improve over a World RX weekend, and after successfully defending the championship, he now aims to help Solberg secure second place. 

“I want to help Petter in his race for the silver medal," said the World Champion. "He has been such a good boss and team-mate all year – but I have a feeling he’s got something good for this race in Germany; Petter is always super-quick at this track.”

Ekström returns to Germany where he claimed his maiden World RX title in 2016.

PHOTO CREDIT: FIA World Rallycross Media

EKS Audi Sport heads to the penultimate round of the FIA World Rallycross Championship (World RX) in Germany. 

Mattias Ekström has very special memories of the Estering race track in Buxtehude.

In 2017, Ekström won the German World Rallycross Championship round in Buxtehude; and in 2016, the Swede claimed his one and only World RX title at the German circuit. “It's one of the venues on the World RX calendar that I have the best memories of,” says Ekström. "The Estering will always have a special place in my heart."

The short 925-meter track – particularly the hairpin bend after the start-finish straight has impressed Ekström the most. “It's a fantastic corner,” says the Ekström. “You approach it at high speed, pull the handbrake hard and slide sideways. It's the most spectacular spot on the Estering and one of the best on the World RX calendar.”

Overtaking is virtually impossible, and this makes the start at the Estering crucial. The entrance to the Joker Lap, where the track surface changes from tarmac to gravel, is especially tricky. Because the passage ends just before the finish line, the winner at the Estering is often only decided when the checkered flag drops. 

In 2015, Ekström finished just 0.005 seconds behind race winner Petter Solberg. It was the most closely-contested finish in the history of the World Rallycross Championship.

The current battle for second place in the drivers’ championship is heating up. With two rounds left, Mattias Ekström 204 points, Petter Solberg 202 points, Andreas Bakkerud 200 points and Sébastien Loeb 195 points are separated by just nine points. 

“Obviously, we all want the runner-up title,” says Andreas Bakkerud. “It's good to know that in recent years Audi has always done well at the Estering.”

2018 Japanese GP: FIA Post-Race Press Conference.

DRIVERS
1 – Lewis HAMILTON (Mercedes)
2 – Valtteri BOTTAS (Mercedes)
3 – Max VERSTAPPEN (Red Bull Racing)

TRACK INTERVIEWS
(Conducted by David Coulthard)

Q: Lewis, congratulations, another dominant display. You were enjoying that.

Lewis HAMILTON: I loved it. I was actually very, very happy. I think the whole weekend's been very strong from the team, it's a great 1-2 from Mercedes, it a true showing of the great strength in depth we have as a team. This track is the best track in the world. I don’t know why they don’t make tracks like this anymore but every second of the run it was just great fun. I was able to look after my tyres the way I wanted and just managed the pace. It’s really weird – obviously I have been racing a long, long time, but the happiness I have inside is as high as always. It’s a great feeling.

Q: Well just looking at your tyres, you don’t seem to be too bad on blistering, so you were just able to manage, but we did hear that you had some engine issues earlier in the grand prix, so it wasn’t all plain sailing?

LH: Yeah, I asked the team but they said it was OK. But really, these guys here you see at the track, the guys back at the factory, these guys work so hard to create this… this beast, and I’m so proud and grateful to have the chance to do what I do with it. I’ve been racing a long, long time now but, as I said, it feels like one of the first.

Q: If you win in America in two weeks’ time and Sebastian is not second, you will win your fifth world title.

LH: Honestly, I’ll take it one step at a time. Each week you have a positive weekend and you go to another grand prix and you’re not sure how you’re going to fare and how you’re going to perform, because there are still gaps in between, but I think we have gone from strength to strength this year as a team, so I really hope that we can… Austin is usually a good track for us, so I can’t wait to unleash this beast there.

Q: Congratulations, Lewis, great drive. Valtteri, you were absolutely setting the pace in Russia but it looked like you struggled a little bit more on this circuit and you had some real tyre management to do at the end against Max.

Valtteri BOTTAS: Well, yeah. Initially during the race, everything felt good, I knew what I had to do and I was really just executing the plan. The pace felt good. But at the end of the second stint I had some blistering, which made it a bit more tricky, but anyway, for me the job was to get to the finish line in P2.

Q: We heard from Lewis that he had some engine management issues early in the grand prix. Did you have anything like that or was it just the tyre blistering that was your main concern?

VB: Not really, no. No issues. We managed to save the engine to save the engine a bit because the pace was so good. But no issues otherwise.

Q: Max, you’re pretty consistent here in Japan: third straight podium. It was very close with Valtteri at the end, but you locked up into the hairpin on the last lap. So did the opportunity slip away?

Max VERSTAPPEN: Yeah, we didn’t really have a chance, but in general I think to nurse the car home with the damage I had on the floor, we did a great job. The strategy initially was a bit tricky, with the supersoft tyres, but then once we got the soft tyres on it was actually working really well, and you could see that near the end we had the pace, even with the damage, so I’m happy about that.

Q: You had two incidents with the Ferrari drivers. First of all with Kimi, and you got a five-second penalty for that, which we heard on the radio you weren’t happy about, and then a failed attempt from Sebastian to overtake you down into Spoon. Take us through those two?

MV: Yes, I braked a little bit too late into the chicane, so I did everything I could to get back onto the track and I think I did it in a safe way, because I was not crazy-fast onto the track, but Kimi chose the wrong line in the chicane. He could have also just waited for me to come back on the track. We touched a little bit, but I think it’s really ridiculous those five seconds. But anyway, we managed to survive that and then even before the pit stop, the touch with Sebastian – in that corner you can’t overtake. I even gave him space, but he understeered into my car. It’s a shame, but still happy to be on the podium.

QUESTIONS FROM THE FLOOR

Q: (Scott Mitchell – Autosport) Lewis, you talked a bit about coming back stronger for the second half of the season and that you imagined having this run-in but you’ve been dominant, especially compared to Sebastian. You’ve not made mistakes, he’s been making mistakes. Are you surprised at how he’s faded from the title picture?

LH: Well, what I meant is that you have to set your sights high and so naturally, as you come into the season, you set the goal high, set the target high. When we got to mid-season we got that win going into the break and then again, really pushing to make sure that we come back even stronger so again, set the bar high. That’s what we were hoping to achieve, it’s not always the case, it’s really not always the case that you achieve your target but I think we have through really great hard work from everyone. In terms of Sebastian’s performance… Of course, I didn’t expect… Up until the mid-part of the season they were very strong and then we obviously got to Monza and then after that they were still quite strong from Monza, Singapore and then at Singapore was when it really started to tail off. I definitely hadn’t anticipated that they would tail off as they have. Not only have they lost a lot of performance, lost performance… just performances have not been coming in the same as they had before, as strong as they were before. I don’t really have an answer for that and it’s not something I’m really focused on. I’m sure Sebastian could tell you why. We’ve just been focusing on trying to do the best job we can and maximise the potential of our own ability, that’s all we can do.

Q: (Heikki Kulta – Turun Sanomat) Valtteri, how much are you hoping that Lewis will win the championship already in Austin to get more normal circumstances for the last three races to challenge him?

VB: You know of course I’m still able to challenge him. It just depends on the situation like the race in Russia so I’m still trying everything I can to keep upbeat for every race and trying to challenge. I felt yesterday in the qualifying it was really getting better and better for me and it was pretty close in the end between us. Today, after the start, I knew what was going to be the case. We had to bring one-two home and that was it. There are not that many races left and at some point I would guess he’s going to get the title hopefully and then we will see.

Q: (Andre Venema – Formula 1 Magazine NL) Max, speaking of penalties, do you think Vettel deserved a penalty as well, for what he did to you?

MV: Well, I’m not the one who makes the rules. I think otherwise a lot of penalties would have been avoided anyway in Formula One. I think it’s a similar scenario to what I had in China with him. Of course, we didn’t spin off the track but he drove into the side of my car. I think we could have been a bit more careful.

Q: (Scott Mitchell – Autosport) At the moment, we have a lot of situations where you’re having to either avoid or manage blistering. I just wondered… on that phenomenon, is that more of a problem this year? How bad is it and how much are you having to manage it over the course of this season?

LH: Honestly, I think Pirelli have done a really good job this year. The cars are faster than ever before, we have more downforce than ever before so there’s more force going through the tyres. And so every time they improve the tyres, we improve the car and we pretty much have a similar issue of blistering, but they do have the lower gauged tyre which we used earlier in the year on which we didn’t see any blistering. I’m not really sure why they didn’t continue using that for the year but I’m sure that’s probably something they will engage in next year. We have definitely not been able to go flat out all the time and we are having to manage temperatures in order to make a one stop race work -  the loss in the pit lane is so big you want to always try and make sure you do a one stop. But I don’t particularly have a problem with it. I think it takes skill and management to keep the pace up and lose as little as possible whilst still keeping the tyre alive. Would we prefer to have no blistering? For sure, if we could keep pushing the whole way and not having rear overheating, that would definitely enable us to follow for longer and race for longer but that’s something that they are constantly trying to battle, I’m sure.

VB: I think we had to do a lot of management at pretty much every race this season and especially at the last few there have been issues with the blistering. Once we are getting to a certain temperature, we know it’s going to happen at some point, so then we’re just not pushing to go over those temperatures and trying to manage. At some places, like today, when it’s hot, in this high energy track, laterally, it’s pretty difficult and it does feel at times that you are completely cruising round which is not ideal. You know there’s so much potential in these cars and my thinking is if everyone did one stop today, if you do one stop pushing flat out it would be more fun but that’s the issue for everyone now. The cars are quicker than ever. I was involved in some of the testing for next year’s tyres a couple of weeks ago and I’m sure they are pushing flat out and hopefully it’s going to be a bit better next year.

MV: I think like Lewis said, it was well explained.

2018 Japanese GP: FIA Post-Qualifying Press Conference.

DRIVERS
1 – Lewis HAMILTON (Mercedes)
2 – Valtteri BOTTAS (Mercedes)
3 – Max VERSTAPPEN (Red Bull)


TRACK INTERVIEWS

(Conducted by David Coulthard)

Q: Lewis Hamilton, your 80th – 80th! – pole position. Not the smoothest of sessions for anyone but once again a great strategic play from Mercedes, and you delivered when it counted.

Lewis HAMILTON: The team have done an amazing job this weekend, and the call that we made to go out for Q3, which is probably the most difficult call – you saw all of us fumbling and kind of trying to figure out what to do – the team just were spot on with it and gave us the opportunity to grab this pole position. While it was a bit of an anti-climax, because we didn’t get to do the last lap, it’s still… it’s my 80th, I can’t believe I have 80, and I couldn’t have done it without the team. We worked so hard on this car to refine it, to improve it in all areas. And even in ourselves, and how we function, the processes that we go through, our communication, everything. And so, it’s really just such an honour to race for this team, for the guys and I’m just so thankful. Big, big thank you to everyone back at the factory. I’m so proud to be on this journey with them. I never in a million years thought I would get to 80.

Q: It was a great pole and it's a fantastic statistic to get that 80th. I’m sure you haven’t not noticed that your main competitor for the World Championship had a difficult qualifying, and he’s going to be starting at the bottom end of the top ten. That just adds to the momentum for this championship.

LH: It definitely does. I just saw it in here. It is so difficult out there to make the right call but I think that’s another real big difference that we as a team have made this year. Every team has smart people but ultimately, when it comes to being under pressure, making the right decisions, the right calls, that’s why we are the best team in the world. And rightly so, they deserve that.

Q: Valtteri. A week’s a long time in Formula One. We came off the disappointment of Russia. It’s been pretty close between you and Lewis in outright pace through free practice but in the end, he’s had that little edge. So, how does second place feel? I assume not as good as you felt after the qualifying in Russia. And how can you convert this tomorrow?

Valtteri BOTTAS: Yeah, sure, you know as a team it’s absolutely perfect. The team was really reactive again. We did the right decisions with the rain. Obviously, a real shame for everyone that it started raining but tomorrow should be some sun. I think for me, honestly Practice three this morning was very difficult. I didn’t find the car good at all, so we made some changes to build up the confidence. Q2, I was the quickest. Q3, just had that one lap, which was not quite perfect in the middle and the last sector. So I was waiting for the second run – but anyway, it’s not a bad starting position.

Q: Just how difficult was it in that last run in qualifying. We could see the Ferraris getting on the kerb at Spoon and running off the circuit. Is that somewhere where you just went below the car under normal conditions.

VB: Yeah, you know you need to calculate the risks here. When it’s wet like this you can’t use the kerbs but you still need to be absolutely on the limit. So, I did enjoy that. I just know there was a couple of corners where I could have done a better job – but yeah, let’s see tomorrow.

Q: Finally, coming to a man who’s probably as happy as the pole man. Third place, that’s like a pole for Red Bull Racing with the, let’s say, inefficiency of power you have on this race track.

Max VERSTAPPEN: Yeah, absolutely. I think realistically, normally we would be pretty close to Ferrari but it would be hard to beat them – but we made the right call in Q3. Of course, very happy to be third. A shame we couldn’t give the fans a really cool Q3 but, y’know, it’s great to see them over here. They’re so passionate about Formula One. Even when it’s raining, they just stay. When it’s dark and the mechanics are working on the car, they’re also staying on the grandstands. It’s quite crazy to see – but in one way also it’s amazing.

Q: You podiumed here last year; this puts you in a perfect position to do the same again.

MV: Yeah, I didn’t expect to start third. Of course, we have a bigger chance now to be on the podium.

Q: And with the Ferrari cars being behind you, there could be a scenario that they come up, catch you. You wouldn’t want to get in the way of the World Championship battle, would you?

MV: Is it still a battle? Not sure.

PRESS CONFERENCE

Q: Well Lewis, let’s start with that number, that tally of eighty pole positions. What does that mean to you?

LH: It’s been an incredible year but that number, I just thought… never in a million years did I think I would be at a figure like that. It just makes me think of all the great years that I’ve had, quite a few of those I was with McLaren, I think at least 20-odd or so I think might have been with McLaren and there were even times when we didn’t have championship-winning cars at the time but the last six years with this team has been incredible and I’m just so proud of everyone and just so grateful for everyone’s hard work which has enabled me to go out and exploit my own abilities. You see today, they just did such a great job in terms of timing, in terms of… Today there were no mistakes made, even though there was a lot of pressure on still, as there always is in qualifying. Everyone was cool, calm and collected and did the job collectively as a team so it’s really an amazing journey to be on with this team. That’s not the end, eighty is not the end but that is a milestone I’m very proud of.

Q: Lewis, you say the team was very cool, calm and collected but what was that session like from inside the cockpit?

LH: It started out OK but then you look out of the garage and you can see that it’s raining, spitting but it’s very humid. Saw a couple of cars spin. It was very very difficult to know whether the track was going to be dry or whether it was going to be wet. We obviously haven’t done any practice in the wet and it looked like it was going to be wet for Q3 so it’s definitely not a great feeling when you go into Q3, knowing that you’ve had the pace, obviously, to be at the front and then know that you’re… that mistakes can come in those tricky conditions, depending on how hard you push. But we’re all in the same boat. We remained in the garage, we said we should probably sit here and wait for someone else to go out first. The Ferraris pulled out of the garage on the inters and I honestly didn’t think it was the right decision. Obviously we made the right decision as a team and yeah, it was a bit of an anti-climax because we couldn’t do that second lap but we all tried going down into turn one and I wish you could see what we could see going into turn one because you come out of the last corner, there’s no rain on your visor then bit by bit, one spit, two spits, ten spits and by the time you get to turn one you’re not quite sure if it’s wet or dry so I tiptoed in there and I was lucky I did that because obviously other people went off.

Q: Valtteri, if we could come on to you please; let’s talk about the pace of the Mercedes car, particularly in Q2 when you were fastest on the soft tyre and Ferrari are going to be on the supersoft and yet you were still quicker than them.

VB: Yeah, well first of all I want to say congrats to Lewis for today’s pole and especially for the 80th, it’s a big number and really big respect for that. But the car was so quick until… well, so far this weekend it’s been very quick and today as well, both of the tyre compounds, supersoft, soft, it was enjoyable to drive in qualifying, for me less so in practice. I honestly struggled a lot in practice, I didn’t feel the car was stable at all. I was struggling just to find confidence with it really but bit by bit in qualifying it was better and better and Q2 felt pretty good and obviously came down to one lap in Q3 where I missed a little bit in sector two and three. I enjoyed it, but I also want to say for everyone in our team, I think everyone now, from today, in that kind of session, everyone should be really proud what we did, first of all with the car that we have but how the team worked today, every single decision was right and everyone was calm. It might look weird from the outside that it’s a hectic session and so on but everything was so calm inside and we were just sticking to our plan and making the right choices so really enjoyed that.

Q: Max, coming on to you, Valtteri said that he wasn’t happy with his car in practice, and I think that was the same with you as well. How much progress did you make with it during qualifying?

MV: Yeah, so after yesterday when I was really not happy with it, I think today was definitely a lot better. It’s difficult to find a good compromise because we’re losing quite a lot on the straight, can go lower on downforce then it evens out a bit more… well, evens out, it’s a bit better on the straight, little bit slower in the corners so at the end of the day it didn’t really matter what wing we put on the car, I think the lap time was actually quite similar but I felt a bit happier with a bit more downforce. I think qualifying we just tried to be as close as we could to Ferrari. I think it was all looking quite good and then we made the right decision in Q3 so that’s why we are third.

QUESTIONS FROM THE FLOOR

Q: (Scott Mitchell – Autosport) Lewis and Valtteri, you both mentioned the calmness with which Mercedes acted under today. Do you feel like you see the best from your team under pressure? We saw more mistakes from Ferrari and Seb today when it mattered.

LH: Absolutely. Naturally, I think, with experience that does come but that is an area… pretty much the same group of guys have all been together for quite some time and definitely at this point of the year, you would hope that you were more knowledgeable and more able to be a little bit better at making decisions, so I definitely think the team’s been much more… been able to be focused and still on it but in a calm manner.

VB: I think that I really agree. I haven’t been in this team… only less than two seasons but what I’ve seen, I think today was one of the best days as a group, I think.

Q: (Scott Mitchell – Autosport) Max, you mentioned the progress you’ve made, especially from yesterday. Do you think that the fact that the gaps will get smaller from one lap pace to race trim, do you think you can take the fight to Mercedes tomorrow or will it more be looking in the mirrors?

MV: I honestly don’t think we can take the fight. I just tried to be as close as I can. I didn’t even remember last year in qualifying but I think we were also quite far off. In the race it was not too bad so I’m hoping for the same tomorrow but yeah, definitely Ferrari, with Kimi starting behind me, he will try to put some pressure on and I think Sebastian will come through the field so yeah, we just have to try and make sure we have the right strategy tomorrow.

2018 Japanese GP: FIA Team Members' Press Conference.

PHOTO CREDIT: FIA.com

TEAM REPRESENTATIVES – Christian HORNER (Red Bull), Franz TOST (Toro Rosso), Frédéric VASSEUR (Sauber), Masashi YAMAMOTO (Honda)

PRESS CONFERENCE

Q: Yamamoto-san, you introduced an engine upgrade in Russia. How much of a step forward is that? And in more general terms, how much progress have Honda made this season?

Masashi YAMAMOTO: Regarding this season, we were not as quick in the development as we would have wanted to. However, recently, everything has been much better, especially regarding the combustion chamber. We have upgraded it, and it’s finally complete, and very successfully complete. Regarding Russia, and the problems we had with the other engine, it had regard to the calibrations but we have fixed it since Russia, and within this one week before the race in Suzuka, we have fixed that issue and so I suppose Mr Tost can look forward to great weekend.

Q: How are preparations going for 2019 with Red Bull Racing? Do you feel a big pressure to deliver top results?

MY: Yes, regarding 2019, we are very pleased to also work with another top team. We believe Red Bull is a top team in Formula One. We – me and Christian – we have had great communication throughout the year, and obviously there is pressure, however this pressure, we turn it into good energy, and this good energy will bring us fantastic and fabulous results. Of course, with Team Toro Rosso, Team Red Bull on both sides, pressure into great energy, great results for 2019.

Q: Franz, you had a busy week leading up to Honda’s home grand prix. I believe Sakura on Tuesday, Wako Wednesday, Suzuka factory yesterday morning. Just tell us what you found in each place and about your experiences this week.

Franz TOST: And Tochigi! You forgot another company. No, it was fantastic, the visit with the two drivers, all the different factories here, the research and development factories from Honda. The people were very enthusiastic and they liked to talk to us, to ask questions and I must say the Honda employees are really Formula One fans and I hope that we can provide them with good results, so they can see all the hard work which they have done in the last months come to a successful end.

Q: It was announced recently that Daniil Kvyat is going to return to Toro Rosso next year. After a year with Ferrari, what kind of a driver are you expecting back in the Toro Rosso fold?

FT: I was with Daniil Kvyat out in Sochi, we had a fantastic dinner together, he is relaxed, I have the feeling he is much more measured that the year before. I expect a competitive Daniil Kvyat. We all know he is very fast, that he has a very high level of natural speed and he just has to sit in the car, push the right-hand pedal and you will see he will show good results because he can do it. We all know this.

Q: Christian, we’ve just heard from Yamamoto-san about Honda’s preparations, their hope for good results next season, can we just get your take on how things are going with Honda. How are advanced you are.

Christian HORNER: We’ve been very impressed with the progress that Honda have been making during the course of this year. Obviously, we’re now working closely regarding… incorporating the engine into RB15 for next year. I have to say the communication has been excellent between both companies. We’re hugely impressed by the effort, commitment, desire, determination to succeed that there is in Honda. Certainly, when Yamamoto-san talks of energy, we’re not lacking any energy within Red Bull Racing, regarding the 2019 season.

Q: Bringing it back to this year, you’re now 101 points ahead of Renault in the Constructors’ Championship, so you’re pretty much nailed-on for third place. How has that affected your preparations for next year? Have you started work on the new car earlier than would be normal?

CH: Well, we have a regulation change coming for next year, the front wing changes the characteristics of the car quite significantly, so we’re effectively in no-man’s land in the Constructors’ Championship, so obviously, a large amount of resource is already being placed into next year’s programme – but of course any updates we can introduce and learn from, we’re bringing trackside.

Q: When did you start work on next year’s car?

CH: It becomes a transient process. So, obviously as soon as the regulations are released, you start to look at kind of impact that there is and then that ramps up through the summer months. So, pretty much all the design team now are obviously focussed on 2019.

Q: Fred, excitement is building about Charles Leclerc and his move to Ferrari in 2019. We saw another great race from him in Sochi last weekend. Just wanted to ask you how much Charles has changed as a driver, and as a person? The driver who turned up in Melbourne, compared to the driver that’s now racing in Japan.

Frederic VASSEUR: Compared to Melbourne, for sure he’s got a lot of experience. He struggled a little bit on the first event of the season with management, mainly due to the fact we had a very short winter session in Barcelona due to the weather. The first week. The first races were a bit difficult for him but then step-by-step, after second or third race he was able to put everything together and he improved consistently. I think he’s still improving.

Q: Let’s throw it ahead now to 2019. Kimi Räikkönen was at your Hinwil factory a couple of weeks ago. What sort of work was he getting on with there?

FV: He’s not designing the next car! We tried to sit him into the car. The next year car. It went well!

Q: What about Giovinazzi? How excited are you about him joining the team?

FV: For the whole team it’s a huge push that we have still a couple of guys who were there when Kimi drove for the team, and the reputation of Kimi at Sauber is still huge. When we did the announcement, that it was a great push for everybody and I think it will be helpful for the team.

QUESTIONS FROM THE FLOOR

Q: (Scott Mitchell – Autosport) Question for Franz, Christian and Yamamoto-san. Regarding Honda’s upgrade and the progress we’ve seen so far. Franz, what are you expecting the difference that will make in the midfield battle? Christian, do you agree with some of the comments from last weekend, that it puts Honda at least level, maybe ahead of Renault, and Yamamoto-san, how do you feel about the comments, the positivity the upgrade has had from Red Bull and Toro Rosso?

MY: Regarding Spec-3, which we have brought in Russia, well, actually, obviously as you know, it hasn’t raced yet, so it will be the first opportunity to race with the new spec. According to the results that we’ll have after the race, it will be more comparable. We can start comparing data with the other ones that we have used before. So, not only the engine but of course the entire performance with the car.

CH: Well, it’s obvious that progress – and good progress – is being made and that’s really encouraging for us. Our focus is not on where our current position is. It’s where the lead position is. That’s the same goal that Honda share. In-roads are being made to reduce that gap to the benchmark in Formula One. You need all elements to be performing to win in this sport, and of course the engine is a key element. We’re looking very much forward to 2019 and starting this relationship with Honda.

FT: With the spec-3 engine we must be in Q3 and we must stay ahead of Sauber because they put a lot of pressure on us in the Constructors’ Championship. That’s the target.

Q: (Dieter Rencken – Racing Lines, Racefans.net) A question to Christian and Franz. In the past the Red Bull group has had very close relations with the VW group across various categories – rally, DTM, etc. I believe that: a) you are reducing your DTM involvement and secondly, the relationship you now have with Honda covers two Formula 1 teams and MotoGP. Does this supersede your previous VW relationship or replace it or what are your plans going forward?

CH: Obviously there was a historical relationship with VW across different elements of motorsport. The withdrawal from DTM coincides with other movements going on within DTM. Obviously it’s a growing partnership with Honda. And of course Red Bull, who operate in many categories of motorsport, work with many different manufacturers but of course this relationship in Formula 1 is extremely important. There has been a long and successful partnership within MotoGP and we hope some of that success will be mirrored in our Formula 1 activities.

Franz, anything to add?

FT: There’s not much to add. Toro Rosso was together with Volkswagen at the beginning and we had a real good co-operation also with them, especially on the sponsorship side, but then we changed the engines to Renault and now to Honda there was not any more the possibility to work together with Volkswagen and we are now with Honda for the next years and we are very happy about this.

Q: (Luke Smith – Crash.net) A question for Yamamoto-san. Could I get a progress update on the Honda young drivers, Makino and Fukuzumi, in Formula 2 for 2019 and your plans to keep them there? And how important is it for Honda to get a Japanese driver on the F1 grid in the coming years?

MY: Yes, obviously to have a Japanese driver on the Formula 1 grid is very important for Japan and for ourselves for the future of this motorsport in Japan. Regarding Making and Fukuzumi. As you know he has won in Monza. Regarding the series that they run in, as you know, the teams have been working with the new regulations, a lot of changes, trying rolling starts etc so it hasn't been a very stable series this series itself. But they are both very good drivers and we are educating them for a bright future.

Q: (Edd Straw - Autosport) A question for all four, please. There is a lot of talk about the longer-term future of Formula 1, 2021 and beyond, and there are a lot of competing objectives: cost reduction, making sure the on-track competition is close, the look of the cars, road relevance, driving technology. How do these competing objectives get balanced up, particularly with the fact that technology and road relevance often tend to drive up costs and sometimes have made the racing worse?

CH: Formula 1 ultimately is a show, it’s an entertainment, and to be entertaining the racing has to be good, the drivers have to be the heroes and I think we need to improve the spectacle of what we currently have. I know a lot of work is going into trying to create cars that are easier to follow or promote better racing. Of course technology has a role to play in that but it shouldn’t be the predominant factor, it should be a complimenting factor, and I think if you get the ground rules and the shape of what the product should be and then the other elements will fit in with that and so we’re relying very heavily on Ross Brawn and his group and the experience that he has, together with the FIA, to come up with a set of regulations, both technical and sporting, that deliver the product, that deliver the spectacle and obviously the commercial terms that are allied with that will follow.

Yamamoto-san, your thoughts?

MY: As Christian has mentioned, Formula 1 is the top motorsports platform for the future and it is very important for us as a car manufacturer also to develop, an important platform to develop the latest technology. Also not only the technology itself but thinking about the world environment, so the future in all these different perspectives is very important and this is the perfect platform for us, so as Honda and Formula 1, branding, the fans, the entertainment point of view is very important, as well as the development of the technology of the future that will be released to the world.

Franz?

FT: Formula 1 is entertainment and currently, fortunately thanks to Hamilton and Vettel, we have two drivers who keep this entertainment on a higher level. But generally speaking there are three teams and the rest are far behind. That means that the FIA and FOM must come up with a regulation from a) the sporting side and b) the technical side, and they must also look that the costs come down. The cost cap is I think an idea that can be realised, that a minimum of five or six drivers are able to fight for the championship, because this is what the spectators want to see. In addition to this, there is always enough space and room for the manufacturers to develop, for example, the power unit or whatever, and that Formula 1 stays at the pinnacle of motorsports. Once more FIA and FOM has to come up now with solutions, because time is running away. We are talking about 2021 and we still don’t have a 100% fixed regulation a) for the chassis, and b) for the power unit and this needs to be clarified as soon as possible.

And Fred?

FV: Yeah, for sure it’s quite obvious that we need to improve to improve the show. That Sochi was a race with less than five overtaking, if I don’t consider the two red Bulls, but you won’t start from the back very single weekend and now for the target for the second part of the grid is to avoid to be lapped, more or less. Even when you are the first of the second pack, success is when you are not lapped. I think that we would have to find a solution to allow talented drivers in a small team to be not too far away from the podium in exceptional circumstances, and today we are far away from this. We saw last weekend that even though Ricciardo and Verstappen started from the back, after 25 laps they were five and six or something like this. We are not racing in the same competition.

Q: (Scott Mitchell - Autosport) A question for Fréd, Franz and Christian. You all respectively have experience of working with drivers who are either F1 rookies or new to the team and in a high-pressure situation. What do you need from your driver to get the most out of them in that scenario, how important is their attitude and approach and how important is the team environment to helping them succeed?

FT: First of all, the driver must be skilled. Second he must be passionate – that means 365 days Formula 1. Then he must be disciplined and he must be, I call it innovative. That means he must think about how best he can improve himself and then he has to be integrated into the team and of course with a young inexperienced driver the team has to take much more attention to him, take much more care of him and preparation, nutrition, physical preparation, then simulator work, then all the technical stuff. A young driver is many times during the winter months in our factory, sitting together with our engineers, discussing all the different topics regarding setting up the car, regarding power unit management from the steering wheel. It’s a lot of stuff. It’s a lot of work and therefore you need a 100% committed driver to bring him to the front.

FV: For sure, the pace is the first skill. If you do not have the pace then you can forget about it. On the top of this we have a lot of guys with good pace who are not able to achieve in F1. Mainly for the same reasons. There is a huge step between the junior series and F1; you have much more things to manage. You have not so much test days. We spoke about it before but with the four days you have in Barcelona, it’s quote short and when two of them are under snow it’s a nightmare. Then they have a huge pressure from the press, from you mainly, at the first events, when it’s not working well. I would like to remember to everybody that after two races I had in the press conference questions about Leclerc, if it was not too early, it was a mistake to take him in F1. We have to be patient, because it’s a huge step and we have to take it step by step and to let them work. But they have to be fully committed and I think that when we are speaking about the young kids that we have I am convinced that that they are more than committed.

CH: For us it’s very simple. We send our youngsters to Franz. If they can survive his 365-day training programme and graduate with that then they might make it into Red Bull Racing, so we’re very grateful for the education that Franz gives these young drivers and it’s obviously proved successful over the years.

You’ve got Pierre Gasly coming into the team next year and Max Verstappen is still young. What do you have within the team to help these young guys?

CH: Well, what annoys me about those two drivers is that their combined age, for the first time, is younger than my age. I think, again, it’s about creating the right environment, about creating an environment in which the drivers feel confidence, they feel heard, but they also know what their side of the deal is, what they have to deliver, because the expectation in Formula 1 is extremely high, especially in a front-running team, where you’re not just driving for yourself, you’re driving for the aspirations of 800 people within a team, all the partners and the shareholders that they represent as well. So the pressure is significantly higher. I think it’s finding that balance, that they still can enjoy what they do, but they still recognise the responsibility that they have.

Q: (Dieter Rencken – Racing Lines, Racefans.net) To the three team principals: it’s just a little over two years since Liberty acquired Formula One’s commercial rights and just under two years since they formalised it. Obviously there were great expectations, great hopes. Have they actually managed the rights up to your expectations so far after two years?

CH: I think Liberty have obviously gone through a learning process. They’ve had to understand what they’ve bought, what is Formula One and I think that there are many aspects that are easier than previously. They’ve invested heavily in marketing the sport, they’ve put on promotions, roadshows. They’ve opened up digital platforms, social networks etc to bring new eyeballs into the sport. They’ve introduced e-sports, so they’re exploring new territories with Formula One and I think the key element for them going forward is not so much the promotion, which they are proving to be well-equipped with, it’s what the product is and I think that’s what the key part now to the success moving forwards is, what are those regulations for 2021 going to be? What does Formula One look like over the next ten years? And obviously there’s a responsibility on Liberty and the FIA to get that right.

FT: OK, up until now, they took over something that was very well organised from Bernie. There are contracts until 2020 and that means their influence was not so dramatic but nevertheless they’ve done a good job in promoting Formula One with all these new ideas, especially on the media side with social media and so on. But their decisive job is, as already said, to create the new regulations and to bring Formula One into this new period and then we will see how good they are working from 2022, 2023 onwards when the new regulations are really on top. They are quite well organised, they are very experienced people within FOM and together with the FIA they should be in a position to sort out all the smaller problems which Formula One, especially on the starting field that everything is more on an equal level and also on the money distribution and of course, also that the revenues stay on the level which was the case in Bernie’s time. These are the main topics they have to face and I’m quite convinced that they will do a good job.

FV: Yeah, for sure they very open, they are investigating new projects, launching new ideas, opening new doors and so on but I think at one stage we will need to get results, that everybody will need to get results and we will see what will be the next step.

Q: (Oleg Karpov – Motorsport.com) To all four gentlemen: Cyril Abiteboul and Toto Wolff recently said that Formula One should maybe think about reducing the number of races to 15 or 16, so the product is more exclusive. First of all, do you agree with that and secondly, if you do how could we achieve that? Should we reduce the number of races just like that or should we rotate races like Hockenheim and Nurburgring, something like that?

MY:  Well, as you know, we are not constructors so we will accept what FIA and FOM decide.

CH: Well, we are a constructor. 21 races, I think, is about saturation point. I think that there’s only so many chapters you can have in a book and I think at some point you go beyond what’s relevant. I think to go as low as 15 or 16 I think is too low – maybe Cyril was looking at grid penalties or something – but I think that 21 is the upper end. It’s tough. It’s tough for the guys in the garage, for the travelling staff, it’s tough for everybody involved and I think for the spectator and fans as well, beyond 24 races it reaches saturation, so I think it’s finding that balance. I think the really encouraging thing is that there are some great venues that want to host Formula One races and events and I think that that should provide natural competition for the venues that are already on the calendar.

Q: Christian, what’s the ideal number?

CH: I think we are it, I think 21 is max.

FT: I think it’s not the number of races or the size, it’s the show which we offer and the level of the entertainment. If you have 15 boring races people will not watch any more. No, I think we should have around 20, 22 races and I think this is a good number and the exclusivity once more depends how good we are and we also should not forget that we are a global player and therefore we need a certain number of races to stay a global player. And I would absolutely refuse to go below 20 races. The year has 52 weeks, therefore we have a lot of time.

FV: For sure we will never go more than 21 because that is, from my point of view, far too much and we have to keep…

CH: If we could keep Christmas it would be good.

FT: We should prefer a race at Christmas and New Year, far away, in New Zealand or…

FV: I think at one stage also we are losing the exceptional of the event; the more races you are doing, everybody is used to and at one stage we have to keep the exceptional side of the races and for me it’s a bit too much but I will follow the calendar for sure. I won’t stop after 18 next year.

Q: Fred, what’s the magic number for you? How many races?

FV: Magic number? I think that below 20 would be fine but between 18 and 20 would be fine for me.

Q: (Kazuki Kasahara – Car Watch) Question for Yamamoto-san: this Grand Prix is a Honda supported brand name (title sponsor)? Could you tell me why and also give your motivation for another 30 years?

MY: Yes, well, as you well know, Honda started joining Formula One in 1964 and it has developed along the years, along with Formula One, so Honda has developed, F1 has grown and so it’s been a mutual development throughout the 30 years. In honour of this relationship that we have had for 30 years, we’ve decided to sponsor the title of the event in Japan here this year, just to thank everyone, including the fans, I know, for this great support and collaboration.