June 27 - 29, 2003

Race Notes

Lucky Strike B*A*R Honda's Jenson Button crossed the line seventh at the European Grand Prix scoring two points and moving the team up into fifth in the constructors' championship while team-mate Jacques Villeneuve's race was over on lap 54 due to gearbox failure.

The drivers were greeted by warm temperatures and partly cloudy skies (air 25 degrees, track 30 degrees) at the Nürburgring for the 60 lap race. B*A*R Honda's Jenson Button made up one place to 11th at the start and moved up into tenth position by lap 11 as Olivier Panis (Toyota) locked his wheels and spun off course. The Briton came in for his first of two scheduled stops on lap 15, pulling into the box as his team-mate left pit lane. Button rejoined in 11th place and made his way up to eighth position by lap 27 as Nick Heidfeld (Sauber) and Cristiano DaMatta (Toyota) pitted and McLaren's Kimi Raikkonen retired from the action.

Lap 37 saw Button pit for his second scheduled stop, rejoining in tenth place behind Jaguar's Mark Webber and by lap 42 the B*A*R Honda driver was back up into eighth position as Renault's Jarno Trulli and Toyota's Olivier Panis both exited the race. Button continued to push hard and just three laps from the end moved up into seventh as McLaren's David Coulthard spun off while trying to pass Fernando Alonso (Renault). Having qualified in 12th position, Button crossed the line in a points-scoring seventh place, moving the team up into fifth in the constructors' championship.

Jacques Villeneuve did not have a good start and fell back two places off the grid to 19th position. Having made his way into 17th place by the end of lap nine, the Canadian made a mistake and spun at turn two. He managed to get his B*A*R Honda 005 back on track and by lap 13 he was up into 17th position. On lap 14 the B*A*R Honda driver hit a cone at one of the chicanes and had to pit for a new nose, fuel and tyres, moments before Button was scheduled to come in.

The team worked incredibly fast to get Villeneuve back out on track in time to receive Button, and the Canadian rejoined the action in 20th position. By lap 40 Villeneuve was running in 15th due to the retirements of Trulli and Panis and the pit stops of the Minardi duo. The B*A*R Honda driver looked set to cross the line 15th when, just six laps from the end, it was all over as he parked his car at turn six with gearbox failure.

It was a Williams one-two for Ralf Schumacher and Juan Pablo Montoya at the Nürburgring, followed by Ferrari's Rubens Barrichello and Renault's Fernando Alonso. Michael Schumacher (Ferrari) and Mark Webber (Jaguar) finished fifth and sixth while B*A*R Honda's Jenson Button crossed the line seventh. The final point scoring position was taken by Nick Heidfeld (Sauber).

Jacques Villeneuve:
"I'm pleased to see the end of a very bad weekend. Once we got going the pace wasn't too bad, but it was hard to be stuck behind the Minardis. I made a couple of mistakes as well and I was lucky to recover from my spin in the chicane. Just as it looked as if I was at least going to be able to finish the race, second gear broke and it was over. I guess we just have to hope for a better weekend in Magny-Cours now."

Jenson Button: 
"I'm very happy to finish where we did because we weren't really on the pace at all today. The start was poor and there must have been a 30-metre gap between me and the guys in front, but I caught up at the first corner and managed to get past Webber in the process. I was really struggling with oversteer and I had to take it really easy on the first couple of stints to conserve the tyres, otherwise it would just have been oversteer all the way. It's been a tough old weekend here so I'm pleased we were able to get a couple of points into the bargain because the boys deserve a bit of a boost. Their work in the pits today was incredible with Jacques and I in on the same lap. I hope we can all expect something more in Magny-Cours next weekend."

Geoffrey Willis, Technical Director:
"This has been a difficult weekend for the team so it is very good to finish with two more points. Jenson drove a solid race, particularly resisting the pressure of those behind him during the middle stint of the race. A great deal of credit must go to the pit crew today; they did an excellent job to change Jacques' nose in record time and get him out before Jenson came in on a scheduled stop just 10 seconds later. Jacques had a fairly dismal race; he started poorly and dropped to 19th, then had to fight his way past the Minardis. A subsequent mistake at the chicane saw him damage the front wing and finally his race came to an early conclusion with a second-gear failure, the cause of which will now be investigated."

Shuhei Nakamoto, Engineering Director, Honda Racing Development:
"Jenson drove a good race and I'm pleased the team is back to points scoring form. We're encouraged by the overall performance of our engine this weekend and look forward to being fully able to demonstrate its capacity at Magny-Cours. Jacques obviously had a hard day. I hope he'll be back refreshed in France next weekend."

BAR

Race Results

Saturday Qualifying Notes

Jacques Villeneuve:
"Today was a bad day. It's never a good thing to go out first for qualifying but on top of that I had a bad lap. The car was sliding and I braked too late into turn one, locked the front wheels and lost a good half-second as a result."

"We changed the set-up just before our qualifying run and it made a bigger difference than expected. We also ran a good race strategy fuel-wise so there were a number of reasons for us being slower, but even without the mistake we would probably only have been 15th today. I'm sure it will be a very tough race tomorrow because we'll be starting well behind where we normally should be and that will hurt us for sure."

Jenson Button:
"I'm pretty happy with my lap considering the difficult start we've had to the weekend. I had planned to be a little more cautious through the Veedol chicane but as this was qualifying I decided to give it some instead! I was pushing hard throughout the lap but we were still struggling for grip so the car was very twitchy."

"It's been a tough weekend so far and we've had to try a lot of things with the set-up to improve for today. The balance isn't too bad now, we're just not quick enough. It would be nice to have some rain tomorrow but I don't think it's going to come. We'll just have to make the most of the strategy and do what we can from the sixth row."

David Richards, Team Principal:
"We have been struggling for grip in the dry conditions here all weekend and therefore Jenson's position in qualifying was probably as good as we could have expected. Jacques will understandably be disappointed with his qualifying position, but he usually fares better in the race and is confident with his set-up for tomorrow. Given the number of incidents that have occurred in the F3000 race here today, tomorrow's grand prix could be equally exciting and who knows what might happen?"

Geoffrey Willis, Technical Director:
"It has been a difficult two days for the team as the car has clearly not been working well at this track. We had two very busy practice sessions this morning trying to find a suitable set-up and in the end we are substantially happier with the car than we were on Friday. A low-grip circuit like the Nürburgring tends to accentuate any weaknesses with the package and we are now focusing on these areas for the next race and test."

"Jenson's qualifying lap was as good as we could hope for this weekend. Unfortunately, Jacques made a mistake in turn one which compromised his lap. The target for the rest of this weekend is to try to collect some points, which will be quite a tough challenge."

Shuhei Nakamoto, Engineering Director, Honda Racing Development:
"Jenson did a good job today, considering the fact that he hasn't been able to get the best out of his car so far this weekend. We're satisfied with the reliability of our engines and I believe the package is capable of delivering some points in the race tomorrow."

Warm-Up Times

Saturday Practice Times

Friday Qualifying Notes

Jacques Villeneuve:
"Webber, da Matta and myself were the unlucky ones today as we were the first cars out on a wet track. When I did my lap we were only allowed to change to wet tyres but the later runners were able to put on extreme wets. Halfway round, the wheels weren't even touching the ground; I was just floating like a boat. Normally when you aquaplane it's only for a tenth of a second or something, but there it was all the way down."

"I'll be the first one to go out for qualifying tomorrow, which is never a good thing, so now we have to just keep working on the car as best we can and hope that the weather turns the same way as it did today. Our tyres aren't competitive here so that's the best we can hope for tomorrow."

Jenson Button:
"My lap had some potential but I made a mistake in the last sector; I hit the kerb too hard, then the bollard and broke the front wing. It's disappointing because I did the same thing this morning so I'm not particularly pleased with myself. Having said that we've seen before that bollards don't work and several people had the same problem as me today. The bollards just break front wings.

I was lucky in the sense that it was only spitting with rain when I did my lap, whereas it was starting to come down hard by the time the last six or seven runners went out. I was pleased to see the rain though because I think we're going to need that. Hopefully it will be wet for final qualifying tomorrow."

David Richards, Team Principal:
"The typically fickle weather conditions look likely to have a hand in the outcome of this race, and today set the tone with a difficult start to the weekend. This morning's free practice gave an indication of how much work the team and Bridgestone have to do under dry conditions here, although with a mixed forecast ahead of us it's anyone's guess what we'll be facing in qualifying tomorrow or the race on Sunday."

"Jenson had already damaged a couple of wings at the chicane prior to qualifying, so he can't be feeling too happy with himself, and if it was going to rain for anyone in qualifying, it had to start seconds before Jacques went out on the track. Things can only get better."

Geoffrey Willis, Technical Director:
"We were struggling for grip this morning despite being reasonably happy with the car balance, and we were not happy to find ourselves fifth and seventh out of the Bridgestone runners. Jenson's qualifying lap should have been better had he not hit the bollard in the chicane, breaking a front wing for the third time today."

"Jacques was very unfortunate with the timing of his qualifying run because it had just started to rain, leaving us with insufficient time to make any car set-up change except to fit wet tyres. As he started his timed lap, the conditions had worsened dramatically and he spun off as a result of aquaplaning. By the time it was appropriate for the FIA to permit use of the extreme wet, we were already on our timed lap, effectively on the wrong tyres."

Shuhei Nakamoto, Engineering Director, Honda Racing Development:
"We expected to have both guys in the top ten today but we obviously didn't achieve that. Jenson finished just outside in 11th which is not too bad considering the damage to his front wing. But unfortunately Jacques, who was already at a disadvantage because of the weather, didn't manage a competitive time either."

Friday Practice Times

BAR Race Preview

The halfway point of the season has arrived as the teams head off on the first of two visits to Germany for round nine of the 2003 FIA Formula One World Championship. After the cosmopolitan city of Montreal, the setting could not be more different for this race. The Nürburgring is nestled in the picturesque Eifel region of Western Germany in the shadows of its predecessor, the daunting, 14-mile Nordschleife.

The Lucky Strike B*A*R Honda team had a tough race in Montreal, both drivers ultimately retiring with a brake problem for Jacques and a gearbox problem for Jenson. The team subsequently embarked on an intensive test session at Silverstone. The aim of the test was to continue with the ongoing development programme and find a solution to reliability problems. It has been an exceptionally busy week for the team because, as well as a heavy testing schedule, the freight did not arrive back from Canada until Thursday, which meant that turnaround time between races was almost halved.

Altered for 2002, the Nürburgring now features a twisty complex of four corners at the start of the lap. Turn one is a hairpin that accounts for a lot of pushing and shoving at the start of the race. It is a medium to high downforce circuit where good traction is needed to get a strong exit from the slow turns. The track has a low-grip surface and the weather always plays a part in the Grand Prix weekend as the rain can move in from the mountains very quickly.

B*A*R's best result at the Nürburgring is eighth place for Ricardo Zonta in 1999. Last year's race saw Olivier Panis finish ninth and Jacques finish 12th. Jacques won his first ever F1 Grand Prix at the Nürburgring in 1996 and took the top step of the podium again the following year.

Jacques Villeneuve:
"I'm not a great fan of the Nürburgring as a track. Last year they changed the layout and I don't find it very interesting. Having said that, I have good memories of the Nürburgring because it is where I won my first grand prix and where I won my last. It is fun to go back there. We should be a lot more competitive there this year than we were last year. There are some opportunities to overtake, so I think it will be a good race."

Jenson Button:
"Canada was a difficult weekend for us, although it was good to be back in the car after my 'mini-break'. It's a case of onwards and upwards now as we've completed a good test at Silverstone and are looking forward to getting back in the points at the Nürburgring."

"The Nürburgring is quite a tricky circuit with very few overtaking opportunities. The new layout is good and the first corner is a good spot to out-brake other cars but it's also really difficult at the start as it's so narrow through there. Overall I enjoy the Nürburgring race. I had a good result there last year so I'm hoping for more of the same this time around."

David Richards, Team Principal:
"If I was asked to produce a mid-season report on the team's progress I would say that I'm pleased with the pace we have shown but frustrated that we haven't converted that pace into points. We have had a number of strong races this year but we need to start scoring points with both cars. The potential is there but we have to first get on top of our reliability issues. We will do this by effectively managing the processes involved in the design, manufacture and racing of the cars and this will require 100% effort from everyone. It is the only way to eradicate reliability problems."

"We go to the Nürburgring with fresh hopes for a good result and there is no reason why we shouldn't expect to be in the points at this event. B*A*R, Honda and Bridgestone have all been working hard as a team to get the best from the package so I fully expect to be delivering a positive end-of-season report in a few months' time."

Geoffrey Willis, Technical Director:
"With half of the season gone, it is a good time to reflect on the performance of the team. Certainly compared with 2002 we have made a huge step both with chassis and engine and continue to make improvements at every race. However, despite a very productive testing programme where we continue to rack up thousands of testing kilometres with little problems, our reliability at race weekends has been disappointing and the results have not reflected the pace of the car. Nevertheless we believe that we can and will change this situation and are committed to developing the car, introducing new performance parts right through to the end of the season."

"Technically, the Nürburgring is quite a challenging track with an interesting mix of corners and fast straights. Although a pretty fast track, it is one that sees the teams run a maximum downforce configuration on their cars. However the cars will need their best straight-line speed in order to be in a position to overtake, either at the end of the pit straight, or under braking into the back chicane, the two best passing points at this track."

"The smooth track surface of the Nürburgring does not present any particular tyre wear problems. Once again it is likely to be a two-stop race that allows plenty of scope for race tactics to gain an advantage over the opposition."

Shuhei Nakamoto, Engineering Director, Honda Racing Development:
"We've been testing the latest upgrade of the engine at Silverstone which has gone well and we've had positive feedback from all three drivers. I'm encouraged for the weekend ahead at the Nürburgring and hungry for a points finish."