Pressiteade
As an American, how proud are you thatFormula 1 is growing in North America? “Formula 1 has always beenpopular in America. I remember watching my first race in Detroit in the 1980s,which inspired me to pursue a career in motorsport. It’s fantastic that nowFormula 1 is expanding in America and inspiring new fans, discovering newcities and introducing a fresh audience to an established global sport. Thisyear we have two races in America, next year it’s three and beyond that, whoknows. There are many opportunities and that’s exciting for our sport.”
What do we know about the Miami track?
“Like all teams, we’re heading toa completely new circuit, which we do not have too much information about.We’ve run simulations to help us with a base set-up, so hopefully we can be asclose to that as possible to allow us some stability early in the weekend. Newcircuits, especially temporary or street tracks, are usually quite low grip, sowe will have to ease ourselves into our programme. I’m sure we’ll do the usualrunning and experiments to optimise our set-up for qualifying and race. It’s anexciting challenge for drivers and engineers alike, so we’ll be doing our bestwith what we have in our hands.”
EstebanOcon heads to Miami for his and the team’s first experience of a Grand Prix inFlorida. The Frenchman is keen to start a new points streak, after his run ofseven points finishes in a row came to an end in Imola two weeks ago.
Miami vibes
FernandoAlonso is excited to drive in the first-ever Miami Grand Prix this weekendafter an unfortunate retirement last time out in Imola. By racing in Miami, theSpaniard will have raced at 36 different Formula 1 circuits in his career.
What are your thoughts on this weekend’s first everMiami Grand Prix?
“I enjoy racing in America andwe’ve seen in recent years how big Formula 1 is becoming over there. Miami isanother new one and I’m curious to see how the circuit is in real life. Thewhole atmosphere will be great and it’s a fun time to be in Miami, with theMiami Heat playing and doing well in the NBA Playoffs. There is also Kimoa’sfirst store here in Miami and I’ve visited the city a few times in the past, soit’s good to be here now for the Formula 1. I was on the simulator last week inEnstone, so we tried the new layout and I think it will be a fun one forus.”
You’ve had four rounds of racing the new 2022 cars.How are they shaping up?
“I think we’ve seen that after four races the racing hasseen mixed results. There were quite a few overtakes in Bahrain and Saudi.Whilst in Australia and Imola, it was difficult to overtake as expected. Ithink it’s still too early to judge. Bahrain and Saudi created uniqueovertaking opportunities, so perhaps it was more track specific as to why wesaw more overtakes there. It’s clear already though that it’s easier to followthe cars ahead and because the cars are all suffering with varying levels oftyre degradation, it’s creating different strategies and opportunities in therace. The cars are fun to drive, but let’s judge whether the racing as aspectacle is better when we’ve had more races to compare against.”
Miami Grand Prix Factfile
•••••••••••The Frenchman’s best result at a new circuit issecond place at the Sakhir Grand Prix in 2020.
Kõik sellel veebilehel olevad materjalid (sealhulgas, kuid mitte ainult: tekstid, fotod, graafika, helifailid, animatsioonifailid, videofailid ja nende paigutus veebilehel) on Renault SASi ja/või selle sidusettevõtete või kolmandate isikute omand, kes on volitanud Renault SASi nende piiratud kasutamiseks, ning on kaitstud autoriõiguse ja muude intellektuaalomandi kohta kehtivate õigusnormidega. Eespool nimetatud materjalide kasutamine muudel kui toimetuslikel eesmärkidel, eelkõige turundus- või reklaamieesmärkidel, on rangelt keelatud.
