Spanish Grand Prix 6th - 8th May 2005 - PREVIEW

The BMW WilliamsF1 Team heads to Barcelona next week for the fifth round
of the 2005 season, the Spanish Grand Prix. Despite the teams'
familiarity with the circuit as a testing venue, the race at the
Circuit de Catalunya is one of the most demanding on the Formula One
calendar. The region's erratic weather conditions provide a continual
challenge to the cars' set-up while prevailing winds can compromise
aerodynamic efficiency. Having won over one third of the Spanish GPs
held at the Catalunya track, the BMW WilliamsF1 Team is looking forward
to drawing upon its experience in Barcelona next weekend. The team is
also hoping that progress at the Silverstone test this week, combined
with further aero developments for the cars, will provide a solid
foundation to help drive the FW27s to a successful result. Mark
Webber: We do a huge amount of testing at Barcelona throughout the year
so all the teams know the venue particularly well. I like the track and
so really hope we'll be able to collect some good points there. I think
there's going to be a special atmosphere at the Spanish Grand Prix this
year because Fernando Alonso is leading the Championship. It's
fantastic for Formula One to see so many people so passionate about
this sport in that part of the world! Nick Heidfeld: I am looking
forward to racing in Barcelona. It's a very technical circuit and it's
quite difficult to drive there, but everybody, the teams and the
drivers, know it very well as we do a lot of testing there. They laid
new tarmac over the winter which changed the circuit quite a lot so it
will be very different from last year, especially as far as the tyres
are concerned. Still, I think we should be in reasonable shape. Sam
Michael (Technical Director, WilliamsF1): We spent this week testing at
Silverstone circuit and made progress on set-up and tyres in wet and
dry conditions. We also spent a lot of the time working on our starts.
It's often hard to find a good balance on the car in Barcelona and,
with the changeable conditions, the set-up continually evolves. Due to
re-surfacing in January, the track has changed causing the circuit to be
less demanding on tyres. Not as much testing is done at Barcelona as it
used to be, but it is still more than the normal race tracks where you
don't test at all. We will have some further aerodynamic improvements
on the cars since the last GP, mainly around the front of the car, and
Michelin have two good compounds that we have tested. All of these
steps should help us to move the FW27 further up the grid. Qualifying
and the start are the most important things to get right. Strategy will
be interesting as well because overtaking is so difficult on this
track. Mario Theissen (BMW Motorsport Director): The longest flat
out section of the Circuit de Catalunya measures 982 metres. You
therefore need every last drop of power, although aerodynamics and drag
also play a role in determining top speed. On the whole, the load on the
engine is fairly average in Barcelona, with the full throttle ratio
standing at 51 percent per lap. It will be Mark Webber's turn to run
with a new engine at the Spanish Grand Prix, while Nick Heidfeld will
continue with the BMW P84/5 he used in Imola. Since the introduction of
the current regulation stipulating that the teams' engines each have to
last for two GP weekends, some key data has become more stable. As a
general rule, we have been reducing maximum revs by 1,000 rpm for free
practice on Friday. The evidence suggests that this does not have any
noticeable effect on tyre choice. During the race, however, we can
call on maximum engine output at any time and make decisions according
to the situation in hand. In simple terms, this means that it is not
worth pushing an engine to the limit if the driver is stuck in traffic.
This allows us to preserve the engine's reserves of power for
situations where there is greater potential for success. Generally
speaking, the peak output of one of these engines will diminish during
its service life. However, this loss of power is only in the region of
ten bhp, and therefore not serious enough to affect the outcome of a
race. We are delighted to see the huge increase in interest in Formula
One among the Spanish public, due primarily to the success of Fernando
Alonso. The organisers report that all 115,000 tickets have been sold
for the race Sunday. Stats and facts: Circuit/Date: Circuit de
Catalunya / 8th May 2005 Start time (local/GMT) : 14:00 hrs/12:00 hrs
Lap/Race distance : 4.627 km/305.256 km (66 laps) Winner 2004: Michael
Schumacher (Scuderia Ferrari Marlboro) Pole 2004: Michael Schumacher
(Scuderia Ferrari Marlboro), 1hr 15.022 min Lap record :Michael
Schumacher (Scuderia Ferrari Marlboro), 1hr 17.450 min (2004) F1
statistics: BMW WilliamsF1 Team: 89 starts, 10 wins, 16 poles
WilliamsF1 before 2000: 356 starts, 103 wins, 108 poles BMW before 2000:
97 starts, 9 wins, 15 poles Formula BMW driving lesson and tennis
tournament for a good cause: On the Wednesday prior to the Spanish GP
(4th May), tennis aces Arantxa Sanchez-Vicario (33, Spain, 13 Grand
Slam victories) and RBS ambassador, Andrew Murray (17, Scotland), will
be given a driving lesson by Nick Heidfeld in a Formula BMW car on the
Valencia circuit between 13.00 and 14.00 hrs. On Thursday (5th May)
the roles will be reversed at a tennis tournament in aid of the
Northampton Intensive Care Unit. From 09.00 to 12.00 hrs, at the Open
Club Sanchez-Casal in Barcelona, Sanchez-Vicario and Murray will be
challenging BMW WilliamsF1 Team drivers Heidfeld and Webber, as well as
Marc Gené, Giancarlo Fisichella, Christian Klien, Felipe Massa,
Jacques Villeneuve and Alexander Wurz on the court. Journalists are
welcome to attend both events. Photos will be available for download on
the afternoon of each day at www.press.bmw.com. TV footage can be
obtained through the team's media contacts (see Media contact).
History and background: WilliamsF1 has a total of six Spanish Grand Prix
wins on record. The first was taken by Nigel Mansell (GBR) at Jerez in
1987, the most recent by Jacques Villeneuve (CDN) on the Circuit de
Catalunya ten years later. The first race on a wet Circuit de Catalunya
was on 29th September 1991, won by Mansell in a Williams Renault.
Since the official inauguration of Formula One in 1950, Spain has played
host to 34 Grands Prix. The first two Spanish GPs were held in
Pedralbes. Subsequent venues were Jarama (9), Montjuich (4) and Jerez
(5). Since 1991, Formula One has been staged each year at the Circuit
de Catalunya to the north of Barcelona. 2005 marks the 15th Spanish GP
to be held there. The city of Barcelona (population approx. 1.8
million) lies in the northeast of Spain. The economic and cultural hub
of Catalonia, it is also home to several universities and higher
education institutes and boasts numerous museums and cultural
monuments. One of the city's most renowned sons is the art nouveau
architect Antonio Gaudí (1852-1926), whose works include the
still unfinished Church of the Sagrada Familia.