Here's a one-on-one talk with Renault's Pat Symonds courtesy of the leading Formula One source, F1.com! To view the whole interview, click here:
Q: Pat, what are you most excited about ahead of the 2008 season?
Pat Symonds: This time last year, I said I would be disappointed if we didn't win a couple of races during the season. I was disappointed… but I don't intend to stay disappointed in 2008!
Q: How confident can you be that the team's 2007 problems are behind it?
PS: Very confident. We have worked hard to make sure we don't fall into the same traps again, and I don't think we will.
Q: With comparative stability in the rules, how can the team catch up the deficit we saw last year?
PS: We have had to take a more radical approach to the aerodynamics. Having solved the problems with the wind tunnel that we found last year, we are confident to do that. The results from the tunnel show we have made significantly more progress than normal. It now remains to be seen if that is enough relative to the competition.
Q: The 2008 car employs a very different design philosophy to its predecessors…
PS: The design of any new car is driven by a number of different factors, including new regulations and new discoveries. For this year, we have largely worked to overcome limitations we found in our on and off-track development in 2007. The 2008 car incorporates the lessons we learned, and it should allow us to get more performance from the car/tyre/aero package.
Q: What does Fernando (Alonso) bring to the team?
PS: Firstly, it is important to make one thing clear: Fernando would not have made up for the deficiencies of last year's car. We are now confident we have overcome those problems, and we are desperate to give him the car his talent deserves. I am certain that the combination of Fernando in a revitalised Renault will see him challenging for race wins. He knows what he wants from the car, and we have shown in the past that we can deliver it.
Q: What are your expectations for his new team mate Nelsinho (Piquet)?
PS: Nelson has a challenge in front of him. Just like with Heikki last year, we need to give him time to develop, to make the inevitable rookie mistakes - and we must help him learn from those mistakes. It is important to give him a car he can trust, and I hope this is where it turns out differently to 2007. We have to be sure that the R28 is not just a race-winning car, but one that inspires confidence from the drivers.