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Sauber aims high for 2005

Mon 21-02 2005

There are only two World Champion’s on the grid this year, one being current WC Michael Schumacher in his widely recognized Ferrari, the other is former 1997 WC Jacques Villeneuve in a Sauber.

Whilst in the recent past a connection has been established between the two manufactures, Sauber, formerly deemed as the ‘blue Ferrari’ have switched tyres from Bridgestone to Michelin and gone against the recent decisions Ferrari have made about Formula One politics. Furthermore a deal could arise that would see Sauber have BMW engines come 2006 eliminating all links with Ferrari.

On the 14th of January 2005 Sauber unveiled their season challenger, the C24. At the forefront of discussion was the teams new front wing which displayed character separating them from the rest of the competition. Not only does the team have a new character, but they also have found extreme confidence within themselves to seriously challenge the more successful teams of 2004.

On board with the former champ is Felipe Massa who after a season testing with Ferrari came back to enjoy great success towards the end of the 2004 season. A few top five qualifying positions and decent point scoring proved his and the teams improvement.

“I've improved a lot since then (his rookie season), and the critics have been important in my learning curve” says Massa who unlike most appreciates the constructive criticism which enables him to learn from his mistakes, rather than ignore them. He then continues “In motor racing it doesn't matter who your teammate is, because you will always want to keep him back. But, everybody will notice when you are in front of a former Formula 1 champion.”

If the C24 stands up to its testing times which saw Massa quickest in a field of 17 at Jerez then we can expect to see the Sauber of Massa battling hard in the point scoring positions, maybe even the odd occasion of a podium.

In the other Sauber seat we have Jacques Villeneuve. Many questioned Villeneuve’s lacklustre return to Formula One when he took to the wheel of a Renault from the Chinese Grand Prix till the end of the season. His results and speed led to more than a few raised eyebrows with Peter Sauber’s decision to sign the former champ.

But one thing is for sure, Villeneuve will be out to prove his critics wrong. He didn’t become World Champion because he was slow, but obviously that doesn’t mean he will be as quick as he was in 1997.

“I want to help the team ... get better. During the tests at the end of last year, I got a very good impression of both the C23 and the team. I'm extremely motivated and determined to support Sauber Petronas in moving ahead further.” Says Villeneuve which shows he is not out there for himself anymore, he is out there for the team. His attitude has changed more than likely for the better as we noticed with his responses to team calls during his time at Renault.

Unlike most teams with the option of running a third car at the Grand Prix weekends, Sauber have opted against this once again. "I could only change my mind, if a massively talented and equally massively rich driver knocks on our door - something I do not expect to happen." Says Sauber

As far as the C24 goes, technical director Willy Rampf senses some decent success in the air of the new season. "Our experience with the C23 had clearly shown the significant influence of the sidepods and the rear bodywork on aerodynamics. That's why the continuation of our development was consistently directed towards these areas, in which we have designed the car to be even more compact and harmonious”

He continues “Our goal is to further reduce the gap between ourselves and the front runners. Yet to what extent this will impact on the results cannot be predicted at the moment. We won't have any indications as to how well the individual teams have managed to adjust to the new regulations until after the season opener at Melbourne.”

It appears to be a team which has had its fair share of critics, with Massa, the ‘Blue Ferrari’ claim, signing Villeneuve and Sauber’s all round decisions to follow Ferrari. Toppled with rumours that Sauber might sell up, which led to a declaration to the FIA to say they will not sell. Now Sauber will have extra motivation to prove all of these critics wrong by having a successful season with level headiness and consistency.

If the C24 lives up to its expectations we might see a flutter of podiums, a jubilant Jacques and a fast Felipe both experiencing success behind the wheel of the all new C24 Sauber.


Aaron Shaw
Dailyf1news.com

Categorieën: Jacques Villeneuve

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