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Q & A with Christijan Albers

Q. How different do you feel going into this year compared to previous seasons? You had Minardi the first year, then Midland and the disorganisation, and now with Spyker a bit of direction, a bit of excitement

Christijan Albers: We all expect it's going to be a hard you know, for me at least. I am going into my third season and I'm doing a season where I have to psyche myself up, like when I used to do when I was competitive and winning races, like with Mercedes Benz in DTM.

But now it's just waiting and hopefully get the car and be able to push so hard and get everybody motivated, especially with Mike [Gascoyne]. I am really impressed with him. I still see him as one of three top technical directors in F1, and I am looking forward to work with him.

This morning I was already sitting with him in the car and I already thought wow, but I am eager to learn. And I am already eager to sit in the car again tomorrow and make some mileage because that's what I need at the end of the day.

To be realistic, and I think you have already heard this from Mike, I think in the beginning it won't be so easy. I hope everybody will know that it will take time for us to grow, and I think it is able to grow. But we have to push really hard to get there and move forward.

Everybody is really committed and they want to be successful and this is true for Christijan Albers. It would be nice to grow with them, but as you guys always say, I am running out of years.

I would like to world champion one day and that's still my goal, but you need to have a car that is competitive and the only frustration is that is getting more difficult to show what you can do, because sometimes the car was too far away.

We saw at the end of the season that I was fighting with the Red Bulls but I did not have any top speed but it was nice to be competitive. Now I have tasted it, now I want to taste it at every Grand Prix.

I think that is where the motivation is for me, that I am really pushing forward. I think the only positive from my career to others is that I am used to driving a car that is not competitive and growing up into the team who is to get to the front.

But I have to say it is a really hard road, F1 is harder than I thought to come up to the top. I don't know what it is, but it is really difficult to come in to a top team.

Q. Have you noticed a change in the way the team is working since Mike Gascoyne joined the team?

CA: Yes. But he is really focussed on the B-chassis, and I think that's quite professional I have to say. He starts to create people around him and he is getting stronger and stronger and that's what I notice in the factory. I know everything from inside and outside because I am here two days a week investing time.

For me it is sometimes more important to get the team forward because for me it is the only way for me to succeed. To create a strength, once a lifetime, to take that step up or to grow up, or to prove myself to the team and to grow with them. But for me it is really good to work with him. I still put him on a high level and I can learn everyday from him. I see him as a really good teacher.

Q. Do you think having someone like Sutil alongside you will help with your reputation?

CA: I love it that Lewis Hamilton said something about him. I would like it even more you know. The more people that start to say it, it is only going to be better for Christijan Albers at the end of the day.

Everybody looked already at Tiago [Monteiro] and said that he was not quick. I think that was really unfair because I think he was quite good. I mean okay I beat him but he is not so bad as everybody says. So I need a new teammate, and I am really, really happy that he is coming in the team.

I am looking forward to working with him, and after the aim of making the team faster, to be quicker than him. Because in the end you always want to be the quickest one and hopefully I will be. I think it will help me again to make a step.

Q. What about the pressure from Holland?

CA: Of course it was already there. But I think my whole life is under pressure.

Q. But there is a huge demand from the Dutch press, and with the orange car and everything?

CA: Yes, but I really want to calm them down a bit to get a better perspective, because I think we are not going to be amazing. I think the most important thing is that we finish the race and get as much data as we can. We have to see in March. Nobody knows where we stand in March, but one thing we know we will not be in the front, we have to be realistic.

But it could be better than we expected because we have some good things going on.

Q. And the car was getting quicker towards the end of last year wasn't it?

CA: Yeah and I mean we had quite a penalty with the top speed. I don't want to go into details because you never know where I end up. But I think on that side we are quite positive and we have made some good steps.

Q. Would you feel frustrated if Toro Rosso and Aguri disappear into the distance using someone else's car?

CA: Yes, because I will not be competitive with them, but on the other side maybe I will be. But it is not my decision you know.

I don't want to get involved with the FIA. That's for the team management and it is not up to me. I just do my job and give as much input and feedback as I can for the car and push them as much as possible and to make the team have a good atmosphere. That's what I want. It is nothing to do with me.

Q. Do you feel this is an opportunity to build this team around you, with the Dutch connection and everything?

CA: I am really grateful that they take a lot of advice from me. It doesn't mean that I can lean back you know. I have to give everything and I have to push everyday with my engineers and everybody.

There is only one guy now that I don't push and that is Mike. I still don't know him well enough and I don't know how far I can go. I think it will be really nice to work together because I think I have a really good schooling with Mercedes, DTM and F3, and good information and feedback from car, and I am really eager and excited to hear from him how he is going to rate me as a driver.

As well on feedback and those kind of things. That's what will be most interesting to see. He is the top. I see him as a teacher right now. He has worked with almost all the top drivers and he will be the one who can see where Christijan Albers stands.

Q. And he calls a spade a spade, which is something you would prefer?

CA: Yes. With all respect, I still think for a Dutch driver it is incredibly difficult to come in to the top teams.

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