Q & A with Alexander Wurz

Alexander Wurz: I retired as a racing driver. I said at the time that I was happy and keen to work with a team, but not at the forefront - instead to be a little bit of a step back. I wanted to test, develop and work with the engineers. It is something I always loved and it gives me a bit of a kick. Actually what I am doing right now is exactly what I hope to be doing in the future.

Q. How long did the talks with Honda take?

AW: Very swift, I would say!

Q. Were you always settled on wanting to come back as a test driver after you made the decision to stop at Williams?

AW: At the time, this chapter of my career was finished. I knew I would like to continue, but at the time I didn't start looking at what opportunities there were. Then the whole thing started to happen very swiftly and efficiently.

Q. If you wanted to stay in Formula One as a test driver, why did it end so abruptly with Williams? Why not finish the season?

AW: That is a completely different matter. It is a closed chapter and I explained it at the time. I don't want to go into it.

Nevertheless, I still have contact with the team (Williams). Two weeks ago, when I came here for a seat fitting, I stopped with Frank Williams and we had a chat for two hours. It was the same with Patrick (Head) and Sam (Michael). I really, really enjoyed my time at the team, and the way it looked that it finished very sudden was definitely not how we are standing now.

Each side still has a high respect. I had a good time, and I enjoyed it from the first to the last second. It is not like marriage where you have to be married forever. In racing, it is just that sometimes things change and you move somewhere else. That is what I have done.

Q. You've only been involved with world championship winning teams in the past. Are you hoping you've chosen well this time?

AW: Yeah of course! But realistically, you cannot turn it around overnight because the competition is too good. There are no bad teams as such at the moment. It will not be easy, it will be difficult and it will take some time until some changes come and deliver results.

It is just about chipping away. That is what I have learned from working with all the top teams. You cannot do one monster step: you have to do little steps and get efficient in every aspect. That is the goal.

Q. What have you seen here that makes you convinced Honda can achieve their goals?

AW: In the end, they have already achieved in previous seasons. This team was new when they were BAR, and then they grew. Before 2007, they were always going a little bit further, a little bit further and it looked quite good. They just had a problem with last season.

Q. But you believe the infrastructure is here?

AW: Everything is here. And, they have reacted not in panic. It is a bit similar to Williams two years ago. So they had a very bad year, and what do we do? They didn't panic, throw out everyone and then wonder what to do. In the end, they kept the existing structure, which had already proved to be good, and made it better. And that is why they took very good and clever people. These are good guys who know how to make quick cars.

Q. Was Ross Brawn a key factor in attracting you to the team?

AW: It was one element of attracting me, to know how serious they wanted to come back. Definitely.

Q. Had you always wanted to work with him?

AW: To be honest, I am not in love with him in the sense that I have to be with Ross! But of course it is really cool to be in the same team as him, and to benefit from his experience and management skills.

Q. Honda admit that big improvements will not come for a while. Are you ready to knuckle down for that period of time?

AW: Yeah, I can assure you I am not here for the short term. In Formula One terms, that means medium to long term. I want to, in the end, see the results of the seeds we are spreading at the moment. It is similar to what my previous team did a couple of years ago. After that, I can go home perfectly happy.

Q. You are testing the car at Barcelona this week, aren't you?

AW: I will drive the new car for the first time at Barcelona. I am really looking forward to this, and not only because it is a new car. It is natural that you would enjoy it. But also because, for me, I want to get many more miles now of driving without traction control. I haven't done testing before with that, so I want to get used to that.

Q. What was the first impression of the RA107 last week? It obviously wasn't one of the best ever F1 cars.

AW: Look, they asked me to drive the old car - but not for me to give them an opinion. They already know the car and in my opinion that is the driver's opinion from the first lap, actually. Basically it was just to get to know the way the team is working, how they operate, how they call things on the radio. And to get me up to speed. And also to work a bit on the driveability.

Q. How bad was the car?

AW: You have to be careful about using the word bad. There is no such thing at the moment as a bad car. Seriously! It looks bad, because we all think of hundredths or tenths of a second - which is very little time. But it wasn't clearly a race winner.

The downforce was down, and if the downforce isn't there then you are not switching the tyre on, so if the tyre is not in the right temperature you are sliding more. The balance was okay, it wasn't monster understeer or oversteer, it was just sliding. That is not the quickest way around race tracks.

Q. How good do you think Kazuki Nakajima will be at Williams?

AW: I think very good. He is a very clever guy. He listens, and I remember the first test when he came. He was young, and I have seen many young guys come, and after 20 laps the neck falls off and they cannot explore the car. And he drove 85 laps in Jerez and could hold his head still. So it meant he put in a lot of effort before, which shows that he knows it is serious. Then the rest will be how can he adjust to the driving style, plus a bit of luck.

Q. You made a clear decision last year that you no longer wanted to be a race driver. As reserve driver, though, you could be racing again...

AW: How horrible!

Q. But what's the mindset?

AW: Look, no problem. If someone calls me in the morning and tells me that Rubens or Jenson slipped cleaning the bathroom, then I will jump in. I know what to do and I will do it with 100 percent.

Q. And you are going to all the races?

AW: Well, I think 90 percent of the races. I am very happy with my position.