Brawn Expects Rivals to Fight Back

Ferrari's technical director Ross Brawn expects their rivals to fight back after a shaky start to their Formula One season.

The Italian squad, constructors' champions for the last five years, have started the year in spectacular fashion, with their star driver Michael Schumacher winning the first three races of the season, having started from pole position in all of them.

Ferrari currently have a 29-point advantage over their closest rivals, but Brawn believes the situation will not last.

"I'm surprised [by the other teams' woes], even if I obviously don't mind," Brawn told Gazzetta dello Sport newspaper. "But I don't think this situation will last long: there are still 15 races to go. F1 is a funny business where things can change very rapidly: I remember when, a few years ago, we managed to lose an advantage of 33 points.

"So, it's better to keep our feet firmly on the ground. After all it's this realism one of our strengths."

Brawn admitted the conditions at Sunday's Bahrain Grand Prix favoured the team, but claimed the start of the race was the key to their success.

"I think the weather conditions favoured us: it wasn't as hot as on the previous days, and the track was particularly dirty," said Brawn. "Basically the conditions were perfect for our package. Anyway the key to our success was the start: Michael and Rubens were very good in not being caught out, otherwise things would have become more complicated."

The Briton also praised their tyre suppliers Bridgestone, defending them from the criticism they received over the winter.

"I was sorry to read so many critical comments about Bridgestone during the winter," Brawn added. "In reality they were working on parallel programs regarding tyre compounds, constructions, and profiles. When they put everything together, the tyres worked immediately."