Europe preview quotes: Renault

Q. Renault finished in the points with both cars in Hungary and moved up a place in the constructors' championship. That's an encouraging result for the rest of the year...

FA: We're certainly continuing to improve, which is very encouraging. We were on the pace in Hungary, the car felt good and we showed we are still moving forward and that we will fight hard to finish in fourth place in the championship. It was important also to get a solid result before the summer break: it's good for the mood in the team and means we can come back motivated for the rest of the year.

Q. After Barcelona, we now head to Valencia for the second race in Spain this year. Is that something special for you?

FA: Yes, of course. I'm very happy to be driving at home for a second time: it's always a special feeling to race in front of my countrymen and I'm really looking forward to it. In Barcelona we were having a strong race when I had to retire, but I hope this time I can get a good result as the circuit will be new for all the drivers.

Q. As you say, it's a brand new circuit. Is that an interesting challenge for you?

FA: Yes, it will be interesting for me and also for the team, who have been working hard in preparation for this race for the last couple of months. As a new circuit, I think it gives the drivers a chance to show what they can do, but I am not under any illusions as I expect all the drivers to be quick. We must do our best to find our reference points quicker than the others in order to spring a surprise.

Q. It's a street circuit like Monaco, where you usually go well. Do you expect that to be the case in Valencia?

FA: It's true that I like street circuits: they are always an interesting challenge and the sensation of speed from inside the cockpit is incredible. I will do my best to improve the set-up of the car with my engineers over the weekend so that we can aim for a strong result. Whatever happens, I will give my maximum for this second Grand Prix in Spain.

Nelson Piquet:

Q. You had a solid race in Hungary, building on your result in Germany. Is this the breakthrough you have been waiting for?

NP: I don't know, but I'm certainly happy to have scored points in Hungary. It was important for the team and for me and overall it was a very positive weekend. The car worked well, I did a lot of laps during free practice on Friday and Saturday morning and I was on the pace all weekend and felt comfortable. It's always nice to have that sort of weekend and I hope to continue like this for the rest of the season.

Q. You are preparing to contest the first European Grand Prix held in Valencia: a new circuit for all the drivers. How are you approaching this race?

NP: This season I have already learned several new circuits, but the difference this time is that all the drivers will be in the same position and having to learn the circuit. I think that from the point of view of the championship it's interesting to visit new tracks: it's an extra challenge for the drivers as well as the teams. I have worked hard with the team to approach this race in the best shape possible and I will try to get on the pace quickly and maximise every lap in practice.

Q. What do you think of the track?

NP: It's a street circuit so it will be quite tricky, but also very interesting. It's never easy to learn a new circuit, but, as I have said, this time all the teams and drivers will be in the same position. It will be interesting to see who can get comfortable fastest.

Q. What are your expectations for this new race?

NP: I would like to have another solid weekend, starting off with a good day of practice on Friday, qualifying in the top 10 and showing good race pace to hopefully finish in the points. That's how I will approach this race. After the summer break, I am well rested and motivated to have a great end to the season.

Pat Symonds:

Q. Looking back to Hungary, how do you rate the team's performance?

PS: I think it was probably our strongest result of the season. While Nelson's finishing position in Germany was a better result on paper, we were the first to acknowledge that luck played a major part in that result. In Hungary things were very different as we had two cars racing competitively all the way, racing against strong competitors and racing them on equal terms. From the moment we arrived there the car was competitive: we qualified well, we raced well and had to use strategy to get our result. The points were very welcome and in the last two races only McLaren have scored more points than us.

Q. Fernando matched his best result of the year. Talk us through his weekend...

PS: It was another strong weekend for Fernando, although the only disappointment was that we lost out to Raikkonen towards the end. While I fully accepted that Raikkonen had a much quicker car, I really thought we had done enough to be able to stay ahead of him at the second pit-stop. In the end things didn't work out and we missed out on a potential podium, but it was still a great result for Fernando and equalled his best finishing position from earlier in the season in Australia.

Q. Nelson also continued his good form with another mature drive...

PS: We all hoped that after Hockenheim he would have renewed confidence, which proved to be the case: he was calm, he was confident, and he went into qualifying believing that he would get through to Q3. Then he went on to drive as perfect a race as he drove in Hockenheim without making any significant mistakes. He was quick when he needed to be, preserved the tyres when he needed to and drove a strong and intelligent race.

Q. The team was able to carry its qualifying pace through to the race. Is this a trend that you expect to continue for the rest of the season?

PS: You have to remember that Hungary is a very particular circuit and although Fernando did a great job of keeping Raikkonen behind him until the final pitstop, this wasn't indicative of the pace of the two cars. Indeed, as soon as Raikkonen broke away from us, he was able to lap considerably quicker. But, having said all that, the rest of the weekend showed the improved pace of the R28 and the improvements that we have been making bit-by-bit over the last few races. So the performance in Hungary reinforces the belief that we are moving in the right direction and gives me confidence that we can finish fourth in the championship and end the season with the third fastest car.

Q. Did we learn anything new about the pecking order in Hungary?

PS: We saw that BMW had a poor weekend and Toyota had a good weekend, but I don't believe the pecking order suddenly changes. There are certainly trends, and at the moment we have a very distinct upward trend, whereas BMW have a little bit of a downward trend and Toyota seem to fluctuate. So I don't think that the race itself shows a change to the status quo, but merely reinforces the trends which have been developing for a little while.

Q. We head to Valencia next - a home race for Fernando. Is the team looking forward to this race?

PS: We look forward to every race and I think we like the challenge of a new circuit. We enjoy the ambiance of visiting new places and the race team have had a short break so they will head there raring to go. It certainly looks like a fabulous venue...