Q & A with Giancarlo Fisichella

Giancarlo Fisichella: I think it is a good atmosphere. The last race was good for us; I think we have a good car and the possibility to be competitive here. We need to push, to score points and maybe talk a little bit less.

Q. When did you last speak to Fernando?

GF: About 30 minutes ago.

Q. Did he say what he told the world's press, that he believes he is being stitched up by you?

GF: He didn't say anything to me. Since the race I have been with him quite often.

Q. So what is your view of his comments?

GF: I have no idea. I was doing my race and in that moment in the middle of the race he was too slow. If I was keeping his pace, then I think it was maybe the worst situation for both of us. Maybe we could lose not just the position against Michael (Schumacher) but also some other people.

Q. Did you have any option but to overtake Fernando when he was struggling with the tyres?

GF: No, he was five seconds slower than me.

Q. So you would do the same again?

GF: We will see the situation.

Q. Has it surprised you that he has gone public like this?

GF: Yes, I am very surprised about that.

Q. Do you feel let down?

GF: No. Absolutely, no.

Q. But would you not have liked him to say it to you rather than the world's media?

GF: That would have been better, yes.

Q. Can you understand where he is coming from?

GF: I have no idea.

Q. Have you had much time to talk to him since China?

GF: Yes. It was friendly as usual.

Q. Is it not strange that he said this then?

GF: Yes, it is a bit strange. I am very surprised about that.

Q. Are the team aware of any concerns that Fernando has about not being helped, or feeling alone?

GF: I think the team give to him all the possibility to be competitive all season. He is still the leader of the championship with Michael. He won the championship last year. All of us are a team together and he got good support from all the team.

Q. Do you feel it would be better if he stopped whinging and got on with it?

GF: We work as usual. When we jump in the car we are going to push to win the race, which is our main target.

Q. It seems like the pressure is causing some cracks in his edifice. Is that the way you see it?

GF: I told you. I spoke to him a few minutes ago. We were talking about the vacation we had, I was in Tokyo and he was in Shanghai. It was no problem at all.

Q. So there was no mention of Indianapolis and China?

GF: Absolutely not.

Q. Did you watch the press conference?

GF: No, I didn't.

Q. Will you speak to him now in light of what you heard?

GF: Probably, yes.

Q. What will you tell him?

GF: It will be private.

Q. When you were driving behind Fernando in Shanghai, and Michael was behind you, how was the situation? Could you have kept Michael behind both of you?

GF: No. Fernando was too slow in that situation unfortunately. Michael was pushing very hard and I think what I did was the best thing to do. We scored second and third, and it is not my fault if we didn't win the race.

Q. The situation with Fernando when you overtook him. Fernando called that risky, would you agree?

GF: No, absolutely not. I was on the wet side and we both braked quite late because behind us there was Michael, so that is the reason why the first time I lost control of the car. But it wasn't dangerous.

Q. Was there any discussion on team radio on if you could keep Michael behind or you go on?

GF: Nobody told me anything about it. I was just pushing, I was very quick in that moment and maybe the mistake was to change tyres on Fernando's car. That is all.

Q. His criticisms are more surprising because he got second place in the end and you got third, so you didn't take any points of him?

GF: Yeah, exactly. That is a good view.

Q. Has there been a change in the mood of the team since China?

GF: No. The team have given to him and me the best that they can do and we are still fighting for both championships. We are still fighting with Ferrari and that means Renault did a fantastic job this season with fantastic development. The atmosphere is still very good. We have got two races to go and nothing is lost.

Q. But would it not be better if the team were fighting as one?

GF: I don't know why he said it. Obviously I race for myself and I don't race for Fernando. If there is a possibility to help them it is okay, but I cannot stop my car on the track to let him past. For me there is no problem at all. I will talk with him about that, but if he is happy okay, if he is not happy then I don't mind. It is important to be together until the end of the season.

Q. You obviously still want him to win the championship?

GF: Obviously. I work for Renault; we are working to win both championships, which is very important for us. If we lose the championship it is not because of my fault or I helped him a lot during the season. He will win because he has done a fantastic season and scored a lot of points, that is all.