Q & A with Kazuki Nakajima

Things have not been easy all the time, but his confidence will have been boosted by a surprise test-topping lap that he completed at Barcelona in Spain this week.

Autosport.com caught up with Nakajima to find out how the week had gone, and how he feels he is getting to grips with the new Williams FW30.

Q. Were you aware of the laptime you had done to top the timesheets?

Kazuki Nakajima: Yes, but it was a light tank run so it was not a surprise. It wasn't a one lap wonder, though, and the fact that I managed to go faster than Nico (Rosberg) is great. I believe he did his run under similar conditions.

However, when I made a mistake into the chicane on the first (timed) lap and nearly spun, I really thought that I had messed it up, as I was running really well until then.

The handling of the car was good and the balance was good. I have a very good feeling about the car, so it was worth waiting until this afternoon to do those few laps.

Q. Why did you not start running until late in the afternoon?

KN: There was a planned engine change and the morning session got delayed, so by the time my seat had been changed it was halfway through the afternoon.

Q. What programme did you do in the afternoon?

KN: I did five timed laps twice and also eight timed laps twice. Then there was the last quick run, which was not too bad at all - and better than the last time we were here.

I noticed that I can produce a good lap time or two initially (with new tyres), and then the time goes down. By the time I have finished my eight lap run the tyres have not quite come back yet, so I think it may take a few more laps before the lap time comes back. But it is not bad at all, that is my feeling.

Q. And how is the front wing now?

KN: I believe it is okay. No one has mentioned it, and we did a whole day's running today without any problems.

Q. You mentioned at the Jerez test that you were still not at the limit with new tyres. Do you think there is more to come?

KN: Considering (I did my time) on the second lap, it was not too bad. I think the tyres are so hard there that they lasted long enough to do that time, but it is one of my issues to address - to get it right on the first lap.

However, in terms of understanding the tyres, I am getting to grips with them. But here especially, the last chicane is a tricky one and not easy to get right. That is somewhere, for example, that I really have to get right before we come back here for the race.

Q. There was not much dry mileage completed in Barcelona. How much did you manage to learn?

KN: As a team we did plenty of mileage, we did long runs, and it was a good test. We checked the reliability and for me it was beneficial to do some running in the wet, as I do not have much experience of that. It was nice also afterwards to be able to run in the dry, to really exploit what I can do with this car.

Q. The next test is the last one before Melbourne. What's the feeling?

KN: The plan is to run fully and extensively with the race team. I think I would like to a grand prix simulation properly - and I would really like to finish the race!

Q. From what you've seen at this test, what do you feel about the competitiveness of the Williams?

KN: Looking at other teams, I was impressed by (Fernando) Alonso. He was so fast and it looks like Red Bull can pull off some quick runs. So I cannot be too optimistic about our speed. It will be a tough fight.