Todt: Malaysia Woke us Up
Jean Todt refused to panic or admit Ferrari face a mini-crisis in the wake of Sunday's Malaysian Grand Prix, in which they struggled to compete with the pace of the other leading teams
Todt also said no final decision would be taken on when to introduce the new F2005 car, until after both race drivers Michael Schumacher and Rubens Barrichello had tested it this week.
"It has increased our motivation to react," he said, when asked about the manner in which they had been out-paced by the triumphant Spaniard Fernando Alonso and Renault.
"Sure. I mean it would be wrong to say that we are satisfied with the situation. I mean, it is not our standard and it is not what we want to do and simply we are not quick enough.
"So we have to see how to improve the situation at 360 degrees, the whole package is not performing how we want.
"The only thing I may say for those who thought that it was easy for Ferrari to win in the past... This shows that it was difficult, how difficult it is to be consistent in success and at the moment we are feeling that we are not good enough."
The Frenchman did not pinpoint a single reason for the lack of performance and refused to blame tyre suppliers Bridgestone.
"I mean, there are a lot of reasons," he said. "I mean, you know, I will say aero-effiency, not enough grip, on the car, and it's not enough traction. So all that works together and it makes a huge difference."
But Todt made it clear he was not relying on the introduction of the new 2005 car to solve the World Champions' problems.
"No, I am not confident of that... But, I am confident we will do everything we can to improve the situation and, you know, [we have the] same drivers, same engineers, mechanics, same motivation. We win as a group and we lose as a group.
"Honestly, it would be too convenient to say it was the worst race for us this season. So, now, we must take this race as a point of reference.
"I think I should say of this race that it is where we are, and from here we have to recover the situation. You know, even if we are a bit sleepy, it wakes us up and that is good."
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| Series | Formula 1 |
| Author | Timothy Collings |
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