Zanardi: Post-practice interview

Q. Alessandro, you're looking good today with sixth fastest time, also using
a Supertec. What are your feelings about the engine?

AZ: From the beginning of the season we have been sometimes two seconds
behind pole position, and with a gap as big as that you can't entirely
blame the engine for the lack of performance.

I don't want to make bad publicity for the people at Supertec, who have all been trying very hard.
We certainly appreciate their efforts and I wish to take the opportunity to thank them for the few extra horsepower which they have found for us at this event.

It is very welcome, but it is still not enough. Williams is trying hard to make a better car because we know our car is not good enough. At the same time everyone at Supertec is trying to give us a better engine because we all know that it is not yet as good as we want it to be.

Q. Having returned from Indy cars, are there still things for you to get used to in Formula 1?

AZ: It is too strong an expression to say that I am not happy about having returned to F1. But I must not put too much pressure on my shoulders by expecting too much.

I think I am competitive and I don't believe I am leaving any performance behind in the car provided I get a decent number of laps.

But today I have been like a diesel engine: I need to get warmed up and on the first lap I take a look around. On the second and third laps I go a little faster, then finally -- if I get enough laps -- I get the best out of the car.

If it stops early, though, I cannot get the best out of it. In my third year [of CART racing] in the United States, all I needed was one lap. If the car was good enough to work for one lap I would have taken it on to my shoulders to get it together and get the job done, just as Michael is doing these days.

All you need is one lap: if the car is there, the driver will be there. That may be what is lacking on my part. But that is normal because the cars have changed quite dramatically in the last few
years, and when I came back I found those changes. If we can be sure of less trouble than we had in the first two races, then this weekend we can score points and go home with a smile on our face.