PS05 will not race in Imola ????

Minardus

According to F1racing.net and Albers:

Exclusive interview with Christijan Albers



Christijan Albers will make his Formula One debut on the 6th of March in Melbourne. The 25-year old Dutchman signed a contract at Minardi and will be supported by a group of Dutch companies. F1Racing.net reporter Roland Mather talked with Albers in Amsterdam where F1Racing.net was announced as one of Albers' 2005 sponsors. "We're going to have a great year," Albers promised.

Christijan, congratulations with becoming a Formula One driver at Minardi. What have you been doing since you have signed the contract at Minardi?
I have been really busy. I have been working out hard in the gym to be fit and we've been testing at Misano for three days with the teams. The days fly by really lately.

You're the first person who has ever driven a Formula One car through the streets of Amsterdam. How was it?
It was great. The engine had a bit of a problem to start, probably because of the cold. It was a great experience to drive through the streets in Amsterdam. I wanted to do a donut but the streets were too tight so I thought it would be wise to keep the car in one piece! The huge amount of fans showing up was great to see.

You've also been testing for Jordan this winter. What made you decide to sign at Minardi?

Albers tested with Jordan
Halfway the 2004 season the results weren't really great in DTM so we decided to do the best we could to get a seat in Formula One. We have been talking with a number of teams, but at Minardi it all felt really good. The team is like a family. We decided to sign with the team because we'd be sure that I could race in Formula One in 2005. Drivers like Webber, Trulli, Alonso and Fisichella all broke through at Minardi so the team can start up a driver's career very well.

You've been testing for both Minardi as Jordan. Is there any major difference between the two cars?
Many people have asked me this question already, but I can't say anything about it. Driving at Minardi just felt really good and I was always the quickest driver in the Minardi. It's completely useless to compare the two cars really, I prefer to focus myself at Minardi.


Can you already tell us something about the new Minardi that the team will be using from the Spanish Grand Prix onwards?
I've seen the car in the factory and it looks really good. The engine is a huge step forward. The Cosworth engine will have 60BPH more than the current engine which is amazing.

On Thursday and Friday (February 3rd and 4th) Albers will be testing with Minardi at Misano. F1Racing.net will keep you posted about Albers' day at the Italian track.

[Edited on 31/1/2005 by Minardus]

Jello_Biafra

I would imagine that's an error on F1racing.net's part.

Biker

The dutch version doesn't mention a particular name of a grandprix. It only states that from the 4th grandprix on the new car will be used.

Kun je ons alvast iets vertellen over de nieuwe auto, die vanaf de vierde race van het seizoen ingezet gaat worden?

Ik heb de auto al gezien in de fabriek en het ziet er fantastisch uit. Vooral de motor zal een enorme stap voorwaarts zijn, deze zal 60 PK meer hebben dan de motor waarmee we nu rijden. Dat is echt ongelooflijk veel.

Minardus

Thank god !!!!

Homer

Stupid english version, stupid German version.... only the Dutchies are right. That makes me really, really sad :(

Minardus

It's a Dutch site with Dutch reporters.
They translate it into the other languages.

This proves Dutch aren't good in other languages !!!:P

Homer

It's a Dutch site with Dutch reporters.
They translate it into the other languages.

This proves Dutch aren't good in other languages !!!:P

Allright, now I'm happy again. Mhmhm.... good time to eat a donut :P

MCSF

It better be at Imola!

Minardus

PS confirmed Imola in this interview at F1racing.net:

Paul Stoddart is getting ready for the opening round of the 2005 season in his home country Australia. The team is working hard to get the first version of the 2005-contender ready, though the real 2005-contender won't be introduced until the fourth race of the season.


The Minardi team has signed up Christijan Albers. After Jos Verstappen in 2003 the team will have a Dutch driver once again.

What are the specific qualities of the Dutch drivers?
I think both Jos and Christijan are equal drivers. They are both passionate drivers that want to prove they are competitive. Sometimes they are trying a bit too hard, but as a team you know this can happen. It's part of the sport.


Was Verstappen one of the candidates to race at Minardi this season?
He was an option indeed. I rate him very high as a driver, but as you know it's all about the money in Formula One. I don't want to announce our second driver yet but I can give you three hints about Minardi' second driver: First of all he is European. He has been racing in Formula One before and he has driven for Minardi before. That's all I can say thus far.


It looks like this could be Nicolas Kiesa
I can't say anything about it yet, but we will probably announce it within a week.

The new Minardi car won't be racing until the fourth race of the season. What can we expect of the car?
The new car is going to be great. I follow the developments in the factory very closely and it's going to be fantastic. Because of the whole Jaguar situation and uncertain Cosworth future we got a bit of a delay on the development of the car. We'll now just work towards the fourth race of the season. Until then we will be racing with a modified car of last season.

The cars that were launched thus far all had radical noses. Will Minardi introduce a similar radical nose?
Absolutely. Because of the new rules everyone has to look for new aerodynamic solutions and the nose is giving good opportunities. There are various way to change the nose as we've seen with a few teams now. Our nose will be different compared to last year's nose, but also the bodywork will be different. Our aerodynamic department really did a great job.

What is the plan between now and the Australian Grand Prix?
We will be testing two days at Misano (February 3-4) and after that we'll be working towards the first race of the season.

Jello_Biafra

I know Stoddie is free to talk it up, but I love hearing about the new car.

Clown

Our aerodynamic department really did a great job.

We have an aero department :o :P

Jello_Biafra

Andy Tilley with a coffee IV in a Lola wind tunnel, from what I hear.

Clown

4 cups of coffee? :o

1) The poor bastard will be up all night
2) We can't afford that much coffee.

Jello_Biafra

IV=hospital bag that goes straight to the bloodstream. It stands for a word that I can say but won't attempt to spell.

Minardus

IntraVeanous ?!?!!

yokosuna

LOL Clown

Beware though: dunno if it was the crash or what. But you're really starting to sound like Matt with that criticism.

Jello_Biafra

IntraVeanous ?!?!!

Thanks. I'm lazy.

Clown

LOL Clown

Beware though: dunno if it was the crash or what. But you're really starting to sound like Matt with that criticism.

Has been a bitch of a week though.
Friday - Wrote off car
Saturday - Got drunk, didn't get layed like I was planing
Sunday - Had to work hungover
Monday - Lost power at work, had to work in the dark with no air-con
Tuesday - Had to work with blinding headace (5pm-1:15am)
Today - Banged head on shelf, knocked myself off balance and fell heavily on the wet tile floor (my knee is killing me). I couldn't even have a smoke in the park after work (1am) without a cop car pulling over and shining a spotlight at me :angel:


And BTW: Its spelt "Intravenous"




[Edited on 2/2/2005 by Clown]

Minardus

Mine was just a guess.
Close call though !!!!:)

yokosuna

[quote]LOL Clown

Beware though: dunno if it was the crash or what. But you're really starting to sound like Matt with that criticism.

Has been a bitch of a week though.
Friday - Wrote off car
Saturday - Got drunk, didn't get layed like I was planing
Sunday - Had to work hungover
Monday - Lost power at work, had to work in the dark with no air-con
Tuesday - Had to work with blinding headace (5pm-1:15am)
Today - Banged head on shelf, knocked myself off balance and fell heavily on the wet tile floor (my knee is killing me). I couldn't even have a smoke in the park after work (1am) without a cop car pulling over and shining a spotlight at me :angel:


And BTW: Its spelt "Intravenous"




[Edited on 2/2/2005 by Clown] [/quote]

Looks like you're trying to filch Murph's nick:hehe:
Avoid mirrors. Learn to play keyboards with Stevie Wonder and consider studying traumatology BTW.

[Edited on 3/2/2005 by yokosuna]