Hungarian GP - Renault - RaceRenault had a difficult race today at the Hungarian Grand Prix. Heikki Kovalainen and
Giancarlo Fisichella started 11th and 13th respective, the latter thanks to a five position penalty for blocking Sakon Yamamoto in qualifying yesterday. Kovalainen
made progress in the race and took the chequered flag in eighth position, while Fisichella was unable to make much progress and was classified 12th.
Heikki Kovalainen
"It was a difficult race today starting from eleventh place on the grid. But I never gave up and I pushed as hard as I could and succeeded in finishing in the points. I made a good start and I tried to be as consistent as possible and I didn’t make any mistakes. It would have been difficult for me to do better today. I’m still disappointed after yesterday’s qualifying but we did our maximum as I’ve already said. Now we have to concentrate on the Turkish Grand Prix in three weeks time."
Giancarlo Fisichella“My race was more or less decided by yesterday’s penalty that I still believe I didn’t deserve. I made a good start but it was difficult to maintain a good rhythm as I was stuck in traffic throughout the event. When I was able to have a few clear laps I was on the pace. After my 2nd stop I tagged Davidson and my car was damaged, so it was difficult to drive. I’m disappointed with today’s result, which isn’t very good for the team. It doesn’t reflect our true level of performance and we have the potential to do better.
Hopefully, we’ll be back near the front in Istanbul.”
Flavio Briatore, Managing Director
"The Hungaroring circuit has a reputation for being difficult, especially where overtaking is concerned. Today, given our positions on the grid and Fisichella being demoted it was hard to do better. We gave our all. Heikki drove a great race; he was very aggressive and gave nothing away. I’m disappointed for Fisichella who also deserved a place in the points."
Pat Symonds, Executive Director of Engineering
"Today we paid the penalty for our qualifying issues yesterday. Heikki was very quick in the race, and on a circuit where overtaking is well nigh impossible he managed to pull back 3 places, more than any other driver today. He scored a point after having gone flat out throughout. Giancarlo not only had to cope with his penalty after qualifying, but he also had a car that was difficult to drive after his collision with Davidson, which largely compromised his race today. Now, we’re all looking ahead to Turkey, the next round of the championship."
Source Renault
