Lewis Hamilton, McLaren
2007 Qualifying - 1st, 2007 Race - 1st
“I love Japan. Last year might have been difficult because of the wet weather and the poor visibility, but I actually really enjoyed that weekend. The Japanese fans are some of my favourite in the world: so passionate, but really polite, charming and respectful. As for the race, one of the questions I get asked most is whether I prefer to drive in the rain: my answer is always the same, I’ll race in the wet or dry, I don’t mind. But it’s always easier for us drivers to race in the dry; I’d always prefer a dry race. This weekend, I’ll be hoping for dry weather for another reason - I want the fans at the track to have the best weekend possible and to enjoy the atmosphere of one of the season’s best races.”
Fernando Alonso, Renault
2007 Qualifying - 2nd, 2007 Race - DNF
“We worked hard to develop some new parts for Singapore, but also for the final three races of the season so I think that we can be on the pace in Fuji. We will give our maximum to try and make that the case and to benefit from the free practice sessions on Friday as much as possible. The circuit has a very long straight and so aero settings will once again be crucial. There are also several medium and low speed corners and the last few turns in particular are taken in second gear. So the team will have to work hard to determine the level of downforce and the mechanical grip which will be especially important in the slow sections. We will be running a similar programme to that which we run at other tracks that we visit once a year.”
Felipe Massa, Ferrari
2007 Qualifying - 4h, 2007 Race - 6th
“Last year was a very wet weekend in Fuji and a very wet race. It was a very tough event and I eventually finished sixth, which was not a great result at the end of the day. But I do remember that on Friday’s sessions, in the dry we had a very strong pace from our package. Of course, that was last year, but I am confident we will be competitive again. The Fuji track was an enjoyable one to drive, at least without the rain!
“As for the championship it depends how you look at it: a seven point gap can be a lot or it can be a little. If you look at what happened to me in Singapore where my gap went from one point to seven so suddenly, then you have to consider it could easily go the other way as well. The most important element to consider is that we have a very good car. Without that, my chances would be much smaller. We have two good cars and we can try and get both of us to finish ahead of our rivals. It can be done and we need to think positive and we need to keep fighting to the last race.”
Robert Kubica, BMW Sauber
2007 Qualifying - 9th, 2007 Race - 7th
“This season we go to Fuji for the second year in a row. I guess everybody remembers last year’s Japanese Grand Prix as the weather conditions were crazy. It was extremely wet and visibility was poor. From a driver’s perspective the track is very interesting. There are some challenging corners with different radii and also some blind corners. Under dry conditions it was very enjoyable to drive, although the last sector is quite slow as there are a lot of tight corners. As always in Japan, I think the fans will bring a unique atmosphere to the Formula One track. Usually they come to the track early in the morning and leave it after us.”
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