- 07 Jul 08, 18:12#53935
Ayrton Senna: WDC 1988, 1989, 1990, 1991
McLaren: WCC 1974, 1984, 1985, 1988, 1989, 1990, 1991, 1998, 1999, 2007
McLaren: WDC 1974, 1976, 1984, 1985, 1986, 1988, 1989, 1990, 1991, 1998, 1999, 2008
From autosport.com:
Dennis: Kovalainen's time will come
By Simon Strang Sunday, July 6th 2008, 16:15 GMT
McLaren team principal Ron Dennis says Heikki Kovalainen should not be too hard on himself after the Finn failed to convert pole position into a victory in a rain-hit British Grand Prix at Silverstone.
While teammate Lewis Hamilton romped to a famous home victory in treacherous conditions, Kovalainen, who led early on, slipped back to fifth after a couple of spins.
But Dennis said that the 26-year-old had already done enough over the weekend to prove he is a class act.
"He qualified superbly yesterday and clearly showed that he too is truly world-class," said Dennis. "He shouldn't feel too disappointed today because he demonstrated once again that his racing skills are beyond question. His time will come."
Kovalainen, who defended his lead robustly in the early laps from a charging Hamilton, was one of several drivers who found themselves out of control as their car began to aquaplane on the standing water.
In fact world champion and compatriot Kimi Raikkonen suffered a similar experience en route to fourth, seven seconds further up the road from Kovalainen.
In the end, Kovalainen was forced to console himself with his sixth points finish in eight races.
"I had a good start and, for a few laps, Lewis was really pushing hard - which meant he eventually managed to overtake me on lap five when I ran a little wide," said Kovalainen. "It was an extremely difficult race with lots of things happening.
"It was so easy to get caught out today by aquaplaning and slippery conditions: I spun twice but I was not the only one. At least I scored four points and helped to increase our constructors' points total."
From: F1 Live:
Heikki Kovalainen achieved his first ever Formula 1 pole position - what happened to him during the race?
"Heikki's race was made difficult by problems with graining on his rear tyres, which affected him in all three stints and made his car increasingly difficult to drive. In the closing laps, he was left vulnerable to the cars behind him but made a superb effort to push past Fernando (Alonso) in a car that was badly compromised on grip and traction. From the start of the race, he started complaining about a lack of grip at the rear-end and the car became increasingly snappy in both the high and low-speed corners - obviously that trait made the car increasingly hard to control.
But his speed across the whole weekend was incontestable: the changes we've recently made to the car seemed to particularly suit Heikki and both his confidence and driving hit a new peak at Silverstone this weekend. He should be massively encouraged by the speed and consistency that he showed in qualifying. I think Heikki can take a lot away from this weekend and feel very encouraged by his performance."
McLaren really did throw Kovalainen in it this week, coming up with no excuses for him at all.
Dennis: Kovalainen's time will come
By Simon Strang Sunday, July 6th 2008, 16:15 GMT
McLaren team principal Ron Dennis says Heikki Kovalainen should not be too hard on himself after the Finn failed to convert pole position into a victory in a rain-hit British Grand Prix at Silverstone.
While teammate Lewis Hamilton romped to a famous home victory in treacherous conditions, Kovalainen, who led early on, slipped back to fifth after a couple of spins.
But Dennis said that the 26-year-old had already done enough over the weekend to prove he is a class act.
"He qualified superbly yesterday and clearly showed that he too is truly world-class," said Dennis. "He shouldn't feel too disappointed today because he demonstrated once again that his racing skills are beyond question. His time will come."
Kovalainen, who defended his lead robustly in the early laps from a charging Hamilton, was one of several drivers who found themselves out of control as their car began to aquaplane on the standing water.
In fact world champion and compatriot Kimi Raikkonen suffered a similar experience en route to fourth, seven seconds further up the road from Kovalainen.
In the end, Kovalainen was forced to console himself with his sixth points finish in eight races.
"I had a good start and, for a few laps, Lewis was really pushing hard - which meant he eventually managed to overtake me on lap five when I ran a little wide," said Kovalainen. "It was an extremely difficult race with lots of things happening.
"It was so easy to get caught out today by aquaplaning and slippery conditions: I spun twice but I was not the only one. At least I scored four points and helped to increase our constructors' points total."
From: F1 Live:
Heikki Kovalainen achieved his first ever Formula 1 pole position - what happened to him during the race?
"Heikki's race was made difficult by problems with graining on his rear tyres, which affected him in all three stints and made his car increasingly difficult to drive. In the closing laps, he was left vulnerable to the cars behind him but made a superb effort to push past Fernando (Alonso) in a car that was badly compromised on grip and traction. From the start of the race, he started complaining about a lack of grip at the rear-end and the car became increasingly snappy in both the high and low-speed corners - obviously that trait made the car increasingly hard to control.
But his speed across the whole weekend was incontestable: the changes we've recently made to the car seemed to particularly suit Heikki and both his confidence and driving hit a new peak at Silverstone this weekend. He should be massively encouraged by the speed and consistency that he showed in qualifying. I think Heikki can take a lot away from this weekend and feel very encouraged by his performance."
McLaren really did throw Kovalainen in it this week, coming up with no excuses for him at all.
Ayrton Senna: WDC 1988, 1989, 1990, 1991
McLaren: WCC 1974, 1984, 1985, 1988, 1989, 1990, 1991, 1998, 1999, 2007
McLaren: WDC 1974, 1976, 1984, 1985, 1986, 1988, 1989, 1990, 1991, 1998, 1999, 2008
