Post-race press conference - Bahrain GP - Pt. 1.

Drivers: Fernando Alonso (Renault), Jarno Trulli (Toyota) and Kimi Raikkonen (McLaren).

TV Unilaterals.

Q:
Fernando, you secured three wins in a row for Renault and 100 wins for the Renault engine in Formula One. A fantastic day for you, a hot, long race, but you made it look very simple.

Fernando Alonso:
It was hotter than Malaysia, so it was the hottest race I ever raced. The car was perfect, especially after my first stop, and we proved again that our strongest point is the long runs. It is something unusual but I think useful for this championship. The car is very nice to drive again and I had a good fight with Michael for a few laps then with Jarno, and after the first pit stop I had a bit of room to be able to be a bit more conservative.

Q:
I was going to ask about Michael - did you feel under pressure from him in the early stages?

FA:
Yes, obviously, it was very close. I think he was quicker than me in the first part of the race but as we know it is very difficult to overtake and I was quite sure that my long runs would be better than him so I was not too worried if I had Michael in front of me, if he had overtaken me, because I knew that our strongest point should be at the end.

Q:
Any mechanical problems, any dramas in the race at all from your point of view?

FA:
No. Again, it is the third consecutive race that I have nothing to say, no problems at all, nothing in the race and during the whole weekend and this is something fantastic, something I have never had before, so, it is a dream.

Q:
Jarno, a spectacular first corner for you on the outside there, it looked as though you almost had Michael.

Jarno Trulli:
Yeah, it was a good fight and actually in the next corner I tried really hard because I think he was lighter than me, but fortunately I didn't push too much, I just followed them. At the beginning I was looking pretty good, at one stage I was catching up Fernando but I believe he was just waiting and then mid race when he started to push he pulled away and the only thing I could do was finish the race in second. It was a pretty easy race, the team has done a fantastic job over the weekend and it is a dream to be here. After two races, two podiums, two second positions, it is a great start.

Q:
And how were the conditions? Before the race we talked about the heat, the sand, the rubber, how was it out there?

JT:
To be honest, I didn't suffer at all. In qualifying I suffered a bit of understeering, I commented before the race, but I didn't touch the car at all in set-up all through the race and I felt I had second in my pocket against my competitors, but against Fernando I didn't have much. But, anyway, it is good to be here.

Q:
Kimi, great to see you on the podium, it was an eventful race for you after an eventful qualifying session. Talk us through it.

Kimi Raikkonen:
We seem to have some difficulties in qualifying, we just don't get the speed out of it, but in race conditions it seems to be okay, especially at the end when I could push because the car felt really easy to drive. But during the race itself I was stuck behind two cars from the start so I just waited and waited until they went into the pits and then tried to go as fast as I could, then I gained some places and then I was behind I think it was Webber in the Williams and I was pushing him and was just catching him. He spun in front of me and then after that I was too far away from the two cars in front so I just came slowly back home.

Q:
You had a bit of a moment running over one of the corners and then a bit of a drama with the radio before the pit stops.

KR:
Yeah, I just went over the kerb a little bit and told them I damaged the car but actually it was okay. I asked the team if they could see anything but there was no answer and then when I was looking to come into the pit the second time I started to look at the lap times and so I looked a few times and then the radio didn't work any more so I was close to running out of petrol but luckily I came into the pits and got some more.

Q:
Your team-mate Pedro de la Rosa set the fastest lap of the race, so it is looking more promising for you now.

KR:
Yeah, like I said the car is good in the race but we are too far away on that point when the car is good so we need to do something to be on the front row or close to the front and then we can win a race, but when we start from eighth or ninth place that is too far away.

Q:
Fernando, returning to you, we don't want to detract from the celebration today, but thinking ahead to Imola, you are in great shape. Not a good day for Ferrari again here, it is going to be an interesting weekend there.

FA:
Yes, we arrive at Imola as one of the favourites, one of the teams to beat, and this is good. Hopefully Ferrari are not in the best moment, they have improved with the new car but still the tyres are probably not giving them too much and I think the work Michelin did during these races is just unbelievable and I hope it will continue like this.

Press conference.

Q:
Fernando, quite a race for you. You return to the start of the European campaign having dominated the last two races, Renault has won the third of the races we have had so far, what does it all mean to you?

FA:
It means we are truly competitive. We have shown it in these three races. I had the rain in Australia on Saturday, if not it could have been even better for me, but in a way for the team it has been a fantastic start in these hot races. Now we arrive in new conditions in Europe, tracks that all the teams know very well and we are allowed to test quite a lot and we will see how the car is there. So far the car has been difficult to beat.

Q:
What about the Ferrari in those opening stages, is that going to be a real threat for the future?

FA:
Well, this weekend they were probably the only ones to put our victory at risk, you know. The first few laps saw Michael, I guess, lighter than me at that stage and, you know, I was quite confident because I knew my tyres should be better in long runs and at the end of the race I was really sure that if Micahel had overtaken me it would not be too difficult to get the position back. It was a little bit of pressure, but it was not too much worry as well.

Q:
Your team-mate Giancarlo had a problem with the car, was that a problem that was relayed to you and perhaps you had to take care of it?

FA:
I didn't know until the team told me at the end of the race, so in the race I had no any information about Giancarlo and where to be careful on these things. Probably the only thing that can stop Renault at the moment is mechanical problems.

Q:
Jarno, second again, I am just wondering how long are you going to accept second places for?

JT:
Well, just after the race I went to the team and said we need to push and continue like this and we need to keep the momentum but we need to improve our performance because I am getting tired of this side and I want to be on the first step of the podium, but at the moment Renault is still too strong, Fernando is driving extremely well. It is satisfying, anyway, being here, because when I signed for this team I couldn't expect to be so quick so early, so I need to thank the team, I need to thank Mike Gascoyne and everyone because they are doing a fantastic job, and the mechanics because it is a great performance and reinforced by the fourth place from Ralf, so both cars are performing very highly.

Q:
What about the conditions in the race, were they tough?

JT:
It was a bit hot out there, but to be honest I didn't suffer at all, I was in a very good condition, very fit, the car was very easy to drive which helped quite a lot. I had not enough pace to catch Fernando at the beginning of the race, I was following them, but at one stage I though I could catch him and really started to push catching him up but then he responded to me mid-race and I understood there was nothing to do so I had more than 20 seconds on the next McLaren so I just had to lift off.

Q:
And the tyres at the end?

JT:
No problem at all, we seem pretty good on tyres, especially wear. It was a bit difficult than on some other tracks, probably, different conditions, maybe, in colder conditions, but we have a lot of new things coming up for this car and we hope that we can make the car slightly more understeering with a bit more traction and, you know, we are going in the right direction and this is the most important thing.

Q:
Kimi, first of all a good start it seemed?

KR:
Yeah, nothing really wrong with that. It was a little bit easier because the Red Bull was in front of me so that was good. I think I gained a few places - at least one - so that was good.

Q:
You seemed to be having battles with somebody almost all through the race.

KR:
Yeah, I was quicker than the people in front of me but I couldn't get past and the car was not very nice in the middle of the circuit, in the tight corners, but in the last part it was good. And the straight-line speed is there but once we got up to the first pit stop, the car started to handle better and better. I think the race speed is very good once we get started in the race. But the biggest problem right now is qualifying, getting on the front rows, and then we can really challenge the others.

Q:
That's going to make the difference.

KR:
Yeah, I think so because we seemed to keep getting fastest laps in the race and the car is consistent, but somehow we just don't get the qualifying sorted. It's nothing new. We have had that same problem last year and the year before so it's something we need to work on, and maybe change something on the car. We are going to get some new parts and hopefully it will improve the situation.

Q:
Fernando, briefly back to you: did the drinks bottle work today?

FA:
Yes.