Q&A: Pedro de la Rosa - EXCLUSIVE.

by Russell Atkins

For the past five years, Pedro de la Rosa has formed an integral part of McLaren-Mercedes' Formula 1 efforts, as the Woking-based outfit's official test and reserve driver.

With the dawn of the 2008 campaign now not far away, the experienced Spaniard - who has competed in 72 grands prix in the top flight for McLaren, Jaguar and Arrows - spoke to Crash.net Radio about the team's fight back from the controversy of 2007, and the honour of being the first person to get behind the wheel of its new MP4-23 challenger out on-track...

Q:
Pedro, how excited are you as we look to 2008, and how good a year do you think it will be for McLaren?

Pedro de la Rosa:
It's early days really - we're so far away from where we want to be and we have so much work in front of us. As a test-driver and someone who has already driven seven McLaren-Mercedes', I know there's a lot still to come. I prefer to be cautious and do the best job possible, but we are keeping our feet on the ground.

Q:
You were the first driver to drive the new car in Jerez; how much of an honour was that for you?

PdlR:
It was a pretty special feature, especially because I've been in the team since 2003 and this was the eighth McLaren-Mercedes car I have driven. It's quite something, when you think that I was the first one and that the team trusted me so much to give me that chance.

Q:
McLaren had a tough year off the track in 2007; how easily do you think the team will be able to bounce back from that in 2008?

PdlR:
We just have do work, keep our heads down and not change. I think the key is to just be ourselves; we are a very strong group, the engineering side of McLaren is very strong and we just have to stay together. What we have achieved already is very, very good; we just need one step more.

Q:
Talking of hard work, has there been much rest within the team over the winter period, or has it remained flat-out since last season finished?

PdlR:
For a driver it's always easier; the winter is a period when you have time for a break, especially over Christmas. For the team back in Woking, Stuttgart and Brixworth, they have been flat-out all winter. It's the same for everyone. For us [drivers], though, we have an easy life during the winter; we can take a break whilst the engineers, mechanics and a lot of the people in the factory don't have that luxury.

Q:
On the subject of drivers, Heikki Kovalainen has obviously joined McLaren this year. What has he brought to the team so far?

PdlR:
I don't know yet - I need to start working with him. He's a new team member and I will work closely with him, learn from him and start from there. It's early days - I'll know more in a few months' time - but he will have all my help.

Q:
Finally, how tough a battle do you think it will be with Ferrari again this year, and are there any other teams that can maybe get in the mix too, like Renault or BMW?

PdlR:
I'm sure it's not going to be a head-to-head between two teams; it's going to be a more open championship, and the competition from many teams will be fierce. We just have to be aware of that and not be over-confident.