Massa and Ferrari want to confirm in Montreal

By reaching the podium for the third time this season in Monaco, Fernando Alonso confirmed the much-hoped-for resurgence from Maranello. However, it was especially with the Ferrari bearing the number 6 that satisfaction was greater, as Felipe Massa found himself in a somewhat more respectable position than he had held since the start of the season, regularly keeping pace with the best: « [In Monaco,] throughout the weekend, I was able to be consistent in free practice, qualifying, and the race, and the car was comfortable to drive. I really enjoyed the car there, it was heading in the right direction to suit my style, and I hope to continue this momentum, starting with the race in Canada and then through to the end of the season, » comments Felipe Massa. But the Paulista is aware that there is work to be done and intends to operate in Montreal using the Monaco settings as a working base: « The settings for Monaco are very different from those for other circuits and, even though this urban track is unique, we can at least follow the direction we took there and make it work on other tracks. […] Maybe it’s the best direction to take for the F2012 to work with me. It’s true that there are few places with high lateral forces in Monaco, and that has been a weak point of our car. We have evaluated this approach in the simulator, but sometimes it’s not easy to get a clear answer, which is why we will experiment with it on the track. »

In any case, his good weekend in Monaco, even tinged with a certain dissatisfaction of not having done better in both qualifying and the race, has recharged the Brazilian’s batteries. He admits to feeling undeniably more confident now and assures that if, as in Monaco, his engineers and he find the right direction, he knows what he can achieve. The São Paulo native hopes to deliver a good result in Montreal for a Grand Prix that will hold special significance for all the tifosi: I really enjoy going to Canada, and this year, with the thirtieth anniversary of Gilles Villeneuve’s death, it will be a very important weekend in Montreal. Ferrari has always had a lot of support here, partly thanks to Gilles, and it would be an extra motivation for the Scuderia to do a good job for the fans. Canadians love Formula One, and Montreal welcomes us very well, so let’s hope we can repay them with a great result.

The same ambition drives Fernando Alonso, who recalls the run Jacques Villeneuve did behind the wheel of his father’s Ferrari 312T4 at the Fiorano circuit last month: « The commemoration of Gilles’ death was a very special day, with Jacques driving his father’s car, in front of his wife and daughter. Now, we come to race on the circuit that bears his name, and this city [Montreal, ed.] has always had many Ferrari supporters, so we want to perform well and offer our tifosi and Gilles’ fans something to celebrate. »

The F2012 will not be in favorable terrain in Montreal, as traction and top speed, which are important there, have been the Achilles’ heel of the latest creation from Maranello: You have a lot of chicanes, so you need a car that handles curbs well, and some aspects are actually similar to Monaco, with the biggest difference in Montreal being that you need good speed on the long straights. You also need traction to exit the chicanes and have to find the right compromise because you can’t put too much downforce on the car at the risk of having too much drag for the fast straight sections, says Felipe Massa. Fernando Alonso, however, believes that Ferrari has improved its car in these areas since the start of the season and that Canada will be a good test in this regard: Hopefully this weekend we will see a competitive Ferrari, and this will be very important for us, not only for this race but also for the rest of the season. […] It’s hard to say in advance, as the season has proven unpredictable, with ups and downs for everyone over the last six races. However, I see no reason why Ferrari can’t be competitive in Canada, fighting at the front. Winning races isn’t easy, just like finishing on the podium, but the important thing is to score points and find the right level of consistency. But the Spaniard, a Real Madrid supporter, would like to win so that Spain doesn’t have to celebrate only the victories of La Roja, who will start the Euro 2012 Football this weekend: The Spanish football team has been very strong these past two years, and I must say they are therefore favorites for the tournament. If I manage to win the race on Sunday, then it will be a fantastic day, no matter the result in football.

But unlike Casillas, Xavi, and other Ramos who aim for the European crown, the native of Oviedo intends to strengthen his current position to claim the world crown: « Leading the championship is just the beginning, it’s the starting point because the ultimate goal is to lead the championship after the last race in November. The season is long, and the first six races have brought us enough points to be in the lead, but we know we need to improve. We need to make the car faster, work harder, while making no mistakes and finding consistency, which is not the easiest thing to do in this championship. »

Felipe Massa confirms that the Scuderia does not intend to slow down regarding the development of the F2012: « We remain committed to our plans to continuously improve the F2012 because even the slightest gain in performance can earn places on the grid or in the race, and we will have new developments this weekend. It will keep us busy on Friday as we will combine race preparation with evaluation of the new parts. Hopefully, the car will be even stronger than in Monaco and I can continue to bring in points to help the team. »