Q and A with Spyker’s Mike Gascoyne
Q. How gratifying was it to see the team finally score its first point on only its third race with the new B-spec car?
Mike Gascoyne, chief technical officer: It's very satisfying and it really exceeds our expectations as a team. We've introduced a new car, we have a 100% finishing record with it and have raced other teams with a much higher budget than ours.
To score a point is all we could have asked for and it's a just reward for all the team. Just because we are at the back of the grid, we don't work any less than the teams at the top, so I am very pleased we have got this point and am very proud of everyone involved.
Q. What is your verdict on the weekend as a whole?
MG: Saturday was disappointing, as we didn't show what we were capable of in the wet. In the race we were much more competitive, and we were more competitive on Friday in the dry. Really it was a very good weekend all round. Adrian obviously got the point, but Sakon also did a very good job, he was quick, consistent and got everything right.
Q. The B-spec now seems to be a real force. How pleased are you to see this step in performance?
MG: It is very encouraging. We've now had two cracking races with the B-spec car, and six finishes out of six with it as well. So the team is doing a good job. Teams with far more resources than us have not been as successful or seen such a step forward with the new mods they have introduced, so this result in Japan is very good for the team. Now we've got the wind tunnel up and running, give us six months before next season and people will have to look out.
Q. Are there any more modifications for China?
MG: The cars in China will be the same specification as the ones we raced in Japan. We were very competitive on Friday and in the race so I hope we should continue to do well in this race.
Q. Do you think the B-spec car will suit the Shanghai International Circuit?
MG: In China there are two long straights going into long corners, so the downforce levels will be very important. I think you will see higher levels of downforce here than in Japan but I hope you will see the same level of performance from us as a team.
Q. Again we saw the team out-race two works teams. How far can you go this season with the current package?
MG: If we have a race with mixed conditions, we have already proved that we can get the strategy calls right and, if this happens again, I hope we would be able to score another point and go up another position in the championship. On Sunday there is a chance of another tropical storm, which would make it extremely wet. We'll of course be looking to exploit this. Spyker PR