By BMW Sauber F1
July 29 2006

Unlike the Friday practice sessions at Hockenheim, the drivers enjoyed stable weather conditions on Saturday. Unfortunately, Nick Heidfeld and Jacques Villeneuve failed to secure top-ten grid positions for the German GP and must deliver a successful performance to score points. Further facts: Unlike the Friday practice sessions at Hockenheim, the drivers enjoyed stable weather conditions on Saturday. Unfortunately, Nick Heidfeld and Jacques Villeneuve failed to secure top-ten grid positions for the German Grand Prix and must deliver a successful performance to score points. Further facts...

- No rain on Saturday: The weather experts had forecast heavy thunderstorms for the qualifying session. However, they were wrong - and the BMW Sauber F1 Team drivers were able to contest the session in dry conditions in temperatures reaching 30 degrees Celsius. Jacques finished 14th, while Nick took 16th position. According to the weather experts, the rain probability for Sunday is extremely low and the temperatures are expected to rise to 31 degrees Celsius. Therefore, it will be vital for Jacques and Nick to keep their cool if they want to score points.

- Impressive workload: In the third free practice session, Jacques and Nick completed a total of 30. On Friday, the team completed 79 laps of the 4.574-kilometre circuit, thus making it a practice total of 109 laps.

- Still room for improvement: The majority of the BMW Sauber F1 Team practice laps during the GP weekend were completed by the team's test and reserve driver, Robert Kubica. The Pole reveals that he still hasn't reached his performance maximum. "To be honest," he says, "quite often I don't touch my limits. I deliberately leave myself a margin as it's vital to not damage the car, and to gather valuable data for the team. As a racing driver, I have to believe in myself. Should I be afraid of making mistakes I'd probably make them."

- Focus on the aerodynamics: Following the race in Hockenheim, Formula One enters its six-week testing break. Therefore - as BMW Motorsport Director Mario Theissen explains - the team set its main focus on the improvement of the aerodynamics during the recent tests at Jerez. "In our case it's been mainly about aero development. Engine development is mainly done on the dynos, so that will continue throughout the summer."