By Andrew Cutler
July 1 2007
As the F1 community packs up to leave Magny Cours - appearently for the last time - it is doubtful that the Scuderia Toro Rosso squad will be taking any fond memories of their last race here with them. On the contrary, this is one of those races that they probably would like to forget about as soon as possible.
Vitantionio Liuzzi's day would end in turn one when he got tagged by a competitior and spun out, damaging his car. While Scott Speed would, as always, put in his best effort, gearbox problems sidelined him with 15 laps to go. having just posted their worst combined finish since Bahrain, the team must now shake it off and focus on the British GP at Silverstone, just seven days away.
Scott Speed - 18th:
“After the start I had a lot of graining on my front tyres because I think our front wing setting was not the best. This made the first fifteen laps very difficult, after which it improved until it was not too bad. I had no warning about the failure. I just had to stop and I guess it was the gearbox. Now, let's think about Silverstone, where we had quite a positive test. Maybe we can squeeze a bit more performance out of the car for the next race and try and fight nearer the middle of the pack.”
Vitantonio Liuzzi - 22nd:
“Once again, my race did not last very long. I felt someone hit me from behind, probably Davidson and that spun me around after which I think we collided again. It's a shame as we had a strategy, whether it rained or not, that could have paid off. Now all we can do is wait for Silverstone and hope that the definite improvement we have made with the car pays off. We deserve some points by now.”
Franz Tost - Team Principle:
"A disappointing result for us. Tonio went out shortly after the start, having been hit from behind by Davidson. As for Scott, he was forced to pull over towards the end, with what we think is a gearbox problem. We will have to investigate the exact cause of the failure. In general, we have made a step forward, but so have all the others. Currently, I think we are about 1 to 1.5 seconds behind the quickest cars. We cannot be satisfied with today's result."