By Phil Huff
May 25 2005

BAR Honda's Takuma Sato joins the F1 circus at the Nurburgring, as the European Grand Prix sees the return to action of the Brackley outfit. "I'm very excited to make our return to racing again at the Nurburgring after the past few difficult weeks," explains Takuma Sato. "I'm confident of our performance there because we have developed a very strong car in the recent tests and the team has done a fantastic job in the circumstances."

BAR Honda have sat out of Formula One for five weeks following their a penalty from the FIA, but haven't been sitting idle. The team were even at Monaco, entertaining guests, while testing has continued as planned.

"In fact," says Takuma, "development has been non-stop at the factory and on the test track, and everyone in the team is very determined and motivated. It will be exciting for all of us to see what the car is capable of."

Takuma failed to finish the European Grand Prix last year, retiring from third place with an engine failure, but managed to outperform team mate Jenson Button all weekend. Starting from the front row, Takuma was fighting for second with Rubens Barrichello, setting a best lap time bettered only by race winner Michael Schumacher.

"I really enjoy racing at this circuit," adds Sato. "It has some interesting track characteristics, particularly a lot of undulation which make it a lot of fun to drive. It's a good place to make our comeback. We had a strong race here last year and I'm looking forward to a good performance on Sunday."