By Ferrari Press
August 31 2002

Rubens Barrichello will start tomorrow’s Belgian Grand Prix in third place, behind his team mate Schumacher and McLaren-Mercedes driver Kimi Raikkonen. He claims to be in a fine frame of mind ready to go for a win tomorrow with an attacking race.

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“After a few uncertainties this morning, we have found a good set-up for the car and we have made a really good tyre choice, so there is every chance of having a good race,” said Rubens Barrichello. “The weather is usually an unknown quantity on this track. Our car works well in the wet so I wouldn’t mind a bit of rain. There is no guarantee that it will rain hard and in-between conditions are always hard to judge, so I am not saying a wet race would be best for us.”

As for the reduction in lap times compared with the past, Rubens reckoned this was not just down to the modifications made to the final chicane. “The tyres and the cars have all progressed particularly recently and I think that is why the times are so much quicker,” explained Rubens. “Eau Rouge is as ever a real challenge, but it is easier than in the past, because the tyres provide more grip.”

The Ferrari man was also asked if he was surprised at the performance of the young McLaren driver, Raikkonen. “I have to say I am,” admitted Rubens. “Especially as I did not expect McLaren-Mercedes to be so competitive and I was expecting that Williams would have been our biggest threat.”

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