Formula 1: Sam Michael pleased with Barrichello's performance
It seems that Williams have suddenly found form in the middle of the season as the teams returned to Europe for the race at Valencia. There were several controversies in the race that made the headlines, but it was Rubens Barrichello who avoided all the drama and finished fourth in the race.
Coming to the new layout Silverstone track for the British Grand Prix, the team put in another stellar performance with Rubens finishing in fifth place while his teammate and rookie Nico Hulkenberg finished in tenth place to give the team their first double points finish of the season. Having scored only eight points in the first eight races of the season the sudden influx of points now sees them gaining momentum to challenge the midfield.
Sam Michael, the technical director for the Williams F1 team was all praises for Rubens Barrichello as the Brazilian is now eleventh in the Drivers Championship only seven points behind his former teammate and seven times World Champion Michael Schumacher. Sam Michael said he was very pleased with the role that Rubens was playing in the team in terms of performance as well as development. He stated that he now plays a vital role in terms of direction that the development program at Williams is taking.
The team introduced a new rear wing as well as a blown diffuser. After the double diffuser gained popularity last year, it’s Red Bulls blown diffuser that is the ‘must have’ for all the teams this season. Regarding the upgrades that were introduced for the race, Sam was very pleased at the way they were helping the car but on the other hand was quite skeptical of the new Silverstone circuit.
Although he felt the new track was quite conducive to overtaking, it was the bumpy nature of the track he felt was very adverse to the cars. With ride hides being set so low in current times, the cars tend to lose all their down force as the barge board comes in contact with the surface.
Rubens Barrichello will also be relishing this role. For most of his career he has been in the number two driver role. Firstly he was under the shadow of Michael Schumacher from 2000 to 2005 during his time at Ferrari. During this time Schumacher bagged five straight Drivers Championships while Barrichello ended up getting two runners up positions. But it was a time when Barrichello was probably also at his prime.
The team orders in Ferrari during that stint were quite stern and all the backing of the team was put behind Schumacher. The memory of the Austrian Grand Prix is etched into the memory of every Formula 1 fan. Barrichello had led that race from Pole position to finish, only to be given instructions to yield his position to Michael Schumacher on the final straight before the chequered flag.
Last year he was once again teammate to Jenson Button who won the Driver’s title at the Brawn GP team. Having spent time at Honda after his move from Ferrari he was given the automatic seat for the 2009 season when Honda sold their team to Ross Brawn. But now that he is in the primary drivers capacity, he can build on the car for his advantage for once in his career.
And what a career it has been. When Schumacher retired from Formula 1 at the end of 2007 he was the driver with the second most number of races behind him. During his absence he over took his record and is now poised to make his three hundredth Grand Prix start this year at the Japanese Grand Prix making him the first driver ever to do so.
Williams will be hoping that the partnership will help propel the team to their winning ways as well. The team hasn’t won a Driver’s and Constructor’s title since 1997. This might not be the year they break the duck but they are sure to be headed in the right direction and they have the experience of Barrichello to make it happen.
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