– The coming F1 season will be a fresh start for all teams and drivers because of the engine regulations and the new rules. What do you expect from it?
“Well, I’m bracing myself. I’m afraid we’ll see big gaps between the teams and that we won’t get fifteen cars within a second anymore, like we did last year. That would be a terrible loss for the sport. We’ve never had such a competitive field in Formula 1 as last season — it was so good.”
– You think it’s a shame that, every few years, the rules are changed in the name of technical innovation?
“I understand that F1 has to maintain its image as an innovative sport, a testbed for the car industry and the latest techniques. The FIA is behind that too. But does it make the sport better? I want to see the little guys going wheel-to-wheel and outbraking each other. I don’t care how many horsepower they extract; I just want to see great racing — and most people agree with me. It’s the eternal split the sport lives with: innovation on one side and pure competition on the other.”
– You raced in Formula 1 in another era. Do you find it’s become too contrived nowadays?
“Yes, absolutely. There’s nothing natural left in the sport. Everything is nailed down in regulations, and that comes at the expense of racing. In our day you could still fiddle around a bit — but that’s gone.”
