Monaco GP - 19 May 1996
Red Bull Sauber Ford Press Release

After all the problems we have been through this year, it was a really sweet feeling to finish up on the podium at the Monaco Grand Prix. And what an amazing race! Obviously, as a very new resident of the principality, I was delighted with the result, but I was happy too that the event lived up to expectations as a spectacle because I know that the local people are proud of the history, tradition and reputation of the Grand Prix.

It really is different from everything else. There is no question about it. But when it is wet and slippery, as well as tight, difficult to overtake, overcrowded and very narrow, plus it is surrounded by hype and there are thousands of people everywhere, you know it is a tough and demanding proposition. So to go out and get a result, even when I was, I suppose, last of only three finishers is still a great feeling.

I knew that whatever happened it was always likely to be a question of just making sure I was still running at the finish and, frankly, it was excellent for the team that we were the only team that was. I know Heinz-Harald was technically a non-finisher, because he had made an inspired decision to come into the pits when he realised his fourth position was safe. So that was good news for Sauber and for Ford. I have had a feeling for a while that things are beginning to come together for us and I think this will have proved it.

But it was a very difficult race. After the rain in the morning, the track was very slippery and everyone was so bunched up after the start that no matter what position you were in it was literally impossible to overtake at all. It was a matter of staying patient and waiting for the pit stops for a chance to overtake. I concentrated on that and it worked out very well. My pit-stop was great and with other people just seeming to fall away like flies I found myself in a very good position - third, with Jacques Villeneuve chasing me.

Well, Jacques put me under quite a bit of pressure, but I knew the answer was to run my own race at my own pace and to try and not allow him to affect me. I wanted to avoid mistakes and to stay calm which was not easy in all that muddle and chaos. In the end, of course, I was helped out by one of the Forti drivers taking care of Jacques for me! But, having said that, I think it was the same driver who had almost put me into the barriers earlier on too.

Once I had survived all that, it was just a case of keeping it all together and making the finish and I was delighted obviously with the car and the engine. Both of the Ford engines ran faultlessly throughout the race and it was a great bonus for the team, Sauber, who had their best ever result, as well as Ford and Cosworth to get rewarded like that.

I had always had a feeling about the possibility of finishing on the podium anyway, for some reason. It might just be because Becky and the family have moved down and we all felt the timing was right, but I had talked about it the night before the race and it seemed a real possibility.

Practice and qualifying had not been that brilliant, which is nowadays almost a good sign for me the way things seem to go! On Thursday morning for example, I had a problem with the electronics on my race car and so I had to switch to the spare. That meant switching over everything, including my set-up, before the start of the practice session. The spare did not have drive-by-wire initially so this was added in between the two sessions in the break.

Then, I had a mechanical problem with the drive-by-wire system. which, needed fixing, followed by something else going wrong with the throttle; so in the end there were only about five minutes left. So, I was left to do it all on Saturday and when Saturday arrived it was not a lot better - my luck, that is. I had a rear suspension problem to begin with, overcame that, but then had a bit of a repeat of it in the qualifying session itself just as I was going through the tunnel. It was really frustrating because the split times suggested that was on my quickest lap of the day.

There really was not much more I could do. I had done my best and things just were not working out and I was 13th on the grid for the Monaco Grand Prix. I knew how important qualifying always is - but I suppose I was saved a bit by the weather, the excellence of the car and the engine in race trim and the way the race worked out. It was a pretty crazy event, a one-off, but you have to be ready for that in Monte Carlo.

I knew I was in with a chance when the car felt really good in the special extra wet session before the race. But the start, as I said, was very tricky. I think Eddie Irvine was the one holding us all up and, as I said, the pit crew did a brilliant job to help me move up a few places. I just wanted to stay there with no problems - like being bumped into the harbour by Olivier Panis, when he was on his charge, or by Luca Badoer - and that is what I did.

It was a great feeling. I enjoyed the crowds and the podium and the whole event. To be a newcomer to Monaco, as a resident, and to finish up like that was pretty good for me and the team. I only hope Becky, who was at home during the race, was able to tune in the television and watch it - and understand what was going on. It was pretty chaotic and I think our TV can still only receive French programmes! But in any language it was a good result and one we are all going to enjoy when we look back on it.

With thanks to Johnny, Red Bull Sauber Ford and Bob Herbert
This page prepared 21 May 1996. All rights reserved.