microphone pict

©1997 SpeedCenter Internet Publishing, Inc.

Transcript of
Teleconference
on July 8, 1997

Gil de Ferran: You pull a lot of laterals

Always There

Gil de Ferran, 4th in points in the PPG Cup chase in 1997, is a favorite for the upcoming event in Cleveland. He won there in 1996, and he still holds the track record set in 1995. In this interview, he responds to questions about the track at Cleveland, about his team, and about his decision to compete in CART in spite of offers from Formula One.

The moderator was once again CART's T.E. McHale.

T.E. McHale: "Good afternoon to everybody. Welcome to the CART Media Teleconference.

"We would like to thank you all for taking the time to join us today. We would like to extend a special welcome to our guest this afternoon, driver Gil de Ferran of Walker Racing.

"Welcome Gil, and thanks for being with us today."

Gil de Ferran: "Good afternoon, everybody"

T.E. McHale: "Gil, driver of the Valvoline Cummins Special Reynard Honda enters Sunday's Medic Drug Grand Prix of Cleveland as the defending champion having driven to a 1.033 second victory over Alex Zanardi last year on the runways at Burke Lakefront Airport. He also earned his first pole position of his PPG CART World Series Career at Cleveland in 1995 with a lap of 147.512 miles per hour, which still stands as the qualifying record for the 2.369 mile temporary road course. Gil comes into this year's Cleveland event with podium appearances in three of his past four starts. He finished 3rd in the inaugural Motorola 300 at Gateway International Raceway, then added another 3rd place two weeks later at the ITT Automotive Detroit Grand Prix, and even at which he also claimed his fourth PPG CART World Series career pole position. On June 22nd de Ferran was part of the closest finish in IndyCar history when Mark Blundell edged past him at the start finish line to win the Budweiser GI Joe's 200 presented by Texaco Havoline by 27 thousands of a second. Still, Gil collected 16 points for his runner-up effort and he comes to Cleveland 4th in the PPG Cup Standings with 77 points. Paul Tracy leads with 100 points followed by Greg Moore with 95 and Michael Andretti with 91. The Medic Drug Grand Prix of Cleveland, Round 10 of the PPG CART World Series will be televised live by ABC on Sunday, July 13th, at 2:00pm eastern daylight time. With that we will open it up for questions."

Question: "Have you gotten over the anguish of losing that closest race in history?

"I didn't really know if I should have been sad or happy at that time"
Gil de Ferran

Gil de Ferran: "That was kind of mixed emotions. I didn't really know if I should have been sad or happy at that time. It was, you know, disappointing in one way for losing the win. But on another point of view, you assumed very good points and that prepared us right to the front of the Championship.

Question: "Gil, has IndyCar Racing become even more specialized to the extent that there are road course drivers and oval drivers and how does your team divide the team divide between the two in regard to testing and equipment?

Gil de Ferran: "I think you just brushed up on one very good point as far as IndyCar Racing or at least the CART Championship is concerned. The very fact that we have to go to so many ovals and so many different road — type of road courses, it makes it very difficult for you to be successful if you were a total specialist in one of the disciplines.

"That, by itself, is a great challenge for the drivers. To be able to drive the big ovals well and then you have got to be able to drive the small ovals well as well and you have got to be able to be good in the road courses and good in the street courses, you have to be very much an all- arounder, and, you know, very versatile type of driver. And, I think, at least fore me, it is a great challenge.

"Obviously, I come from a road course background and the biggest challenge has been to get going on the ovals. It is a challenge that I enjoy very much. In fact, I think it is a plus that the Championship has over any other Series at that level around the world, including Formula 1."

Question: "I just wondered, do you feel you have a particular advantage at Cleveland in regard to driving style or the course itself, because of the success you have had there?"

"My driving style is to carry a lot of speed into the turns and that obviously seems to be quite good both in Cleveland and Long Beach"
Gil de Ferran

Gil de Ferran: "Well, to be quite honest with you, I'd like to think not, because I drive the best I can at every track I go, you know. And, to the same level and at most tracks I go to, but obviously, results prove me wrong. There, obviously, must be something, you know, in the way I drive, that suits the track layout quite well. I typically — my driving style is to carry a lot of speed into the turns and that obviously seems to be quite good both in Cleveland and Long Beach, actually."

Question: "Gil, I am wondering, talk about the particular demands of driving at Cleveland, particularly the fact that you nearly don't seem to have any visual clues to go by out there?"

Gil de Ferran: "It's quite a unique track in many ways. I mean, fist the track is really wide which gives the driver many options in terms of lines. I mean, you can go in tight and exit wide, vice versa, have a late apex, early apex, whatever. You can pretty much pick and choose many different lines through all the corners. Not every circuit is like that. Many circuits, they are preset. You have got to take a certain line through a turn and that is that.

"The second aspect that makes Cleveland unique is the amount of run-off area in many of the turns which gives the driver another sense of freedom that you can't really risk going off or risk a spin without being afraid of the — questioning the car or damaging the car severely delaying your session. So, that gives you an extra degree of freedom there. [huh?]

"Another unique feature, like you say, is the lack of visual references. The track is quite flat. When you are [on] one end, you cannot see across the other side. And, because you are sitting very low, on a flat ground, it is very difficult to pick reference points for you to brake, for you to turn, and so on and so forth. So, it makes it quite a unique track.

"It is also quite a physical track. The corners are really, really fast and you pull a lot of laterals"
Gil de Ferran

"It is also quite a physical track. The corners are really, really fast and you pull a lot of laterals. On top of that, it is quite a bumpy track which makes it quite tough. Last year I was totally exhausted by the end of the race. I mean, I had blisters in my hand and I was really tired."

Question: "Being in Mid Ohio this week, along with many other drivers, what were you looking for in your car in those tests?"

Gil" Well, the test in Mid Ohio, this time anyway, is more what I call a research test. We are testing different parts from Honda and for ourselves in trying to develop the chassis and the engine a little further. Perhaps not with the intent of particularly setting up the car for this weekend or for Mid Ohio, but looking more at long-term development parts and everything else. That is what we are doing here this weekend — these couple of days. And, sometimes it makes it a little tight for the race. But you know, that is — the Championship calendar is very tight so that is the only time we had to do it."

Question: "A question in reference to the fact that there are no reference points or very few reference points at Cleveland. What do you use for visual help in navigating a course?"

Gil de Ferran: "Sometimes the cones that they put in help you. You pick up a few surface changes as references. Believe it or not, they paint the runway with those white paints and everything else, sometimes you pick, you know, some references on that. You have got to be careful wit the references, because sometimes they move it."

Question: "Why did you make the decision to stay in IndyCars?"

"I had my mind preset on trying to stay here and win the Championship"
Gil de Ferran

Gil de Ferran: "I got along extremely well with Bo and Jackie [Stewart]. Bo has become a very good friend of mine. I drove for them for four years when I was racing in Europe, and it seemed, at least to me anyway, kind of natural that we spoke about that. And, we did talk about that little bit halfway through the year. But at one point I really was — I was really trying to win this Championship over here. And, it was kind of [a] personal objective of mine. That was really the main reason why I decided to stay over here. I mean, there was an approach. We really didn't get into the nitty-gritty of hard negotiations. And, basically because I had my mind preset on trying to stay here and win the Championship. I had — I was quite happy with the number of offers I had at this day and I decided on the Walker deal because I thought it was the best one."

Question: "Go back to that closest finish ever. Gil, that had to be a heck of a feeling. Describe that a little bit."

Gil de Ferran: "Well it was a heck of a feeling. Definitely I had tears in my eyes — I am not too sure for happiness or sadness. You have to understand the whole background to that point. It is a race that started [in] a quite promising way, and then with the poor performance of our tires we fell a long way back, and, you know, it was kind of just hanging around there and thinking. Well, you know, 'if I got a finish here, if I get a couple of points out of this one, I will be kind of happy with that.'

"Then I have to say that by sheer, you know, feelings from Derrick and the engineers back at the pits, they did a good strategy. They managed to put us back up fighting for the lead. Then, once you are in the lead, you start to get pumped up again, and you say 'listen I can win this thing.' And you know, obviously you kind of change your objective from thinking 'well, I can get a few points' to thinking I can get — definitely get 21 points here, not only a few.

To lose it, after I managed to hold Mark for the whole lap, I thought okay, all I have to do is get out of this last turn kind of quick. But, unfortunately, I got a little too much wheel spin and the car started to tail and wiggling around and I said to myself 'oh no.' At that point I had two options: either try to find the shortest distance between the corner and the start finish line, or try to put mark in the, well... which is something, you know, which is something I wouldn't do. And, so I just concentrated, try to get to the start finish line and unfortunately he got a bit more traction and beat me. I mean, it was really exciting racing. Everything was done within the boundaries of legality, you know, and sportsmanship. And, I was happy because I got some good points. And, on the other hand, you know, a win is a win."

Question: " Do you feel that Honda has kind of stepped up their efforts as you hoped this year, or not? I mean, last year you had, perhaps, and advantage at this stage, and now you don't it seems."

"Even though Honda came with a brand new engine and a very strong reliable engine, I think the competition, especially Mercedes-Benz, made a little bit of a jump in front of us"
Gil de Ferran

Gil de Ferran: "Well, I think particularly in the beginning of last year, we had a definite tire advantage, and that tire advantage reduced significantly as the year wore on last year. And, this year, even though Honda came with a brand new engine and a very strong reliable engine, I think the competition, especially Mercedes-Benz, made a little bit of a jump in front of us. And, Honda being Honda, I mean they are — I have never seen people work as hard as they are. They really really work hard to try to improve not only the overall performance of the engine, but the fuel economy. But I think, they are making significant gains. And, I hope by the end of the year we again have the best engine, because the objective of this exercise is not to be the same. It is to be dominating and to be a lot better."

Question: "I just wondered, obviously, some of the results might have been a bit disappointing because you got so close. Being with Walker and a whole new setup, how much would you characterize how the team has been and how you have felt yourself about your performance the first half of the year?"

Gil de Ferran: "I think the team has been extremely solid. I mean, obviously, we didn't collect as many points as perhaps we should have had in the early season. But, you know, that is the way racing goes. Ifs and buts don't really add any points to the table. But, if you look at your overall performance the whole year, I mean very few occasions have we been off the pace or struggling. In fact, no occasion whatsoever. And, you know, it has been a solid first half of the year. Obvioulsy, I would have liked to have won a race already. But, you know, there you go. At least I can take some reassurance from the fact that we came very close and we are knocking at the door. I would have been disappointed if we weren't anywhere near the front."

Question: "You said you can't really look at the rivals 'til the last few races of the season and just concentrate on your own performance. But, still, in the debriefings and everything, people look at who is doing what every particular race. When you are looking at it, who do you think seems to be the strongest as you are heading towards the second half? Who would you be worried about?"

"I think the top three guys in the Championship are showing a lot of consistency early on this year"
Gil de Ferran

Gil de Ferran: "I think the top three guys in the Championship are showing a lot of consistency early on this year. I mean, Paul has been right up there all the time. Greg Moore has been very good and he has been very fast in testing as well. And, so is Michael. You can never discount Michael. So, I think the guys that are the top 3 in the Championship are definitely on the hunt. On top of that, you know, Pruett is showing consistent speed and he is not that far back on the table. Zanardi is another one. Maybe Vasser to a lesser extent. And, Mauricio has been showing a lot of speed this year, but he doesn't have many points in the Championship table."

Question: "Gil, this string of racing that we have coming up through the month of July and August, do you go to the racetrack a little differently? Because this could turn out to be very taxing not only on you but also on the crew?"

Gil de Ferran: "Not really. A race is a race, and my frame of mind, I try to maintain it as consistent as I can, you know, which is to work with the team to get the best result out of it, not only on Sunday, but Friday and Saturday. I think sometimes it is somewhat unfortunate that all the races are crammed in together because, like you said, it puts a lot of strain in the Championship and puts a lot of strain on the mechanics and the whole team, generally speaking. It is a little bit tough for the driver, too."

Question: "Then you go to work testing in between?"

"one problem having all the races close together like this... [it] actually increases quite a bit of the cost"
Gil de Ferran

Gil de Ferran: "Yeah, that is exactly right. And, one problem having all the races close together like this, and that it occurs that not many people think about it, actually increases quite a bit of the cost because if you want to test to be competitive, you have to maybe, you know, hire more mechanics because not to wear out the mechanics you have. You end up having to run a bigger team."

Question: "I wanted to know whether or not you thought that the airport surface at Burke Lakefront Airport puts any special strain on your tires?"

Gil de Ferran: "Well, it is definitely a very different surface because of the grooves that you have and it depends on at which angle you catch those grooves. They really help you or they make the car really slide quite a bit. In the end of the pits straight, the grooves are going 90 degrees to your direction of travel and that means that you can brake so deep and so hard. I think deeper and harder than any other race track that we go to. It definitely puts a different — a different kind of use on the tires because of so many different surfaces and catching the grooves at different directions."

Question: "I have two questions. First, have you ever driven at Sebring?"

Gil de Ferran: "Yes."

Question: "Is Sebring like Cleveland? And the second one is, do you think there — can you tell me the advantage or disadvantages that you see of a one-car team at this point, especially when you are talking about this testing schedule?"

Gil de Ferran: "I have driven in Sebring. And, I don't actually think that Sebring relates to many tracks that we go to. In fact, that is a real debating point during the winter. You know, where is the best place to test. Some people test in Firebird. Some people test in Sebring. And, some people try to split the time between the two. And, I think Sebring is very convenient. It is very convenient for testing during the winter. But, it is very debatable if it's of significant use or not in terms of gathering useful data."

Question: "I just heard some of the same problem where you really can't see were you are going as well, you don't have —"

Gil de Ferran: "No, I don't think that is really a concern."

Question: "Talking about this testing schedule, I wondered if you could talk about the advantages or disadvantages of having a one car team?"

"I have seen teams that have been extremely unsuccessful running one car. And, the same goes for two-car teams. I think it really depends on the way the team is structured"
Gil de Ferran

Gil de Ferran: "Well, you know, I think it really depends. I mean, there is not a set rule for what is best, one-car teams or two-car teams. I think I have seen teams that have been extremely successful running one car, and I have seen teams that have been extremely unsuccessful running one car. And, the same goes for two-car teams. I think it really depends on the way the team is structured in terms of personnel and managed. And, you know, that is really more of a determination factor than the fact that you have one car or two cars."

Question: "How about on your team, how would you —"

Gil de Ferran: "On my team?"

Question: "Yeah."

Gil de Ferran: "We have a one-car team, and up until recently we had a test — we had a test car and because we don't need to use the test car anymore, we just sold the car to Tasman Motorsports. So, Derrick really put a structure in right from the beginning of the year looking ahead into this difficult schedule, and really structured the team quite well in terms of mechanics and number of cars and everything else. So, I think we have been quite able to cope with the schedule."

Question: "You would rather not have another person do the test driving, you wouldn't want —"

Gil de Ferran: "Oh, no, I like to drive the car every opportunity I can. In fact, if I could test every day of the week I would. I am sure Derrick will attest to that."

Question: "Gil, the record says that you were .23 [this was actually .027 seconds] away from victory this year. How, in human terms, and just, you know, emotional terms, how close are you to getting one of those checkered flags for Derrick Walker this year and a new team?"

Gil de Ferran: "Well, we have come close quite a few times this year. We came close in the first race of the year in Miami. Then we came very close again in Long Beach. And, then we came very close in Detroit, and Portland, I think, crowned the almost scenario, you know. And, you know, I mean, like I said earlier, it is frustrating in a way because, like I said, the whole exercise is try to win everything. But, on the other hand, you know, the consolation, we are right up there and that kind of makes me feel happy."

Question: "Of course, having the qualifying record and having the defending win does not hurt you this weekend at the Burke Lakefront Airport?"

"Our testing here in Mid Ohio and other places really makes me feel confident going into Cleveland"
Gil de Ferran

Gil de Ferran: "No doubt. I think everything bodes well for this weekend not only our past record in Cleveland, but, you know, all our performances so far this year in road courses, plus our testing here in Mid Ohio and other places really makes me feel confident going into Cleveland. Hopefully I wouldn't disappoint the expectations out of everybody and myself."

Question: "Gil, do you do anything special for training for such a hot gruelling course like Burke?"

Gil de Ferran: "I really worked hard on my fitness. I live in Florida and that is really quite easy to train in the winter and everything. I do quite a bit of running and I swim an I do weights. That is mostly what I concentrate on."

Question: "What effect does the sale of the car to Tasman have on your future testing. Doesn't it effect you if you have a shunt with the existing race car?"

Gil de Ferran: "I don't think it does. Having two cars is really more than enough to cope with the races and the tests that we have until the end of the year. In fact, you know, looking at the schedule with the great care and attention between races and tests was the determining factor on that decision. We looked carefully at it. We said, well, we don't need to use the third car anymore, so we might as well change that car into more money and reinforce the team's budget."

Question: "Is there a schedule for new generations of the engine that would come at various times of the year, or is it just constant change?"

Gil de Ferran: "Well, it is just constant change. It is continuous development just trying to get more power and better fuel economy. It is a constant thing and every week Honda is making progress."

Question: "So, there is no target for Michigan, let us say?"

Gil de Ferran: "No, not at this point."

Question: "Gil, have you been surprised at all at the concentration of victories that have gone to particular drivers, Tracy and Moore...how they have dominated and conversely, the fact that drivers that dominated last year have not had wins this year?"

"The reason why those two guys have three wins and two wins, respectively, is more due to circumstances and competence on their behalf than dominance"
Gil de Ferran

Gil de Ferran: "No, I have not been surprised by the two wins of Moore and three wins of Paul [Tracy] because they really have not dominated. If you look at Moore's win in Detroit in particular, that was not a dominant win by any means. It was a very genuine win. But, if anybody dominated the race, we did. We definitely had the fastest car over there and just the circumstances, we weren't able to win it. He did have a dominant performance in Milwaukee though. But, also, if you look at Paul's performance, he did dominate Nazareth, but, you know, he was not dominant in St. Louis even though he won the race. And, he definitely was not dominant in Rio when he won the race. The guy that dominated the race in Rio was Bobby Rahal. And so, I mean, you know, the reason why those two guys have three wins and two wins, respectively, is more due to circumstances and competence on their behalf than dominance. I think there has not been a person that dominated — is dominating the Championship at all because it is extremely competitive.

Question: "I wondered briefly having worked with Jim [Hall] last year and now with Derrick Walker, they are two fairly storied names in the field of racing. Have you seen differences or maybe some similarities in the way they maybe approach either the race or just preparing you for it?"

Gil de Ferran: "They are obviously quite different starting from one is a Texan and the other is a Scotsman. The similarities, they are both extremely competent in their own way. They have different strengths. But, you know, the end result seems to be quite effective in both cases. I mean, there is obviously a difference in personality, and everything else. I mean, I became very good friends with Jim after the two years we raced together. And, in my relationship with Derrick, it is growing all the time."

Question: "I wanted to ask you if you could describe that first turn at Cleveland. We talked a little bit about the track. It seems as though it is a wide sweeping turn and yet there seems to be tons of trouble there each year."

"The problem is, there is not enough room to go through it..."
Gil de Ferran

Gil de Ferran: "The thing about that first turn when you are racing, the entrance is very, very wide. So, I mean there is enough room there for a driver, you know, to go on the inside and even to go three-wide on the entrance. The problem is, there is not enough room to go through it at three-wide. So, there is only room maybe for one, one-and-a-half, sometimes two, if you force the issue. And this is when the problems happen because you get somebody that thinks, well, maybe I can go right down the inside. And, the other guy that is on the outside really doesn't see him and sometimes turns in and then they end up T-boning each other halfway through the turn.

So I think the problems really stem from the fact that the entrance is really wide, but it narrows down, you know, narrows down to one or two car widths line in the middle."