Friday, August 05, 2005 7:04 PM
They also have this super computer, and full scale, calibrated though under-utilized wind tunnel, which are probably one of the best if not the best in F1 today.
Yes I also thought of those, and those would have been handy to Cologne and even to Toyota’s road car or super car development. But above all these, it’s the team’s no-none-sense attitude, their efficiency, and consistency which have made them the capable midfielder that they are. I was imagining them, in their usual quiet ways, powered by Toyota engines, dominating the midfield fight, and just occasionally embarrassing some works teams, while Toyota is battling it at the front of the championship. The wind tunnel and super computer, Toyota could easily have their own if they wanted to.
Well in fact I’m little surprised Toyota continues to soldier on with their relatively old wind tunnel. And yes, Sauber-Toyota would have been perfect – it almost brought tears to my eyes. But isn’t Williams just as capable, if not even better?
Williams is considered by some still as an independent team. But to me, they no longer are. The attitude, the culture is no longer so independent. They have had works partnerships long enough to lose the independent spirit. And the chances of complicating the roles of the works team and the engine-supplied team are higher with them than with Sauber. They committed a lot of unforgivable mistakes this year and last year, and they don’t know how to handle their drivers, at least in my opinion.
Now how would you rate BMW’s chances next year?
I don’t know. It would be interesting to watch them take off next year. I’m more concerned with Midland-Toyota. They are technically the oldest of the three newer teams in F1, along with BMW and DubaiF1. But I won’t be surprised if they end up being the least competitive, given that DubaiF1 is supposed to have chassis input from McLaren.
And Williams-Cosworth?
All I know is that Cosworth will do a good job next year. Aside from the fact that they have a lot of experience with V8s, I think they will be extra motivated by this good chance they are given. I hope the Williams chassis is a match. I’m counting a lot on Marmorini’s genius and Toyota’s money to beat the experienced Cosworth guys and of course the rest of the engine makers. We should lead the pack next year.
Do you really see the Cosworth performing well next year?
Well I’m not the only one. And I’m basing my bet on the Cossie on their excellent record over at the IRL.
And in comparison, how are the Toyota’s doing there?
I heard the commentators say that Cosworth was nicknamed “stinky” last year, but with a comeback this year they are having top threes and are actually challenging Honda, and leaving the Toyota’s. Toyota says they want to leave IRL on a high, and they better do that. In the last race in Michigan, we could only manage fifth, while the Cosworth managed a second or third even after having been relegated to the back by a drive-through penalty. The Honda’s occupied the other good spots. You can really see the difference in engine performance because IRL racers have the same basic chassis. A Toyota fan would be frustrated and embarrassed to watch the leading Penske-Toyota harassed, hounded by Honda- and Cosworth-engined cars. We did have a win about a month ago, but it was in a handling circuit. In Toyota’s case only one or two cars clearly stand out, while in Honda’s case, excellent performance is pretty much level across four or more cars. This cannot be a good omen for next year’s V8.
Well in F1, clearly we’re doing very well against archrival Honda and the rest. Have you heard of Honda’s rumored 1000 horsepower beast for China?
Which Toyota fan haven’t? Now I’m not saying Toyota should mount a similar engine to the back of their TF105s or TF105Bs, but we should have something to match or overly exceed that team’s performance.
Ok. So any other concerns lately? Any significant behind-the-scenes stories?
Well we have some very interesting stories to share. The most straightforward one is our drivers’ salaries. According to F1 Racing Magazine’s estimates, Jarno earns a cool 10 million dollars basic yearly pay. Not as cool though, or rather exorbitant and wasteful as Ralf Schumacher’s pay.
So how much does Mr. Schumacher get?
He gets a basic pay of 25 million dollars! That is second only to his brother’s 35 million dollars, and higher than Kimi Raikkonen’s 22 million, Juan Pablo’s 15 million, and Rueben’s 10 million dollars. In case you haven’t noticed, Ferrari, McLaren, and Toyota drivers occupy the top six in salaries. Bear in mind that they still have other sources of income like sponsorships.
Wow, the Schumacher surname really does wonders to Ralf’s pay, huh?
Well, yes, but let’s not forget he’s not so bad a driver, too. Obviously there are other considerations in bargaining for driver salaries. Ralf *Schumacher* is very marketable, especially in light of his brother’s popularity, and especially to the novice F1 fan. Jarno, too, is very marketable, very popular as evidenced the number of Jarno fans who flock message boards all over the Internet. Jarno also has a lot of support from the Japanese and that must have been a bonus for Toyota. Together, our two drivers made Toyota more discussion-worthy, whether it be defending Jarno’s race pace, or poking fun at Ralf Schumacher’s fashion sense. We tried it before with Brazilians, and a Mika-Scot pairing (which incidentally, is also the set up at McLaren), but nothing else worked as good as this one. Not only did Toyota hire good drivers, they hired good names.
I see. But let me just point out how much of an excellent bargain Jarno Trulli is for the team. He has done a lot for Toyota!
I agree. He has brought the results, and has motivated the team. He’s good guy Jarno, and it was nice to see him pose with the team and Ralf as the latter finally brought himself to the podium this year. Ralf is visibly happier and more team-mate friendly at Toyota, although I did not see him join Jarno and the team celebrate the first three podiums.
There you go. So what other interesting snippet do you have for us?
Have you seen the latest Toyota F1 commercials? Notice anything different?
Well I have seen them, and by the way for those who haven’t, you can download them at Toyota-f1.com. I know they’re new, and a lot funnier than before. They have a wittier persona now. Is it about reaching out to younger consumers?
Well that would be in line with one of Toyota Motor’s primary aims, to be hip and cool and young. The significance here is the use of actual Toyota road cars. Since last year, the F1 ad’s tag says “Practice makes perfect” and then “One Aim.” Before, the commercials featured engineers ordinarily spending time with their sons. The son’s play time would be disrupted by a problem, and the engineer-father comes to the rescue with F1-inspired solutions. The message, more or less, is that Toyota’s F1 engineers are so passionate about their craft that they continue to be immersed in it at home. Then practice makes perfect.
What’s the significance of Toyota’s new ads then?
The new ads feature a team of mechanics doing a pit stop, instead of a solitary engineer to an actual road car. The ads start with Toyota cars being driven; these cars are slow, old and rusty, and looking tired. Then out of nowhere the Toyota F1 truck comes along. The Toyota mechanics flock to the car and work on it, repaint it, change its tyres, and even do re-fueling. After the pit stop, the Toyota vehicle is transformed into a shiny, rev-happy, and of course, fast, white machine. The mechanics leave and the car zooms to wherever it’s going. It’s worth noting that no, Toyota did not use a Supra or MR2 or Celica – the usual sporty cars – but instead used a very mainstream, very Toyota hatchback and van. Yes, a van. The tagline remains the same, “Practice makes perfect.” “One Aim.” But in our subconscious, we are being told, just to be blunt about it, that Formula 1 does wonders to Toyota, and that Formula 1 transcends to your ordinary Toyota hatchback or van, and that the Toyota Formula 1 magic is also for you, the ordinary but all important mainstream driver. Smart, eh?
Wow, impressive. But you blabbered a lot there.
Thank you for being appreciative. You’re such a polite person.
Now, now, go on, what else is to talk about here?
Here are very intriguing and very important developments. Mike Gascoyne has just renewed his contract with Toyota which sees him wearing red, grey, and white until 2006. This contract-renewal wasn’t picked up much by the media, but they missed an even bigger development. Mike was actually courted by BMW!
You don’t say! Well obviously he stuck with us, so that’s good news.
But that was potentially damaging, and I am grateful it didn’t disrupt the team. Things like that could shake up the team and that obviously is not good. Besides, I don’t see any other better place for Mike Gascoyne. All the teams based in England are already settled with their Technical Directors, well except for Williams. And Williams itself is very unsettled right now, and can never match the resources of Toyota. Now I’m just waiting for his contract to be renewed for even longer.
Just the thought of Mike Gascoyne leaving Toyota scares me already. I wonder, did he ever entertain thoughts of leaving Toyota?
Well I’ve read he has concerns about his kids. I no longer remember that well, but it was about the kids being away from him, or perhaps having to travel to Cologne to see him. I understand it’s not the best situation to be in, especially as I think his kids are in an important, hard-to-miss growing up stage. But that’s life- we can’t have everything. Just like we can’t have all the sponsors we want.
Sponsors? Are you trying to transition to another topic?
Well in fact I am. In the same way that we almost lost Mike, we are now in a crucial battle for Intel’s sponsorship. Recent reports say that Intel is dead-set in using Formula 1 to market its company, and of course, to go head to head with AMD who currently sponsors Ferrari. Among those interested in Intel are McLaren-Mercedes, and our friendly neighborhood rival, BAR-Honda. As you can see, these two are so in need of sponsorship money as they split with their tobacco sponsors.
So where does Toyota stand?
I think we’re in a good position given the fact that we’ve considerably raised our stock, and are actually, I think, a better deal than BAR-Honda. However, it was mentioned that the Intel logos that found their way to our TF104s and TF105s were actually natives of Japan. In other words, it was the Intel office in Japan that struck the deal with Toyota, not the Intel main office. Intel wants to expand their presence in F1, and they might go the route of being a team’s title- or main sponsor. Can you say Intel-Toyota, Intel-McLaren-Mercedes, or Intel-BAR-Honda? If so, then Toyota will be in a pleasant dilemma of choosing between two established brands, Panasonic and Intel, for their title sponsor.
But can’t we just have both?
I don’t know really, but here are possible solutions. Panasonic could concede, and then a reversal of roles between Intel and Panasonic could occur at Toyota. Panasonic remains as a secondary sponsor, with intel adorning the TF106 side pods. Option two: status quo for Toyota in that Panasonic remains as title sponsor, and Intel remains as minor sponsor – we could have Panasonic on the side pods and intel inside at the rear wings or engine covers. At the same time, Intel could title-sponsor another team. At one points, HP took over Compaq’s title sponsorship of Williams while continuing to sponsor Jaguar.
Wait a minute, why all the fuss about sponsorship? We do have a lot of money, and there other teams who could use the millions of Intel, like Minardi or Midland, etc…
True, if it was Minardi we are talking about here, then well and good. But unfortunately, the reality that is F1 means that the poor continue to be poor, much like the real world actually. They cannot attract good sponsors with the way they perform right now. Besides some spare cash wouldn’t hurt cash-smart Toyota.
Then what is the significance of losing Intel?
Well, losing Intel to another team like McLaren, and worse to archrival BAR-Honda, is much more than just losing money. We are losing morale here, and it’s as good as Intel losing confidence in Toyota. This is not the way a sponsor should deal with a team like Toyota who aside from its given reputation as a company has also improved by leaps and bounds in its standing in Formula 1. Should Intel decide to move to another team, however, it should be someone ahead of us right now. Note also the difference if Intel were to abandon Toyota as opposed to Intel just bypassing Toyota as they begin their F1 sponsorship. The latter would have been less controversial.
I guess so. Well all in all, these only serve to reinforce that Toyota is a reputable company, and continue to be an attractive team in F1. Ever heard of Microsoft being rumored to sponsor Toyota?
Yes, I have, and even Sony. And we will continue this sort of trend. This year alone, we are beating the recent achievement of BAR-Honda in 2003 when they jumped from eighth to fifth in the Constructors Championship. From eighth last year we are now fourth, and F1 Central has quoted a high-ranking Toyota F1 chief about targeting third in the Championship.
But finishing third in the championship, and even fourth would mean losing our Friday testing advantage. That cannot be good.
On the contrary, I fully agree with us targeting third in the WCC. Aside from feeling for Ricardo Zonta, I see no other long term penalties from losing our third car advantage. In fact it would help us, and I’d like us to lose this advantage so we can mature and improve our ways even more. That is why it is crucial to finally master the art of tyre selection before the end of the season. It will test our true capabilities, and in the end it will make us a better, more respectable team. We’ve had this advantage for two years already and are bound to lose such an advantage anyway. If we become really confident in our package and in our engineering capabilities, as in McLaren, then a third car serves no other purpose than doing extra marketing mileage.
That is a good point there. But if we are to lose the third driver advantage, then what is the difference of finishing fourth, third, or second?
Just to be plainly realistic, it is obviously difficult to challenge for the championship or for the runner up spot. Otherwise, it’s all about perception both outside of and within the team, perception that will set us up for the following season. Third is a good number. Fourth still has this nagging image of being best of the rest; it still is off of the podium. Finishing third means we are on the podium, and are actually part of the coveted “big three.” Finishing third gives us just enough room to move up to at least second next year, and should we be less than fortunate, we can pace ourselves to keeping ourselves in the top five.
What about finishing second?
Undue pressure: the pressure is too much and expectations are sky high, because many would expect the runner up to fully challenge and succeed in winning the championship the following season. It’s like, there’s no other way to go for the second placer but first. And the law of diminishing returns dictates that it is easier to make a jump from way low, but it will be really difficult to make those incremental improvements that will make one a champion. Pour money into Minardi and they could find two seconds; pour the same amount of money into Ferrari and they would be hard-pressed to find half a second. And, just look at the “Luckies” guys.
But at the moment, fourth seems most likely given that Ferrari continue to make improvements.
Should we finish fourth anyway, I’d like us to finish fighting for third, and therefore closer to third. I do no like us to be a defending fourth and we should have a clear gap over fifth place. Another thing I’m targeting, is that our second half points tally should still be greater than the second half tallies of other teams, notably Ferrari, Honda, and Williams. I continue to hope that we could be within five tenths or less of the leading team’s pace by year end.
If you target those sort of results, then you seem to be talking about wins, or a win already.
Again, that will be too much pressure, but if it comes, then thank you. Still ahead of us are Turkey, Monza, Spa, China, Japan, and Brazil. Our good power and efficient aerodynamics should place us well in Monza and Spa. The next race in Turkey, being a new circuit for everyone, somehow levels the playing field and wipes out the inexperience of newer teams such as ourselves. China and Brazil should suit us well, too, bearing in mind that Ralf, running his first race there after his injury break, was among the front runners.
And of course there is Suzuka. What are our chances?
Needless to say, Toyota will be aiming to impress and genuinely perform in their home event. Needless to say, we will be aiming to beat BAR-Honda fair and square, like I am sure Honda will be aiming to get ahead of us. It will be one of the most exciting races, I hope, and just bear in mind that Ralf and Jarno, both our drivers, are Suzuka experts.
Well, we will all be waiting for that day! This has been a very long interview.
It’s my fault, I had a lot to say but because of the many delays, I had to say them all in one interview. I hope you and our readers didn’t get tired and bored.
No problem. Any parting shots?
Well, again, huge congratulations and thank you to the team excellent form in Hungary. We’re hoping for more! Go, go, go, Toyota! One Aim! Watch us and Watch out!
Thanks! Do you have anything to promote?
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