YOU ASK THE QUESTIONS - Heikki Kovalainen

He can confirm that he’d sign Fernando Alonso  and Jenson Button if he owned his own team. As he can also confirm,it’s quite awkward when you meet Jean Todt in a lift and he doesn’t actually have a clue who you are…

It’s decidedly chilly on this crisp Barcelona morning. We’re just a few days into the 2012 F1 season and the second day of testing is just about to commence at the Circuit de Catalunya. Strict testing rules mean that only one car from each team can run on a single day and today it’s the turn of Caterham new boy Vitaly Petrov to clock up some mileage int he CT01.

That means, post-tech briefing, the team’s other driver, Heikki Kovalainen is free to take your questions on life at Caterham, the pressure of formerly being team-mate to both Fernando Alonso and Lewis Hamilton – and what it was really like to work with Flavio Briatore.

The heaters are turned up high in Caterham’s tidy motorhome; Heikki takes off his jacket and eyes up the question cards. He’s very happy with the running int he new car far and ahead of the first race is buoyant about the CT01’s potential. Of course, no one quite knows where they sit in comparison to the opposition, until they get to Australia. But, for now, in the cold pre-season, Heikki chats warmly as he turns over the first card…

How do you rate your chances of scoring points for Caterham this year?
  Cynthia Mathews, Singapore

I think the chances are better than in our previous years as Lotus. I think it’s hard to say exactly where we are at the moment; we don’t know if we are close yet or not. I think we’ve made some progress, but part from that it’s hard to say. The new car feels better thanks to the regulation changes, but we still need to work a bit harder at the front to make the car sharper into the corners, although that’s less of an issue- it’s the rear that’s the struggle.

Most people believe Fernando Alonso to be the best driver in F1. As a former  team-mate of his, what do you think it is that sets  Alonso apart from the rest?
  Michelle Slater, UK

I don’t believe that Fernando Alonso is the best driver; I don’t regard any driver as the best.  They all have to be beaten and any serious race driver has to take that view. He could be the second best… he has a lot experience and when I was his team-mate, it was clear that he was a very quick, naturally talented driver. He’s a hard worker and he’s very good at setting up his car – he’s probably better at setting up his car than any other driver who’s ever been my team- mate. He’s very good at getting everything out of the team and the group of people he’s working with and that’s something that I learnt from him when I was his team-mate.

If you could manage your own F1 team, which driver would you hire?
 Jack Leslie, UK

I would hire Alonso, but the second choice would be difficult one. If I couldn’t hire myself, then Jarno’s free…no, maybe would be Jenson Button. They would work well  as a team and Jenson is mature enough to work with Fernando. So those two.

What are the pros and corns of racing at the back of the field after you’ve raced with a top team?
  Dani Damah, Lebanon

Well, the pros are that you can make yourself relatively good. You can drive the car as hard as you can and then people in the paddock will take notice of that. If you are in a top team and you struggle, you’ll  immediately put yourself in a risky position and people will regard you as an average driver. In my McLaren days my career was at a low point- that was a tricky moment. People thought that it was a failure because it didn’t quite work out as it should have done.  But since then I’ve changed a lot of things and feel like I’ve been able to turn it around. It’s still working well at the moment and the plan is to get back on top. The cons are not being able to complete with the world’s top drivers at the front of the field. That’s what I miss.

What was it like to work for  Renault boss Flavio Briatore?
  James David, UK

It was good to work him, I enjoyed it and I think he was a very good leader. He was tough at times and I think I wasn’t strong enough to handle it at the time.  But learned a lot from him and I think that I would now be able to handle that type of environment. I liked working with Flavio; he picked me from the early stages of my career and he helped me with the Reanult young driver development programme and he was someone who could really push the team forward. He was a bit of an old- school guy who really pushed people and you just had to be strong enough to take it. As a charachter,  I’d say he’s missed by F1, but I don’t know if it’s in his plans to return.  

What inspired you to be an F1 driver?
Callum Barnard, UK

It was because I wanted to drive the quickest cars in the world possible. That was my only motivation. I could easily have turned towards rallying. I nearly pursued that as a career because I was really into rallying when I was younger. But once I’d started karting, I decided to go the single-seater route instead. But speed is still my motivation. Actually, my dad races: he does the Legends championship in Finland and he also did a little bit of rallying, too.

Does Mike Gascoyne cry a lot when the car is not perfect?
  Thierry Sposito, France

No, Mike doesn’t cry. He is a very strong leader and he’s very good at what he does, putting a group of people together and giving them a lot of responsibilities. He knows exactly what he wants from the team and no, he certainly doesn’t cry. He doesn’t really even ever get mad ; he’s just very demanding. When things go well, he’s the complete opposite, he’ll be the first person to come and say: „Well done!”

If you were offered a drive at McLaren again, would you take it or not?
  Sophie Tolley, UK

I suppose I would have to consider it. I have nothing bad to say about them;  I think they’re a great team and all I can say is that I would be stronger now that I was when I first went there. I would be able to get  more out of the team and more out of the car – but I haven’t had any talks with them about returning.

Who would you say is the better drummer: you or Eddie Jordan?
Yusuf Meral, Turkey

I think Eddie is probably the better drummer and I’m the better racing driver. I never played with him, but I have playes with some other musicians - I’m just an amateur really.

Out of all your F1 team-mates, who has been your toughest opponent?
  Craig Ames, UK

On the race track I’d have to say Lewis Hamilton.

Being Finnish, have you ever been tempted by the World Rally Championship?
  Billy Egerton, Ireland

Yes, I was tempted by WRC. I still enjoy watching the events and it’s something I think I would like to do, but there is no time to do it at the moment.  And you saw what happened to Kimi:  it’s hard to change disciplines like that. It’s tough at the top level of a sport and people put a lot of work into it. If you’re not used to it then it’s hard to succeed.  Kimi wasn’t missing much, but he looked average. He never really got the chance and it’s hard to compete against the best people in the sport who have been doing it for many years. If you put Sébastien Loeb in a Red Bull F1 car he’ll be last, probably not by a big margin, but just four or five seconds is enough.

Is it true that as a Scandinavian you can drink your own bodyweight in vodka?
  Matt Pegler, UK

[Laughs] No, I can’t drink my own bodyweight in vodka. I actually haven’t drunk any alcohol since last Easter, so I’m teetotal.

Did you feel that during your time at McLaren, the odds were stacked in Lewis’s favour or were you always treated as a true equal?
  Richard Chernick, UK

When I joined the team, Lewis was the one who was already established at McLaren. It was as simple as that really and I have nothing bad to say about the team. Perhaps there were some occasions in qualifying when we might have been a few kilos different in strategy, but the problem was that I didn’t enforce my own position strongly enough. But I don’t want to get into all that to be honest, it was a long time ago. I would say that in F1 you have to be strong and you have to stamp your authority yourself.

Apart from the colour scheme, you’ve roughly kept the same helmet design since your F1 debut. Do the three bands on the side have a specific meaning?
  Benjamin Vinel, France

The idea for the design actually comes from JJ Lehto. he used to race with a similar design and I used to support him when I was younger and so I used a similar style – that’s how it all started. So my designer has continued to follow a similar route.

Will you be having a few vodkas with Kimi this season?
  Philip Cambridge, UK

No, I won’t because I’m not drinking alcohol, but I’d be happy to have a party with him. I’ve never been a heavy drinker to be honest.

Tell me, did the car feel strange on the lap before your wheel exploded in Barcelona 2008, which caused you to crash heavily into the tyre wall?
  Ales Horvat, Croatia

No, I didn’t. I don’t really remember, actually. I recall starting  the lap and rounding the last corner. I think Lewis and Robert Kubica went into the pits and I was leading the race and had two or three laps worth of fuel to carry on, push and try to gain some ground. And then the next thing I remember is that I was in hospital after blacking out for a few hours. So there was no warning, it was an instant failure that took me into the wall. If there was any warning, I would have slowed down.

How did you feel when Mark Webber crashed and launched over the top of you at Valencia back in 2010?
  Bethany Andrews, UK

When it was happening I was fighting Mark and defending a little – but not too hard – although I didn’t want him to just drive around me. I didn’t see what happened to him at all, I spun around, I know that the car was damaged and I drove back round into the pits  and I said to the team, „He ran into me!” It was only when I saw the video later that I went, „Wow!” So I didn’t feel much at all reply –  it was just a bump that spun me around.

Can you see why Lewis and Fernando fell out? You’ve work with both of them, so are you able to shed any light on their relationship?
  Jay Carter, UK

Yes, I can see why they fell out - but I’m not going to tell you why. I think everyone can draw their own opinions and I don’t really want to get drawn into it, as i’m friends with both of them.

What was going through your mind when your car caught fire during the 2010 Singapore Grand Prix?
  Michael Gillespie, UK

The priority was just to stop the car because I didn’t want to go through the pitlane in case it exploded. It actually looked a lot more dramatic ont he outside then it did ont he inside – I couldn’t even feel any heat. It was just an oil line that had broken.

I’ve heard that you are a big fan of Nightwish. What other Finnish bands do you listen to?
  M-P Eloranta, Germany

My music taste goes from one extreme to the other. I’m a big fan of Nightwish and Nickelback, but I’ve also been to Lady Gaga concerts twice- she’s really excellent live. But I’m more a fan of rock and heavier sounds, like Metallica.

What has been your career highlight? Winning a Formula 1 race or kicking butt in the Race of Champions?
  Francois Viau, Canada

 It was winning a Formula 1 race, for sure. Winning the Race of Champions was a pretty good moment, it was such a surprise, as was the F1 race win because I was actually settled in second place behind Massa, about 13 seconds behind him, and I thought the race win was over. In the Race of Champions I beat Michael Schumacher and was also quicker than Sébastien Loeb in the rally car. After the event I went back to the hotel, got into the lift and Jean Todt , who was boss of Ferrari at the time, got in at the same time- he looked at me and said, „What’s your name again?” I said, „Hi, I’m Heikki Kovalainen. Nice to meet you.”

You’ve raced for Renault, McLaren and now Caterham. Can you tell us about the cultural differences between the teams?
  Mark Evett, USA

They are all great teams, whatever people might say from the outside. They are all very friendly and very professional. McLaren are a huge team and Renault are slightly smaller – you can see the differences at the factory and the way the teams reacht to trouble. I mean McLaren can also design and build a new car if the first one isn’t so good; other teams can’t do that.

Are you the best golf player on the grid?
  Anders Holmberg, Sweden

I believe I am, yes. Rubens Barrichello played off a ten or 11, while I play a seven now. I played Rubens in Abu Dhabi at the end of 2010 and he beat me then, but now I would say that I’m a step ahead of him.  Although maybe he has more time to practice now that he’s out of F1. Also on the grid, Lewis plays off a handicap of about 15 or 16 and Fernando about 20. I’m not sure about anyone else. Our truckie at Caterham, Jon Daly, is very good – I play him quite often - and also John Massey over at Lotus. He’s great; he plays off six.

 What was the secret to outqualifying F1’s qualifying specialist Jarno Trulli?
  Chris Thompson, UK

I don’t think that there is any particular secret. The performance level is where it should be and if there is any one reason, I think it’s because I can set up my car better now and know what I need to do get it working. I’m also sharper at making decisions that will change the car and get the balance right.  But now, I have a new team-mate for this year. As with any other team-mate, I suspect we’ll work together to push the team forward, but also I’ll try to beat him as well. I expect him to be strong, so I’m not going to leave any margins and I want to try to stay ahead. It was a team decision and I’m just getting on with my job regardless.

There have been quite a few Finnish racing drivers over the years. Do you think that Finland deserves to have its own Formula 1 race, too?
  Linda Hardy, Australia

I don’t know whether it’s a realistic prospect or not. I don’t know if we deserve it more than anyone else. At the moment, we don’t have a track that is up to the required standard- we have a short summer, too.

Have you ever wanted to drive your father-in-law’s TVR Tuscan Challenge car?
  Matthew Jameson, UK

No, not really. They were great cars, but I’ve never really been into endurance or GT racing and I can’t see myself participating in something like Le Mans – I’d much rather go rallying I think. My father-in-law, Steve Hyde, probably knows how to drive those cars much better than I do – but head-to-head, over one lap, I’d like to think that I could beat him.

source: F1 Racing Magazine

01 April 2012, by Petra