09.03.2004 JEAN TODT 'ELATED BUT CAUTIOUS' AFTER FERRARI DOMINATE THE AUSTRALIAN GRAND PRIX

Ferrari team principal Jean Todt was elated if cautious after Michael Schumacher and Rubens Barrichello scored an emphatic one-two for Scuderia Ferrari Marlboro in the opening Grand Prix of the year in Melbourne, Australia.

He confirmed that after pre-season testing, he was expecting the latest Ferrari F2004 to be competitive in Australia, although he had been cautious regarding the performance of the team's Bridgestone tyres in comparison to their rivals.

'I must say that we were expecting to have a very good potential in Australia, because we knew the car had good potential in testing at Fiorano, Mugello, Imola. But we don't know what the others are doing. You can only be confident in the first race when everybody is together. Otherwise everybody is working very hard in his corner, and again, we should not be confident after one race.'

'We had more question marks about the tyres, the consistency of the tyres, but today we definitely had the best tyres. Bridgestone have been reacting in their usual way: no words, but facts. They have the Japanese approach which is sometimes closer to our approach than some others. They are very focused, very motivated and very willing to have success with Ferrari.'

But Todt refused to accept that the lower ambient temperatures on race day helped Ferrari's and Bridgestone's performance. 'We were quick from Friday morning (when it was warmer), quicker and more consistent than the others. But you have to take the lap time, temperature and it's what you will see.'

Asked if it was a relief to come to Melbourne and find that the team was so competitive, and would this translate into similar results in the championship to come, Todt remained cautious. 'I don't think we should make final conclusions, because we know this game very well. In two weeks time, we can be facing a very different situation but after this race, nothing must be taken for granted. But we must still be pleased about what has happened, and we must be looking forward to what will happen in the future.'

Nevertheless, he confirmed that the team would be competitive in two week's time in Malaysia, where conditions are expected to be a lot hotter. 'We will be strong in Malaysia. Whether we will be stronger, we will see, that's another thing, but there is no reason why we should not be strong in Malaysia.'

The speed trap figures showed that the four Ferrari engines (including the two Saubers who run Ferrari-built Petronas engines) took the top four places in terms of top speed, and Todt paid tribute to Ferrari's engine department. 'They've done a very good job, yes.'

Asked about the changes to the Formula One rules, and the new two lap qualifying on Saturday afternoon, Todt remained positive. 'I think we did more running than last year, because we have one more hour on Friday and we did not really save running time.'

'And the same on Saturday. The only real difference is the qualifying lap on Friday which is now on Saturday. Maybe it takes more time on Saturday, but the people who come to the circuit have more to watch, and maybe the people who are unhappy about the TV coverage could switch on the TV a bit later and watch only the second part of qualifying.'

Todt felt it was an improvement over last year, and didn't think there would be changes again. 'There's more to see. But we cannot change it every race. It's nothing unexpected. If we know that there will be a first qualifying lap to determine the starting order of the next one, and then the next one is going to determine the starting position, it's nothing unknown. Maybe you can decide that it was better in the past to have 12 laps in one hour, maybe, but in this case I have a nothing against going back to this situation.'

When Todt was asked if it upset him when critics suggested that another year of Ferrari domination, due to Ferrari doing a good job, would be bad for Formula One, he replied 'yes, yes. I don't smile a lot but it is one of the reasons for me to smile. As long as we get criticised because we do too good a job, let's hope that we will be criticised for a long time.'