Luca Badoer: "Spa, the most beautiful track in the world"

“This is the most beautiful track in the world and I think all the riders can agree with me”: Luca Badoer's statement clearly summarizes his sense of expectation for this weekend.

In the Media Center of the Scuderia Ferrari Marlboro, journalists were curious to see how the Italian driver had dealt with some negative comments about his race in Valencia. “I didn't read the newspapers, but I knew there would be criticism after the first race,” he admitted. “I was aware of it because the Ferrari Press Office kept me informed. But, as I said, in the Valencia race, I did everything and more compared to what was our program. Now the program has moved forward, this weekend, and I am absolutely calm."

Since the last race, as part of the preparation for this Belgian Grand Prix, Badoer and his engineers have been studying the racing data from last Sunday's race in Spain and Luca believes the results are encouraging. “Looking at the Spanish Grand Prix I can tell myself that I made a good start, reaching 14th position compared to where I started last, and my lap times improved. In the end, the difference between my and Kimi's lap times was eight tenths of a second, an improvement compared to previous figures over the weekend. And then, if we consider my ideal time (given by the best time obtained for a lap), the difference between me and Kimi was only two and a half tenths. The race course helped me improve and gain more confidence in the car. It was important because I wanted to do all the laps, just to learn. in the end it wasn't such a bad weekend.

“Valencia was still difficult for me, because it combined the three worst things: for me it was a new track, it was a street circuit with high walls just a few centimeters from me, and I hadn't driven the car for at least ten months – and not even competed for ten years now. Precisely for these reasons I didn't fully understand all the criticisms that rained down on me. As for SPA, I know it, it's a circuit that I really like, I had obtained excellent results when I raced in the grand prix on this track and therefore I should obtain better results than in Valencia. And now I know the car – which should be an advantage.