I decided to create this topic, because everytime I found something about Heikki on

Only registered users can see links on this forum! Register or Login on forum!

I created a new topic. This won't do, after a few days there would be so many topics , so...Now, I found something about preparation for winter training camp in Finland.

"The end of the season is a very important time for me; it’s the best time of the year to properly rest and recharge before everything begins again. That’s why it’s so important for your fitness. It’s vital to start the year with very good core fitness because it’s difficult to train as much as you’d like during the season. That means the basic fitness level you reach over the winter is what keeps you going for much of the year.
"That’s why our training camp in Seinajoki is so important: it’s just for the team and there are no distractions. It’s a hard schedule; up early, and training all day - often outside in the cold - but it’s always fun. Of course, it helps that it’s in my home country of Finland, which makes it especially relaxing and rewarding for me.
"For me, the 2009 season started as soon as I got home from Brazil. I spent two days at the McLaren Technology Centre having my seat-fitting in the 2009 chassis - which already looks like a very promising car for next year, I went to Stars & Cars in Stuttgart, then I went on a short holiday.
"After the training camp, I’m really looking forward to getting back in the car after a month out of the cockpit. I’m testing in Jerez and Portimao later this month and then preparing over Christmas for my first taste of the MP4-24.
"For me, 2009 can’t start soon enough and I’m really looking forward to beginning I’m really looking to getting back in the car and understanding how the new regulations will affect the drivers. I can’t wait to get started."

I've posted this before! oh well

Thanks anyways!

It was under 'Team McLaren-Mercedes'

Ok, I found this on mclaren.com

Only registered users can see links on this forum! Register or Login on forum!

58 questions in 10 minutes. It's hard to copy it, because there are colours, which don't copy, so read it on McLaren page and then put a commentary here. I'd like to know, what do you think P.S.: I apologize, if somebody has already put it somewhere else

I read it already. It's very funny It think Lewis and Heikki have a lot of fun together

They're getting into it now Beach or mountain?
Lewis:"Beach"
Hekki: "Mountain"
Lewis laughs "He's Finnish, he likes the cold!"
"Not all mountains are cold"
"Yeah, okay, whatever…"



I'm definitely more like Heikki than Lewis

Thanks for posting, SilverArrow

Hey, you might already read that, because it first appeared at formula1.com, but I myself not, so here is some article with Heikki, about upcoming season
Heikki, Lewis got his share of fame last season - will 09 be your year?
“It’s too early to say but, yes, I hope so. As a Formula 1 driver you have to go into every season believing you can be world champion – otherwise there’s no point being here. And I totally believe I go into the new season with every chance of fighting for the world championship. I’ve learned so much from last year, I think I’ve developed as both a person and as a driver and I know that if the car is good then I’ll have every chance of fighting for wins. And if that happens, I hope it will lead me towards fighting for the title.”

There is the impression that you didn’t deliver to your full potential in 2008. How are you going to change that this year?
“I think I went into 2008 in a very strong frame of mind, and feeling very positive – but looking back now, maybe it took longer than I anticipated to learn about the team and how to use the people in the team to help me. I also put a little bit too much pressure on myself when things didn’t quite go my way – and I’ve learned not to worry too much about that now. I want to enjoy myself when I go racing. I definitely feel like I’ve really learned more about this team and how we can work together to get better results – it’s something that Lewis already knew very well and I can see how that helped him last year. Now I feel much better prepared than I did last year.”

You had quite a bit of a taste of the MP4-24. What is your impression? Compared to last year’s car is it more coming your way?
“For me, it’s still too early to say how the car will behave when we are in Melbourne – firstly, because we are still bringing new parts to the car and have not yet run the car you will see in Australia. Secondly, I seem to spend most of my time driving the new car in the wet so I can’t give you a really accurate clue about how it will behave in the warmth of Australia!”

Experienced race drivers are said to be able to feel the potential of a new car the moment they take it out of the pits the first time. What would you say are the up-sides of the MP4-24 - and where do you see deficits that you will concentrate on at the remaining tests before Melbourne?
“Well, unfortunately my first opportunity to take MP4-24 out of the pits took a long time to happen because of the wet weather in Portimao! I had to wait a little while before I first drove it, at Jerez in February. We have a good package – but we don’t know how good it is compared to the others – and we won’t know until Melbourne. We are bringing new parts to the car all the time and are working hard in every area – KERS, tyres, aero, engine; there’s no single area that we are focusing on because every area is important.”

The weather during the winter test period was far from being ideal for any team and their programs - whether they tested in Jerez, Algarve, Mugello or Bahrain. Will that have consequences in the light of the season test ban? How is the situation at McLaren?
“Naturally, every team would like to do more testing ahead of the new season. But we understand the reasons for cutting back on testing, and we support those moves. The bad weather is not what you wish for when you are a driver, but it has been the same for everybody – it has been raining a lot in Europe and there were big sandstorms in Bahrain. It might actually make the racing more unpredictable and exciting, particularly during the early races, because the teams won’t have finished their pre-season programmes. That should be good for the fans, I think.”

KERS is still a dark horse. How was your encounter with this new technology? Will you use it in the first race – and when will that decision be made?
“We have always planned to run KERS throughout the season and we are working hard to have the system ready for Melbourne. In fact, the KERS programme has been going very well over the winter – we have put a lot of miles on the unit and have not had too many problems – so I hope we race it sooner rather than later. From a driver’s point of view, it’s more fun to have a boost switch in your cockpit – and I hope it makes the races more exciting.”

Drivers where working very hard on themselves over the winter: some were sliming down, others built up muscles - what did you do? Obviously you had no reason for a KERS diet...
“I’ve really enjoyed training over the winter. I went back to Finland and did a lot of cross-country skiing to build up my core fitness levels. Since then, I’ve been working with my trainer to get ready for the new season. I feel fitter and better prepared now than I did a year ago and I’m convinced that will have a real positive effect on the race results too.”

Risking a look into the crystal ball: What do you see for the first 2 races? And where do you see yourself?
“Honestly, who knows? Everybody at Vodafone McLaren Mercedes has been working so hard over the winter and we feel we have a strong package – but who knows how much everyone else has done over the winter? That’s what makes Formula 1 so fascinating and unpredictable. And that’s also why I can’t wait to get to Melbourne to find out!”

Unfortunately from the last tests and from the words of Norbert Haug, it seems McLaren is not competitive this year. And with the ban of in-season testing it will be difficult to recover... and again during this winter Heikki couldn't test properly as he only had 2 days with no rain.

I hope to see some wet races

i hope to see some wet races as well...but not in melbourne....otherwise i'll get soaked