𝘊𝘢𝘻𝘻𝘺𝘍1

Interviewer: After how his car behaved in the race, Mike says...

Mike: Ummm, well not very well actually. It started off quite well and in the second lap it started pouring oil out left hand side of the engine onto the exhaust pipe. I saw these puffs of white smoke going and I thought it won't last long now. We went on quite happily, slowed down in revs, slowed down a bit. Umm, I knew it had sort of run out of oil sooner than later so I was watching the oil pressure gage and that dropped down from around about six or seven and went down to two and a half so I thought time to go in so I came in for a quick stop, signalled I was coming in. They filled it up and off I went again and it was well. It went up to three instead of two haha!

Interviewer: You gained the maximum speed didn't you in one of the laps today.

Mike: Yes! I did, I was very suprised by that. I didn't think I'd do that.

Interviewer: That was before you noticed the oil trouble?

Mike: No, No, this happened right at the beginning, second lap of the race, but um, when I refilled with oil, they gave me a signal saying, Salvadori was ten seconds behind so I thought I'd better get my finger out and press on a bit. And uh, I think I must have done it then. I didn't mean to! I didn't think I had a home giving advantage.

Interviewer: Well congratulations Mike, and uh what is the next race?

Mike: German Grand Prix at the Nürburgring. A fortnight tomorrow.

Interviewer: Well the best of luck *something I can't make out*

Interviewer: We asked Peter Collins about it, and he explained that this is one of the team cars, complying with the new FIA regulations. There were other regulations more difficult to comply with.

Peter: We've come over here, and so has Maserati on the regulations that they sent to us. Which don't mention anything about using the spare wheel in the tyre change. They now issue an appendix to the regulations, which says that the first pit stop must include the use of the spare wheel. Well, now both ourselves and Maserati have different-sized wheels and tyres on the backs as opposed to the front. So, in other words, we can't put a front wheel tyre on the back. So, as far as we are concerned, if we come into the pits with a flat back tyre, we are not allowed to change it.

Interviewer: That's rather absurd.

Peter: Which is absurd, and not only that, you are now allowed to bring out an appendix to the regulations without the sign - well, these before - within 36 hours, I think it is, of the - closing of the entries-

Interviewer: That's an FIA regulation?

Peter: Yeah, that's an FIA regulation, an appendix 6 section c. And uh-

Interviewer: *Something about a lawyer, maybe joking Peter is like one*

Peter: And if you want to change these things, you have to get the signatures of all the competitors, and if one competitor doesn't agree to it, then they can't do it! And we are trying to do this now. We are all very mad about it.

Interviewer: When do you think it will be resolved?

Peter: Well, right now, with the noise by all *a person's name* from Maserati

Interviewer: Who is he making that noise with?

Peter: Everybody - well, all the people that matter, Chief Pittsburgh and Alec Coleman, I suppose, eventually, and Mr Talvoni, who was the lawyer from Ferrari; he is going after it as well. You see, from our point of view, um, if we go into the pits with a bent buckle smashed rear wheel, and we have to use the first wheel change as a spare wheel, we wouldn't be able to put it on, so we would just have to stop there. But the corvets and all the other entries from the, oh well, I won't state the country, have got the same size wheels on the front and the back.

Interviewer: *Something*

Interviewer: I have been hearing little talk that the course isn't as fast this year as the season last year, do you remember at all?

Peter: Yes, it doesn't seem to be as fast to me either. There are a lot of patches on it that have gotten much more slippery, one particular at the bottom end of the fast straight, first and second fast straight, one divides the two up.

Interviewer: How do you account for that?

Peter: Well there is a lot of water been allowed to lie on it, still does lie on it, and when you get water lying on concrete for any length of time, it becomes, it gets covered in sort of a greeny moss stuff which gets inground in the concrete and much slippery and also the tyre wear seems to have gone up a lot since last year um they resurfaced the course in one or two places and uh still a lot of bad bumps which have gotten worse I think, since last year, um I don't know whether it's because we are going faster or what it is but the course seems much bumpier than it was before. Also, um, well, I don't think they have the barrels and mark-bales in exactly the same position as they were before- one thing I like to say, I think, these 50-gallon oil drums, they got everywhere, they ought to be burnt in hell as far I am concerned. I think they are very, very dangerous things because if one car hits another one following, it's happened to me once, landed on me, 50-gallon oil drum, no light thing anyway. I think we could do well without those. Especially where if someone runs out of breaks and they have to go wide on the corner, then they are going into straw bales, and those 50-gallon oil drums is a very, very bad thing, I don't- it's one thing about the course that I think is very very bad indeed.

Interviewer: Could you tell us your age?

Peter: 24

Interviewer: How long have you been driving?

Peter: Since I was 17

Interviewer: What car did you start on?

Peter: Originally a Cooper 500, and uh and Allard and then onto an 1100 Cooper and then onto an Aston Martin HWM

Interviewer: How long have you been driving for Aston Martin?

Peter: This is my sixth year

Interviewer: Are you on a professional team besides Aston Martin this year? A Grand Prix team?

Peter: Yes, Ferrari

Interviewer: You are driving for Ferrari on the regular team. What competition are you looking forward to today here?

Peter: Well, I think it's all going to be pretty up from what I can see. The whole race—the speed of the race—will be governed by the tyre wear, and I think that the people who got the tyres that will last the longest and the breaks that will last the longest should stand a very good chance.

Interviewer: What do you think of the American course here today in comparison to European courses?

Peter: Well I think it is a great improvement on three years ago when I was here for the first time. It's uh it compares with certainly courses in England um that are held the same way on areograms circuits but really on the continent, the courses, in my opinion anyway, for my money, a little bit better *something* use the roads and uh they have natural hazards and not artificial ones which I think is a much better thing from racing standpoint.

Interviewer: Could you give us some performance figures on the Aston Martin, top speed and zero to sixty in...