AT&T Williams F1

Alex, you scored your first points for the team in Monaco, you must be pleased - or is nothing but a win good enough? Well, sure I am happy with the points but I am happier with the race itself. I made one little mistake which cost me two tenths but the rest was all pretty consistent. We drive 78 laps round Monaco, so that pleases me more than the two points. Naturally a win is what we all want but, being a realistic person, we have to aim for what is achievable at the time. I'm also very happy that the set-up we developed at the Paul Ricard test the week before seemed to work quite well for Monaco. That always gives me satisfaction as it is work that helps the whole team move forward. What does a good result achieved on the streets of Monaco, your home race, feel like? Monaco is always a special race for many reasons so, in a way, it is certainly very good to have a good race there, but mathematically it still scores you the same amount of points. Was the result the highlight of your weekend or did something else more exciting happen? Oh, I can't possibly tell you that! Going home in the evenings and having your family around you must make a nice change over a GP weekend? Yes, it was. When you come home and the kids scream "papa" then whatever happened during the day is secondary. Sleeping in my own bed is also super cool. But on the other side it is a bit strange that, when you are in your house, you are more or less living your normal life but as soon as you open the front door you're suddenly part of this big game that's going on. It's a bit of a surreal feeling. Your wife, Julia, was involved in Friday night's fashion show and raised a considerable amount for charity. Did you lend a hand? Julia had the idea of the fashion show many years ago and she organises the whole thing. Since last year the Amber Lounge has been the main sponsor of the event, which helps make it happen, but still the amount of work she does is in fact too much. I am very proud of her though and this year she raised about 350, 000 euros for charity. In Germany, the show was rated as one of the top three events on the Cote d'Azur this summer. You went to the Randstad and Battery party on Thursday night - do you enjoy those occasions? It was a party just for the team - it's so nice to see that a sponsor makes such an effort for our benefit. Thursday is still a school night for me as its right in the middle of the Grand Prix weekend so I couldn't go wild but the party started to get very amusing when I had to go and get some sleep. Everyone knows how busy a driver's agenda is on the GP weekends, actually throughout the season. We don’t get to spend as much time with our team as we would like to, so the party was a good opportunity for us all to chill out together and chat about stuff outside the racing world. AT&T Williams have consolidated fifth position in the Championship and look to be on an upward turn. Can we expect more to come? We expect more to come, and to score more points, but what we expect is one thing. For me, hands-on work is more important than expectation and everyone in the team is working hard and going in the same direction at the moment. The team has moved a long way forward since last season and, if we can keep the momentum, Williams will move further forward. In what timescale is hard to say, that depends not only on our own performance but also on the other teams’ progress. So far, I have worked with two other Championship winning teams and this year Williams have found a group of guys which work very well as a team. We need a bit of patience along with the motivation then we will see more results coming through, which is better than expectation. Finally, many congratulations on the news that Julia and yourself are expecting your third child. You have two boys, are you secretly hoping for a girl? We know that number three will be a boy. I told Julia she shouldn't worry about having a girl because, in a few years time, the boys will bring girls home anyway, if we haven't already made a girl before then for ourselves! She didn't find that very funny. I guess she is right! We both love kids so much so maybe one day I might find out how to make a girl of our own. Your Quickfire Round: Best on track action over the weekend? The last few laps of the race on the prime tyre before my pitstop. Craziest manoeuvre? My friend made a move on this hot chick - he launched a crazy move and totally missed the target. Best question you were asked? Did you notice Nico's new haircut? Coolest celebrity you met? The chick my friend so embarrassingly made a move on was apparently voted the world's sexiest TV presenter. I don't know her name, sorry, but she was almost as cool as my wife. Most expensive item you purchased over the weekend? Dinner for my friends on Sunday night. Jesus, when the bill came I aged a few years. Most annoying thing that happened to you? Well, that dinner bill. And that I lost my scooter key on Friday, so I had to walk around Monaco for the rest of the weekend.