BMW Motorsport director Mario Theissen says the Munich manufacturer is more than happy with its second year back in Formula One and believes Williams BMW could dominate at Suzuka.
BMW Motorsport director Mario Theissen says that the 2001 season has been better than he expected, with the Williams team scoring four wins – and the German is confident the team can make it five at the Japanese Grand Prix this weekend.
The Williams-BMW squad has become a consistent frontrunner this year, taking the fight to Ferrari and McLaren. Juan-Pablo Montoya has taken pole position in three of the last five races, and recently won the Italian Grand Prix. His team-mate, Ralf Schumacher, won the San Marino, Canadian and German Grands Prix.
The Grove-based outfit is expected to be a championship challenger next year, but Theissen says even he did not expect the team to be so successful this year.
"We are already looking back at a very successful season," said Theissen. "Four wins, four pole positions and seven fastest race laps is much more than we could have expected for only the second year of our Formula 1 project."
The Williams duo of Montoya and Ralf Schumacher has enjoyed a power advantage for much of the year due to the BMW V10, and Theissen believes the power advantage could be crucial in Japan.
"Now we hope for a good race result to round off the season. In terms of engine power we are well prepared for the Suzuka circuit," he added.