De la Rosa is returning to racing this season after seven years as McLaren’s test and reserve driver.

The Spaniard last completed a full season with the Jaguar team back in 2002.

With current regulations limiting testing during the year, de la Rosa admits there was no point in being a test driver anymore, despite a solid job at McLaren.

“It was very clear for me from the beginning that I had to go back to racing, otherwise I would never go back racing, and especially with all the regulation changes,” de la Rosa told reporters during the launch of the new BMW Sauber car.

“The fact that I was being a test driver who didn’t drive the car very much during the year was very tough mentally for me, because I was not doing what I was born to. It was clear that I had to go back to racing. That was easy.

“After that, I have always been very honest with McLaren and McLaren has been very honest with me. I always kept them informed of what was the situation and that this could happen. That’s life. I’m very grateful for what they have done for me and the reality is that I’m a more complete driver now and that’s thanks to them.

“But we had to go back racing, we had to. With the current regulations there is no point in being a test driver anymore.”

The 38-year-old, who last raced in Formula 1 in 2006, admitted he is very excited about being able to compete again.

“For me it’s obviously, I would say, my third comeback,” he added. “First was when I started, second was with McLaren and now I’m back, so I’m extremely, extremely excited about this opportunity, not just because it’s a comeback, but also because it’s with a great team.

“I think it comes to me at a stage of my career where I’m mature enough to appreciate it and to exploit it. Because it is clear to me that if I have managed to get this race drive is because of the experience I have managed to accumulate with McLaren, so I’m very grateful to them that this has been possible. And apart from that I only promise work, motivation and that’s it.”

And de la Rosa conceded it was hard to know what to expect from his new team this year, and reckons the picture will only be clear in the first race.

“You never know how quick the car is or not until you make it to Q1 in Bahrain. That’s a typical answer but it’s the reality. What I can detect as a driver is where are the biggest issues of the car or what the car needs to go faster. After that, it’s just up to what the competitors’ level is. You have to just against your competitors how good or bad you are.”

Source: Autosport.com

The team has reduced its staff level from around 400 to 260 over the winter, and revealed at the launch that its chassis budget was 40 per cent of what BMW had spent last year before its pull-out led to the squad reverting to Sauber ownership.

Sauber acknowledged that a greater budget would have been preferable, but said time had been against his team given that its place in the 2010 entry was not confirmed until late last year.

“I hope we will see more [sponsors] – I’m sure we will see more when we start racing, or maybe when we start the European season,” he said.

“We had not a lot of time to look for sponsors. We started close to Christmas. It was a very difficult time to find sponsors, especially big sponsors.”

He emphasised that the budget for 2010 was already in place.

“The season is financially secure, but of course we have to look very hard for new sponsors – not only for 2010 but especially for 2011 and on,” Sauber said.

Technical director Willy Rampf added that he did not expect to have to compromise development too much because of the budget situation.

“We are restricted in budget, but we will have an update for Bahrain,” he said.

Sauber is optimistic that his team can still emulate BMW’s late-2009 performance with its current level of finance.

“We finished the season in sixth position last year and we’ve reduced the budget a lot now,” he said.

“We’ve reduced the staff to about 260 and the goal is to stay on a similar level to last year. It’s necessary to be efficient.”

But he added that the team was likely to be well placed as the resource restriction agreement kicked in over the coming seasons, as this would force its rivals to cut back as well.

“Yes, more or less,” Sauber replied when asked if his resources were around the size that future rules will stipulate. “We are on a level like we have to be in the future.”

Source: Autosport.com

Q&A with Petrov – http://www.autosport.com/news/report.php/id/81152
Q&A with Kubica – http://www.autosport.com/news/report.php/id/81153

Although BMW quit Formula 1 at the end of the 2009 season, the Hinwil-based squad has retained the BMW Sauber moniker so far.

Sauber said during the launch of the team’s new car at Valencia that there were no plans to change the name yet because of television money and Concorde Agreement-related issues.

“It is not planned before the start of the season,” he said. “We entered the 2010 season as BMW Sauber and this is the name.”

When asked if Ferrari, who will supply engines to the team this year, was unhappy at the BMW name, he said: “No. It is okay for most.”

Source: Autosport.com

http://www.autosport.com/news/report.php/id/81144
http://www.f1fanatic.co.uk/2010/01/31/bmw-sauber-c29-launched-pictures/
http://www.f1fanatic.co.uk/2010/01/31/2010-bmw-sauber-c29-and-2009-bmw-f1-09-compared-pictures/
http://www.formula1.com/news/headlines/2010/1/10380.html