Heidfeld remains cautious for 2008…

Nick Heidfeld has no illusions about the difficulties of catching up with the top two teams in the 2008 championship.

The BMW Sauber team, of which Heidfeld is a part, was the surprise of the 2007 season. Indeed, it was the third strongest team right from the beginning of the year.

The German team finished in second place in the standings, thanks to the disqualification of the McLaren team from the constructors’ championship.

BMW has already set its goals: Their first victory in 2008 before aiming for the championship in 2009.

However, Heidfeld believes that the battle with Ferrari and McLaren-Mercedes next season will not be easy at all.

« Looking ahead to the next season, we must admit that the gap between our team on one side and the Ferrari-McLaren duo on the other is quite large, » said Heidfeld on his team’s website.

« We have always considered our position to be one step behind these two teams while staying ahead of the others. »

« It was fantastic in 2007, but making up half a second in 2008 will not be a walk in the park! » stated the German driver.

« On the other hand, we are in a mindset that allows us to achieve the goals we have set for ourselves. »

Heidfeld insists that he did not expect such a good 2007 season and was surprised by BMW’s resources which allowed him to beat Renault.

« I never believed for a moment that this success was possible. I was expecting Renault to be more competitive. After all, they had won the previous two world championships. I thought we could finish fourth, » he added.

« Consequently, it was a real surprise to beat them and to be much stronger than them in every race. »