Is it really seven months since the 2006 Formula 1 season started in Bahrain? Life in F1 is always hectic, and I often feel that time passes quicker in “the circus” than in the real world. On the other hand - the 2006 season has been so full of drama that we have definitely filled those seven months with a lot of adventure!

Anyway: The Brazilian Grand Prix at Interlagos on Sunday will be the last round of the 2006 World Championship. The dramatic Japanese Grand Prix in Suzuka saw Fernando Alonso take a lead of 10 points, and to win the World Championship, Michael Schumacher must win in Brazil with Alonso not scoring at all. Unlikely? Maybe - but more unlikely things have happened in F1, and I expect a dramatic and spectacular race in Interlagos.

In the fight for fifth place in the Constructors´ World Championship, only one point separates BMW and Panasonic Toyota Racing. The strong performances from Ralf Schumacher and Jarno Trulli in Japan suggest that the momentum is with Panasonic Toyota Racing, and it will be fascinating to see if they can “steal” fifth place from BMW - virtually on the finish line of the 2006 season!

Panasonic Toyota Racing were out testing in Jerez last week with Ricardo Zonta and Olivier Panis behind the wheel. As you probably know, both will leave the team soon, and while Olivier will be back for some winter testing, the Jerez test was Ricardo´s last time in a Panasonic Toyota. Because he has not been as busy as Ralf and Jarno during the Grand Prix weekends, Ricardo was usually the driver I went to if I had a question (or needed some insight for my diaries). Ricardo was always helpful and I will miss him. Have a nice time in the Renault team, Ricardo!

The Brazilian Grand Prix is a race most people in F1 love to hate - or should that be “hate to love”? The city of Sao Paulo is not very popular, but most people love the Autodromo Carlos Pace in Interlagos, some 25 kilometres from the city centre.

The city was founded in 1554 and is the capitol of the state of Sao Paulo. It is South America´s largest industrial city and the centre of finance and trade. The population is somewhere between 10 and 20 millions and extreme poverty and rising crime are the reasons why Sao Paulo regularly hits the headlines. If it sounds bad it is because it IS bad, but the Autodromo Carlos Pace makes up for a lot: It is one of the most spectacular in the F1 World Championship; very varied and challenging. It is also very bumpy, and chassis set-up therefore needs to ensure the car rides well and has high levels of grip in the corners - with as little drag as possible on the straights.

I will be back with my first “Brazilian diary” on Friday!

It was not the welcome I had expected in Sao Paulo. OK - the long wait to get through customs we are used to, but once I got out of the airport, it was raining hard. It rained for most of Thursday and today has been a little better but still with some rain. The Panasonic Toyota Racing drivers Jarno Trulli and Ralf Schumacher had a promising start to their weekend here in Brazil with fourth and seventh time respectively in the afternoon session.

Even if it was a “wet welcome” to (the usually) “sunny Brazil”, it is always a pleasure to enter the the Autodromo Jose Carlos Pace (the official name of the circuit usually known as “Interlagos”). It is one of the most spectacular tracks in the calendar and it hosted the very first Brazilian Grand Prix back in 1973. The circuit was actually built in the late 1930s, and the idea was to develop the area as a housing project. That plan was certainly successful, because today Sao Paulo surrounds the Autodromo Jose Carlos Pace! Interlagos means “between the lakes”, and there is still a lake inside the circuit, which adds to its unique character.

Amazingly, the three first Brazilian Grands Prix were won by local drivers with Emerson Fittipaldi taking the chequered flag in both 1973 and 74 and Jose Carlos Pace first across the line in 1975. A couple of years after his popular home win, Pace was killed in a light aircraft accident and the Interlagos circuit was later named after him.

In the 1970s, Interlagos was one of the longest circuits in F1 at almost eight kilometres. The 1978 Brazilian Grand Prix was held at Rio de Janeiro´s Jacarepagua circuit, which took over the race permanently from 1981 onwards. After 10 years in Rio, the Brazilian Grand Prix returned to its original home in Interlagos in 1990. The circuit had been modernised extensively, but even though its length had been reduced by almost 50%, it kept its original character.

And its bumps! The Interlagos circuit has always been infamous for its bumps - just listen to Panasonic Toyota Racing senior general manager chassis Pascal Vasselon: “The bumps are definitely one of the foremost characteristics when you think about Sao Paulo. They have made many attempts to eliminate them but it never seems to work!”

“I think it has to do with the stability of the ground and the fact that part of it used to be a lake. They have resurfaced the track many times but still you get the bumps. They are a permanent feature of the track and you tend to hear a lot about them from the drivers on the first day, but then the problem seems to go away,” Pascal goes on.

And why do the drivers stop complaining after the first practice day?

“First, they just get used to it,” Pascal says. “The second explanation is that the bumps are especially bad when the grip is low, so that when the grip increases, bumps upset the car balance less. So you have to be careful not to over-react on the first day!”

How well Pascal and the rest of the Panasonic Toyota Racing team have reacted to the infamous “Interlagos bumps” will be revealed in qualifying tomorrow!

Qualifying for the Brazilian Grand Prix in Sao Paulo saw Felipe Massa take pole position with Kimi Raikkonen second. Jarno Trulli and Ralf Schumacher were third and seventh respectively; making this one of Panasonic Toyota Racing´s strongest qualifying performances of 2006.

Everyday during a Grand Prix weekend, Panasonic Toyota Racing invite the media to their hospitality area (the “motor-home” when we are in Europe) to talk to Ralf Schumacher and Jarno Trulli.

These session are usually split up in three parts: 10 minutes for TV, 10 minutes for international media and 10 minutes for German (Ralf) or Italian (Jarno) journalists.

If something special has happened on the track, these mini press conferences are very busy. But at other times they are more relaxed and the drivers talk about a lot of things - usually not connected to the day´s events.

On Thursday Ralf´s session was very informal. The 2006 is almost over, but fifth place in the Constructors World Championship is still up for grabs - before the Brazilian Grand Prix tomorrow, Panasonic Toyota is only one point behind BMW.

“It would be nice to take fifth place from BMW here and it is certainly our goal. But I am not going to lose any sleep over it!” Ralf said.

He also talked about the Drivers´ World Championship, where his brother Michael is 10 points behind Fernando Alonso.

“It will be difficult for Michael! I am sure he has the speed to win the race here, but the championship still depends on other things as well. It is always difficult to win a championship if you have to depend on the result of other drivers,” Ralf said.

As you probably know, the Brazilian Grand Prix will be the last race of Michael Schumacher´s long and successful career. With Michael gone, there has been fear that interest in F1 in Germany would decrease significantly. What does Ralf think?

“I think it will depend on the results: If I am close to the front - or Nick Heidfeld in the BMW is - interest in F1 in Germany will remain at a high level. But it is also up to the German media - they can help making sure interest will stay!”

Ralf also talked about the final part of the 2006 season. “We have been quite strong for the second half of the season. OK - the Italian Grand Prix at Monza was not so good, but everywhere else we have been competitive. But we have also been unlucky - the rain in China did not exactly help us, for instance.”

And finally - the “off-season” which starts after the race tomorrow:

“Immediately after the race I hurry to the airport because I have a flight back to Europe at 18.35! The reason for this quick exit is my son´s birthday - he will be five on Monday and I want to celebrate with him. After that we will go on holiday - somewhere in the sun. I will be back in the Panasonic Toyota on November 29 for testing in Jerez but before that I will go to Tokyo for a PR event. But I don´t think I will be too jet-lagged after the trip: I will arrive in Japan in the morning and fly back again in the evening. I hope my short will be too short for jet-lag!”

But before the “off-season” we have the Brazilian Grand Prix tomorrow!

The 2006 Formula One season is over. Felipe Massa won the Brazilian Grand Prix here in Interlagos and Fernando Alonso clinched the championship while Renault won the constructors´ title. Ralf Schumacher and Jarno Trulli both retired, and Panasonic Toyota Racing finished sixth in the Constructors´ Championship.

For me, 2006 has been one of the better seasons in F1 history. We had a season-long duel for the championship and several of the races were close and exciting. It has also been a good year for Panasonic Toyota Racing; now firmly established as a top-six team. The highlight was probably the Australian Grand Prix in Melbourne when Ralf was on the podium with third place but both he and Jarno scored points on several occasions.

But what about the non-racing highlights? Following the Panasonic Toyota Racing round the world for seven months has been both interesting and rewarding, and in this final diary of the season, I will tell you about a few of my personal highlights with the team.

The first came even before the season started. At one of the preseason Barcelona tests, the Panasonic Toyota Racing PR department kindly arranged for me to interview team doctor Ricardo Ceccarelli. Just by looking at the F1 drivers you can tell that they are very fit, but “The Dottore” gave me a fascinating insight into just how hard the drivers have to work behind the steering wheel. Interesting!

Another highlight came on the Monday after the Spanish Grand Prix, when I was invited to join Jarno on a day with New Zealand´s America´s Cup team in Valencia. It was great to see how a top team from a totally different sport work - even though I was more than a little sea sick!

A couple of weeks later I again met up with “The Dottore”; this time in the mountains behind Monaco. I joined him and Jarno on a trekking tour, and - having my pulse examined by the good doctor - it turned out my fitness level was better than expected.

A few weeks after that another sporting event saw me and Jarno together again; this time after a mini motocross-even for the media at Silverstone. I still don´t know quite how, but our “Danish Dynamite Team” won the event, and Jarno handed over the prizes on the podium.

There have been many, many other highlights during 2006 and I could go on forever, but I have to end now: There are several “good-bye parties” in Sao Paulo tonight, and I plan to go to a few of them. So let me end with my latest highlight of 2006: The F1 paddock´s own newspaper, “The Red Bulletin” has been running a quiz all season with some incredibly tricky questions. The winner was announced here in Sao Paulo - and it is your very own diary editor! The prize: A fabulous trip around the world; this time on holiday and not following F1.

Expect some of the upcoming off-season diaries to come from some very exotic locations!