Heidfeld not ruling out first win in 12th season

Nick Heidfeld is refusing to rule out the possibility of racing to his first grand prix victory in 2011.

After initially facing the prospect of a season on the sidelines, the formula one veteran is now at the wheel of the innovative R31 that originally was to be driven by injured regular Robert Kubica.

And given that 33-year-old Heidfeld has driven for grandee teams including Williams and BMW, amassing more than 170 races over more a decade, it is a significant piece of trivia that the quiet German is yet to win a single race.

"Naturally it would be beautiful," Heidfeld told Cologne publication Express when told that some pundits are predicting a Renault victory in 2011.

"It will happen if the car is good enough.

"The test phase was good for us, but we don’t known whether it has been enough to win races," he added.

Teams including Williams, Sauber and Toro Rosso have also had impressive winters, but Fernando Alonso does not think there will be a range of surprise winners in 2011.

"The fight will be between Red Bull, McLaren, Mercedes and Ferrari," he told Welt am Sonntag newspaper.

"We have new rules and tyres but I do not think we will have new winners, or a mix of teams that win or do big surprises on the grid.

"The races will have frequent pitstops and will probably be more spectacular, but at the end the names of the winners will be the same as in the previous year, as will the names of the teams in the midfield," the Spaniard predicted.