Nov.12 (GMM) BMW-Sauber driver Nick Heidfeld has backed team boss Mario Theissen's target of challenging for the 2009 world championship.
"It is not unrealistic," the 31-year-old German told sport1.de, "because so far the team has achieved all its goals in every season."BMW finished the 2008 season in a comfortable third place, but Heidfeld scored 15 fewer points than his Polish teammate, Robert Kubica, following a mid-season slump.Kubica, however, similarly suffered a remarkable slump right at the end of the season, resulting in his loss of third place in the drivers' classification to Kimi Raikkonen.Heidfeld, who has always had a tense relationship with the 23-year-old, said: "I hope that in 2009 I am still faster than Robert."In more than 150 grands prix, Heidfeld has scored 11 podiums but no wins.