Chester: The E23 is pretty capable in low speed corners

Lotus F1 Team Technical Director Nick Chester looks to late nights in Singapore
with a reasonable degree of optimism.

What’s the outlook for the E23 Hybrid on the streets of Singapore?

It should be pretty good for us. We’ve shown the E23 to be pretty capable in low speed corners and over kerbs which is positive. We may not be quite as good as we have been at the medium downforce tracks but there’s scope for a good weekend.

What’s there to think about when one casts one’s mind to the Marina Bay circuit?

There are a lot of walls and not so much run-off meaning there’s plenty to think about. You’re dealing with very slow speed corners and a lot of kerbs which means many demands on the car. There are many braking points – even though there aren’t any high speed stops, the brakes really take a pummelling as they’re always being used and they get no time to cool down. Lots of braking means lots of accelerating afterwards, so you need good traction. There’s plenty to think about for the drivers and engineers alike.

Looking at the car set-up for Singapore, what are the key elements?

It is a high downforce track, so everybody will be running toward their maximum downforce set-up. Then it really is all about how you manage the mechanical set-up to get the best out of the car in terms of handling the kerbs. Ensuring a good level of grip in the low speed corners is crucial at Marina Bay.

How will the drivers compensate for the relative lack of track temperature in night running?

It will be down to the drivers to report back what the car is doing and let the engineers re-balance the car as the track temperature comes down. With previous years’ experience we have a fair idea of what sort of adjustments we need to make. The temperature does fall quite a bit, changing the grip and balance of the car somewhat. As the track temperature comes down the grip difference front to rear can change and make it tricky to get the car balanced following the earlier hotter practice sessions.

Are there any particular challenges that the team face working at night and in the hot temperatures?

The team doesn’t seem to find it particularly difficult. In fact, we are finding it reasonably easy, as we stay on European time! Before the very first race there in 2008 we had long discussions on how to prepare for it, as it contrasts so much with any other venue. But in the end it was okay. Singapore is a very popular race on the calendar and everyone in the team always enjoys coming back to this fantastic venue. It has a very vibrant and unique atmosphere which the whole paddock seems to like.

There’s been a lot of talk about the tyres recently and Pirelli has announced its latest race allocations – any thoughts on these?

The allocations for the next races are pretty much what we’ve seen before and expected. For Sochi we go a step softer which should be beneficial for all. It’s normal for a tyre supplier to err on the side of caution with a new circuit which is what happened last year for our first visit to Russia so a step softer for this year is not a big surprise. It’s a smooth surface so getting the energy into the tyres with the harder compounds can be a challenge.

What was the debrief like after the Italian job?

We were reasonably happy with the performance of the car, the drivers were confident with the balance and performance. Qualifying went reasonably well and although we could have got a little bit more out of it starting eighth and tenth on the grid wasn’t bad. It was a real shame to have both drivers taken out and neither accident was the fault of our drivers. We could have had a good run otherwise, on pace we should have been fighting for fifth.