HRT hindered by traffic during Indian Grand Prix qualifying

HRT were unable to extract the most out of their cars during qualifying for the Indian Grand Prix, after both Pedro de la Rosa and local hero Narain Karthikeyan were hindered by traffic throughout the closing stages of Q1. However, both drivers are extremely satisfied and will start tomorrow’s race from 22nd and 23rd respectively.

After improving greatly during the third and final practice session prior to qualifying, HRT were confident of a competitive performance with improvements in the balance and handling of their F112 machine. Although Pedro de la Rosa was able to set a decent first timed lap during qualifying, Narain Karthikeyan made a slight error on his opening lap and was hindered thereafter by traffic. Pedro de la Rosa was also at a disadvantage due to traffic, but was able to out-qualify his team-mate.

"Although we didn’t find the lap we were hoping for, we did complete a very good qualifying session.” Enthused Pedro de la Rosa, “With the first set of tyres the car performed very well and I was able to complete three clean laps. However, with the second set and with more rubber on the track when times could be improved significantly, I encountered a lot of traffic and I was unable to complete a clean lap. The car was better today than yesterday and we could’ve been even quicker but with the traffic it was impossible.”

Tomorrow’s 60-lap Indian Grand Prix will be Narain Karthikeyan’s second in front of his home fans, and despite being out-qualified by team-mate de la Rosa will not be starting the race plum last. Due to Charles Pic’s lack of knowledge around the Buddh International Circuit, Karthikeyan will start 23rd alongside the Frenchman on the back row of the grid.

"Overall I’m happy with the performance we showed in the qualifying session.” Explained Narain Karthikeyan, “On my second run I made a mistake on lap 10 which cost me a couple of tenths but the large amount of cars on the track was the main problem as we didn’t find a gap to go as quick as we would have liked. Despite this I’m happy because we finished ahead of one of the Marussias, my time was almost identical to Pedro’s and we’ve got good pace so we can be satisfied.”

HRT have enjoyed a recent improvement in form, despite still remaining towards the back of the pack. With Narain Karthikeyan’s future as a HRT driver under speculation for next season, the Indian driver will be aiming for a positive race as he strives to retain his seat alongside Pedro de la Rosa. The Spaniard, on the other hand, is expected to remain at HRT next season and has unquestionably been the number one driver at the team this season.

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