HRT prepared for a tough Hungarian Grand Prix

HRT are prepared for what they believe will be a tough 70-lap Hungarian Grand Prix tomorrow afternoon, as the Spanish outfit line-up 23rd and 24th on the back row of the grid. After overcoming heating issues on the car, the HRT duo of Pedro de la Rosa and Narain Karthikeyan are satisfied with how qualifying went for the the team.

Pedro de la Rosa naturally has fond memories of racing around the Hungaroring, as the Spaniard secured his best F1 finish to date during the 2006 race when he finished 2nd driving for McLaren. Since then, however, his career has undeniably been void of any such successes, but the 41-year-old remains positive despite starting from the last row of the grid in tomorrow’s race.

"I think it was a good qualifying session.” Explained Pedro de la Rosa, “I’m happy because, step by step, we’re improving. Today we managed to get down to 1’25 and we overcame the heating issues with the tyres. The Hungaroring is a circuit which I really like and it brings me good memories, but we have to be realistic and tomorrow’s race will be a tough one. We’ve got a good car, which is quite consistent with the tyres, and that’s the important thing.”

Narain Karthikeyan hasn’t raced around the Hungaroring since 2005, during the Indian driver’s maiden Formula 1 season with Jordan. Last year, Karthikeyan was replaced mid-season by Daniel Ricciardo, and therefore missed out on the opportunity to race around the Hungaroring. Once again, the 35-year-old was beaten during qualifying by his team-mate, and will start tomorrow’s race from plum last on the grid.

"Given the high temperatures today, the car was overheating a bit, so we had to make some slight cut-outs on the bodywork and that made us lose some points of downforce.” Said Narain Karthikeyan, “That cost us a couple of tenths. But we’ve made a big effort and I’ve got the satisfaction of having given everything I’ve got. There’s a lot of work to do ahead of tomorrow and it will be a tough race, but we’re prepared for the challenge.”

Although HRT have spent the majority of the 2012 season at the back of this intensely competitive pack, the Spanish outfit are undeniably one of the most consistent teams on the grid. Once again, they will be striving for yet another double finish once the checkered flag falls tomorrow afternoon.

Follow me on Twitter - @AndyYoungF1