Maldonado ready for step into the unknown

How have you been able to prepare for Sochi?

We’ve been preparing on the simulator, where the track looks very interesting. It’s a long lap with some unusual corners. From the simulator work we should know more or less what the racing lines will be and when we arrive on Thursday we will double check as many things as we can. It’s good. I’m happy to go there. I’m happy every time Formula 1 opens the door to new countries. I saw some of the Winter Olympics but I’ve never been to Russia before, so it will be my first time.

Would you say that grip levels and track evolution are the biggest unknowns?

Everything is new and especially in terms of the surface there is no way for us to know how the track will develop during the weekend. In the past we saw situations like in Austin where the track was super slippery at the beginning and then session after session we were making improvements of two or three seconds. It’s vital to stay on top of everything because parts of the set-up that were working well might hold you back when you go five or six seconds a lap quicker. You can’t take anything for granted and it will be important to keep an open mind throughout the weekend.

Have you ever been to Russia before?

For me it will be an all-new experience, and one I’m looking forward to a lot. I’ve met many Russians and I know it’s a very big country which has changed a lot over the past decades so it will be very interesting to experience it for myself.

The Japanese Grand Prix was a difficult weekend, what are your thoughts looking back on it?

Firstly, all our thoughts are with Jules, his team and his family. Even though we all know the danger of motorsport, no-one wants an accident like that to happen. We hope he makes a full recovery. For me, it was a solid weekend in the car. We showed some good potential on the Friday, but then we weren’t able to show that in qualifying. In the race, which was held under very difficult conditions, we were able to put in some good lap times, even when the grip levels were very poor. It’s a big challenge for a racing driver racing when the weather is like that.

What’s your aim for the final four races of the season?

We are keeping focused and we still want to get the very best results possible. Even though it’s been a tough year, there are still improvements being made to the E22, so there’s still potential to get more points before the season ends. We’re also as a team starting to focus on 2015 in terms of some of our evaluations at the tracks so we can get as early a start as possible in terms of information for next year’s car.

How frustrating has this year been for you?

We all want to get good results so of course this has not been the year that me or the team has wanted. But there have been and there are many positives. Seeing how the team has reacted to all the problems we have faced has shown me many strengths. We have a very clear development path for next season as we have learnt many lessons about this latest generation of car. We have four races left this year, so there’s still time for some improved results and more lessons to be learnt.