Montréal 2013 - GP Preview - Sauber Ferrari

After the start of the European season in Barcelona and Monte Carlo, the Sauber F1 Team travels to Montréal, where the Canadian Grand Prix will take place from 7th to 9th of June. The team has fond memories of Île Notre-Dame, as this was the place where former drivers Robert Kubica and Nick Heidfeld claimed a one-two in 2008. After closely missing scoring a point in Monaco, the Sauber F1 Team wants to claim a positive result in Canada.

Nico Hülkenberg: “The Circuit Gilles-Villeneuve is one of my favourites. It’s a challenging track with a mixture of a permanent racetrack and a street circuit. It has some tight sections that don’t allow for any mistakes. I like the whole layout and, in particular, the kerbs. The atmosphere on Île Notre-Dame is always great and the whole city of Montréal welcomes Formula One. It’s a very nice Grand Prix, and I’m looking forward to it.”

Esteban Gutiérrez: “So far I have driven once at the track on Île Notre-Dame, and that was in 2007 in Formula BMW. It went quite well with one podium finish and a fourth place. It’s a really nice circuit and I like it a lot. The track is slippery and tyre management will yet again be very important, which gives us an opportunity to put a good strategy together. Obviously overtaking will be easier than in Monaco, which can benefit us. It’s hard to judge how competitive we will be, as it will also depend on the weather. Hopefully with better conditions we can have a more consistent weekend, which will help us to progress and make the most of our potential.”

Tom McCullough, Head of Track Engineering: “The Montréal circuit is very narrow and has walls very close to the track. It typically produces one of the most exciting races of the season and a Safety Car is highly likely. The circuit is comprised of long straights and slow speed corners, which encourage overtaking, and also contribute to it being one of the hardest for the brakes. The circuit efficiency requires a lower drag level rear wing compared to Monaco, but you still need a strong car in low speed corners. This year the medium compound replaces the soft as the prime tyre, while the option remains as the super soft. Pirelli has also announced we will have a new rear construction to evaluate on Friday before its planned race introduction at Silverstone.”