Sauber duo rue missed opportunities in first half of 2012

Sergio Perez and Kamui Kobayashi have enjoyed a highly competitive start to the 2012 season, with Perez already stepping onto the podium twice in Malaysia and Canada and Kobayashi coming ever so close to his first ever podium finish in Germany with 4th. However, the Sauber duo are ruing missed opportunities in what was a highly competitive opening eleven races of the season.

Although Sergio Perez and Kamui Kobayashi currently sit 9th and 10th in the Drivers’ Championship respectively, the duo are realistic in the fact that the 2012 season has not been all glory so far. The Hinwil-based outfit have lately been suffering greatly when it comes to qualifying, with Sergio Perez failing to progress through to the top ten shootout since the Spanish Grand Prix back in May.

This has greatly plagued Sergio Perez, who came agonizingly close to his maiden Grand Prix victory at the Malaysian Grand Prix at the beginning of the season. Since then, the Mexican driver has only been able to finish on the podium one other time, at the Canadian Grand Prix when the likes of Fernando Alonso and Sebastian Vettel began to suffer greatly from tyre wear.

“I had some great moments in the first half of the season.” Explained Sergio Perez, “There were the two podiums in Malaysia and Montreal, which, of course, made me very happy. Nevertheless it was also a period with ups and downs because we didn’t make the most of every situation.”

Sergio Perez’s team-mate, Kamui Kobayashi, has yet to finish on the podium in 2012. However, the Japanese driver has shown exceedingly quick pace throughout the first half of the season, and has also stated that missed opportunities has been the only set-back of the season so far.

“Overall we have done a good job and achieved great things.” Said Kamui Kobayashi, “The team built a very good car with an excellent performance. Since the beginning of the season we have been competitive on most tracks, and this means we can be confident for the remainder of the season. The downside so far has been we definitely missed some opportunities for some more great results. Too often we didn’t manage the weekend perfectly. If we can improve there, a lot will be possible.”

It’s visible that Sauber have designed a car which is capable of great things this season, and which is consistently quick on the majority of the circuits on the calendar. Both Sergio Perez and Kamui Kobayashi know how to win races, having done so on numerous occasions in GP2 and GP2 Asia. If Sauber can qualify both cars high on the grid, its highly conceivable that further podiums are there for the taking in this highly competitive and unique 2012 season.

Follow me on Twitter - @AndyYoungF1