Team reaction after day one in Barcelona (part 2)

Sauber Ferrari

After the second free practice session for the Spanish Grand Prix both drivers reported progress and an improvement in the car. While Kamui Kobayashi was busy at the wheel in both 90-minutes sessions and completed a total of 55 laps, Pedro de la Rosa had to catch up in the afternoon. Due to a gearbox issue the Spaniard was left without a lap time in the morning.

Pedro de la Rosa: “I had a good second session today. The mechanics did a great job and we recovered from the gear box problem we had this morning. In the afternoon we went through our programme. It was only one session but still enough to confirm the wind tunnel results. We took a step forward with the new aero package and the F-Duct. It is all going in the right direction now.”

Kamui Kobayashi: “Overall I’m quite happy. We had no troubles with my car today and I could see it improving over the course of the day. We have definitely found a new way to work over the last three weeks. Obviously we have to work on the set-up, but there is no big issue, nothing we can’t solve.”

James Key, Technical Director: “We came here with several additions to the car which we were going to test today. Therefore we went out early in the session. Unfortunately Pedro suffered a problem with the gearbox, which is under investigation. It’s not clear whether it’s a hardware problem or one of the control systems. It meant he spun and had to stop his session after just a few laps. Kamui carried on and went through the programme very well. We had several new parts on the car which we wanted to test. The F-Duct system has taken a very good step forward, so we are pleased with the work we have done there. The aero components, which were new on the car, didn’t give us any surprises so we are happy with the work there as well. We found some useful directions for the set-up which added a lot to our database for understanding the car and the tyres. In the afternoon both drivers carried out similar programmes. Pedro obviously needed to get the laps in, so getting a feel for the car. I think the comments from both drivers are positive concerning the changes we made to the car, which are both set-up and aerodynamic updates. So we can be happy we made the step which we expected. It looks like the pace is reasonable, certainly on the long runs.”

Toro Rosso Ferrari

Sebastien Buemi: “We ran trouble-free all day, with no issues on the car, which meant I was able to complete a lot of laps which is a positive start to the weekend. However, I am not completely happy in terms of performance, as we seem to be a bit further back than where we were at the last race in China. We need to understand why, but on the plus side, we now have plenty of data to study from today’s runs in both high and lower fuel configuration. The tyre comparison seemed straightforward with the Option being faster of course, although the situation was not quite so clear over the long run.”
First Practice Session - Best lap 1.22.588, pos. 11th, 24 laps
Second Practice Session - Best lap 1.22.184, pos. 14th, 37 laps

Jaime Alguersuari: “The day went quite well, but there is more potential to come from the car, which we will be trying to get out of it tomorrow. I am happy with the work done so far, as we tested a lot of things, including a good race simulation and we know where we can improve. Both tyres worked well with not much sign of degradation, but we will have to see how they go tomorrow as, at this track, things can change from one day to the next. In lower fuel configuration we were lacking a bit of speed, but I think we can make a step forward tomorrow. It was enjoyable to finally be at a track that I know well, which meant I was able to push hard right from the start of practice. At the moment, we have not identified the cause of the problem that stopped me on track a couple of minutes before the end of the session.”

Williams Cosworth

Sam Michael, Technical Director: Today we evaluated some new aero parts on Rubens’ car and some mechanical parts on both cars. All ran without issue and we will have some more new parts arriving tonight to test tomorrow morning. Unfortunately, Nico went off at Turn 9 this afternoon and we were unable to run his car for the remainder of the session. He’s ok and the car suffered minimal damage.

Rubens Barrichello: We completed our Friday programme successfully spending the two sessions evaluating the items the team have brought here. Because of the way we run on Fridays, we don’t look competitive, but I feel that we might be a little bit stronger here. I will keep my feet on the ground though. The goal is to get through to Q3 tomorrow.

Nico Hulkenberg: This morning’s session was fine and the car felt pretty good. We made some modifications for the second session but my accident halfway through meant we didn’t get much running in. I ran wide in the corner and made too much contact with the kerb causing the car to bottom out. It’s a shame because it obviously cost us a lot of
important practice time. I’m still positive about the weekend though and I’m looking forward to tomorrow.

Lotus Cosworth

Back in Europe at the Spanish Grand Prix and the first action on track saw Lotus Racing complete 85 laps in total, and finish the day closer to the midfield than in the first four flyaway races, demonstrating for the first time that the team’s upgraded car has taken the hoped-for step forward in performance.

Jarno Trulli: “First day back in the car in Europe and I’m really happy with how we have progressed with the car. Obviously it’s still too early to assess it properly, but as soon as I got out on track I could feel that we had taken a major step forward. We have solved a number of the issues we had and we’re definitely in the right direction, so I’m really pleased for everyone in the team as they’ve put in a great effort to get us here.

“This afternoon we continued with the program and everything went really smoothly, on both the hard and the soft tyres. I must admit that I’ve been really pleased with the speed gain we’ve seen in the car and, again, that’s down to the work the team have put in with the car - all I need now is a little bit of luck, and a trouble free weekend!”

Heikki Kovalainen: “I’ve been really looking forward to being back in Europe and particularly here in Barcelona. It’s been great to see the grandstands already busy, and I’ve seen a load of Finnish flags out there. On track, this morning was a really good session and I’m very encouraged by the updates – they’re immediately working like we’d hoped. The car feels better to drive, the high-speed stability especially is better, and that’s what you get when the aerodynamics of the car improve.

“In the afternoon session it again went pretty well. There’s a couple of things we need to have a look at, but it felt good on both tyres and I think the upgrades have worked so we can be very happy about where we are.”

Mike Gascoyne: “Basically it was a good day’s work. The drivers have been very happy with the updates and we’ve been making adjustment to the improvements on the cars throughout the day to help us fine tune the updates. There’s a fair bit more time to come from the new package, and everyone in the team has worked very hard to get us to this point, so it’s great to hear such positive feedback from the drivers. Now we’re looking forward to building on this performance tomorrow and seeing where we are in qualifying.”

Virgin Racing Cosworth

Cool conditions prevailed in Barcelona today for the opening day of running at the Circuit de Catalunya as Formula 1 prepares for this weekend’s Spanish Grand Prix.

Despite starting out overcast at the Circuit de Catalunya, the sun gradually shone through in the first session. Both Timo and Lucas were able to work through their planned programmes to evaluate the latest upgrades, covering 23 and 24 laps respectively. They ended the session 20th and 21st. After the frenetic pace of the last two weeks, everybody in the team was pleased to have such a smooth-running session.

This afternoon, both cars again ran reliably. Lucas finished 21st on the timesheets, with Timo 24th, having notched up a further 30 laps and 21 laps respectively.

Timo Glock: “Not a perfect start to the weekend as we had a few problems in both free practice sessions. In general I think we just have to understand a bit more about the new car with the longer wheelbase, so there are still things we need to resolve for tomorrow. Hopefully we will get it right in time for Qualifying.”

Lucas di Grassi: “Basically it was a good Friday. We had no mechanical problems and no hydraulic issues with my car. It was a good first session and a good second session and we were able to evaluate a lot of the upgrades we have on the car. I’m very happy with the work that has been done and I’m looking forward to carrying on the progress tomorrow”

Nick Wirth, Technical Director: “I was very encouraged by the reliability today, particularly the work done with the fuel systems, which seems to have been very productive. On the performance side there is still some work to do although the signs are good. This was the first time out with the longer car and perhaps it does react slightly differently; it may take a few more sessions to get to grips with it. We also had a couple of issues, for example where we lost a piece of bodywork which affected downforce levels. It will just take a bit of time before we find the sweet-spot of the new chassis.”

HRT F1 Cosworth

Christian Klien took over his role of third and reserve driver. The Austrian had not been back in a F1 cockpit since January 2009 but drove the morning practice session in chassis F110-01 #20. The drivers completed respectively 26 laps for the Austrian in the first practice, for a best lap time of 1.27.250 while Bruno Senna in chassis F110-02 #21 covered 27 laps with a best time of 1.27.752.

In the second ninety minutes during the free practice in the afternoon, the track remained dry and temperatures rose to 16°C. The two cars and three drivers managed to work smoothly over the two sessions which is very positive, adding 101 laps to the 4.200 kilometers already driven since the start of the season at Bahrain by Karun Chandhok and Bruno Senna.

Dr. Colin Kolles: “First of all, we want to thank FIA and Mr. Ecclestone for their support to make it possible in that short period of time Christian Klien got his super license and consequently was allowed to drive this morning. We used the time off since China and despite delay getting our cars back we conducted some dyno-tests to increase the performance. We need to continue to improve reliability with the car and take advantage of the upgrades. Today, the HRT F1 Team continued its development program. None of our drivers needed to learn about the circuit, so they were able to start the work right away and made a further improvement barely six seconds off the leading pace. I am pleased to see the team push hard.”

Karun Chandhok: “I am quite pleased with the job I did this afternoon after not taking part in the first practice session. I managed to get up to speed quite quickly and ended up with a very competitive lap time. We had some issues with the brakes but I am sure we will be able to fix it in time for tomorrow morning’s session. It was really good to hear Christian’s comments and interesting to hear that they were similar to mine. All in all a good day as we managed to complete our planned program for the day and will now concentrate on getting the car prepared for qualifying tomorrow."

Bruno Senna: “The practice was okay and we fulfilled the testing program. There were no major problems and I am looking forward to improve car balance. We’ll see what we can achieve at the end of the weekend. The air temperature here was not very warm today. A pity because it was difficult to get tire temperatures right. The second session was a good practice again. We fulfilled our program without any problems. We are looking forward to the qualifying tomorrow.

Christian Klien: “It was a bit exciting today as I got my super license only ten minutes before the start of the first practice session. Fortunately, everything had been prepared perfectly and then I was allowed to jump into the car. I had 90 great minutes in the car. It was my first time in the car since January last year and felt right away perfect and a good experience to drive again in a race week-end. I was right away able to feel the limits of the car and posted constant times which will help the engineers of the team. Everything worked well and we had no technical problems and that’s also why I’m happy with the first session and to be here with HRT F1 Team. I was able to give them important feedback to improve in terms of set up and my work with top team will help them. It is never easy with a young team and a brand new car. My work is not over though and I will still debrief with the engineers.”