Williams confident Singapore will suit FW34

The Williams duo of Bruno Senna and Pastor Maldonado are both confident that the tricky Marina Bay street circuit will suit their FW34 machine, mainly due to the high downforce of the track. With the aerodynamic characteristics similar to that of Barcelona, Maldonado in particular is confident he can finally score further World Championship points.

Since Pastor Maldonado’s superlative victory at the Spanish Grand Prix back in May, the Venezuelan driver has failed to score any further World Championship points. Instead, Maldonado has become embroiled in several on track misdemeanors, and has unquestionably visited the stewards more times than any other driver this season. At the Belgian Grand Prix, Maldonado incurred three penalties for blocking Hulkenberg during qualifying, jumping the start and then colliding with the Marussia of Timo Glock during the race.

However, with the aerodynamic settings on the car similar to that used at the Spanish Grand Prix, Pastor Maldonado is confident that he and team-mate Bruno Senna can enjoy a competitive race weekend. This will be Maldonado’s second Singapore Grand Prix, after finishing last year’s race 11th.

“The Singapore Grand Prix is unique because it takes place at night and you have to adapt to the temperature change and of course the time difference because we stay on European time all week.” Explained Pastor Maldonado, “The track requires high downforce which is good for us and it’s similar to Barcelona in terms of aerodynamics so this should be a track where we can show the potential of our car.”

Bruno Senna is also confident that the Marina Bay street circuit should suit his Renault-powered Williams FW34. This weekend will be the Brazilian’s third race under the lights at Singapore, and he is aiming to once again finish in the top ten. Since Maldonado’s victory, all the points scored by the Grove-based outfit have come from Bruno Senna.

“Singapore should suit our car because it’s a high downforce and load circuit and that’s where the car feels at home the most.” Said Bruno Senna, “Of course it’s hard to judge where we will be as others teams are improving all the time, but if we can score points in Monza then we should be looking to get further into the top ten in Singapore. I had a good performance there last year as well so that always gives you a boost before a race.”

With Toto Wolff stating that the Williams driving line-up is still wide open for 2013, both Bruno Senna and Pastor Maldonado will be unquestionably striving to show their worth within the team for the future. Although Maldonado has already been victorious this season, Bruno Senna has certainly been the more consistent driver for the team this season.

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