Brazil GP: The Toro Rossos not fast enough on the straights
Toro Rosso drivers were unable to finish in the top 10 at the Brazilian Grand Prix due to a car that was not fast enough compared to its rivals, particularly those equipped with a Mercedes engine.

Daniil Kvyat started from 17th place on the grid in Brazil, but the Russian was unable to climb into the points. He narrowly missed out on the top 10, finishing just behind Bottas’s Williams, which was unfortunately too fast for his Renault-powered STR9.
« A tough race, but starting from 17th on the grid, finishing 11th was the best result we could achieve today. I really did my best but unfortunately, the Mercedes-powered cars were much faster than us on the straights and we couldn’t do any more. We tried to fight for 10th place but we just weren’t fast enough, » Kvyat said after the race.
The same observation applies to Jean-Eric Vergne, who never managed to get rid of the Mercedes-powered single-seater ahead of him – Perez’s Force India. As a result, he never saw the possibility of finishing in the points: « It was a bit tough today. I spent most of the race in traffic behind Perez and I was slower than him, so even with the DRS open on the straight, it was not possible to overtake him. This cost me a lot of time, and from there my race was over. There was no way to score points today. »
Franz Tost, the director of Scuderia Toro Rosso, acknowledges that the hurdle was high in Brazil but remains confident for the final race of the year in two weeks: “We knew that here in São Paulo, it would be difficult to score points but we will try to be in the best possible shape to achieve this goal in Abu Dhabi, the last important event of the season.”