Sunday: both HRTs reached the finish without any problems
Races follow one another but are not alike for the small Spanish team. After experiencing significant technical issues in Montreal, the two cars that started at the back of the grid finished the race in Valencia without trouble, and the team is pleased.
Pedro De La Rosa – 17th:
« I literally gave everything in this race, I emptied myself and I’m very satisfied with it. It was a very long race, and at the end my rear tires nearly gave out: all I could do was hold on until the end. I might have climbed up the rankings if not for the last 7 laps, because the degradation was very difficult to manage at the end.
We knew from the start that it would be difficult, but we tried to maintain a good pace and preserve the brakes. I may have been a bit too conservative when I had Pic behind me, but I preferred to take that risk to finish the race.
I am satisfied because the weekend went well in front of our fans, and they deserve it. I would like to thank them for their unwavering support race after race, as we make improvements.
Narain Karthikeyan – 18th:
« I got off to a good start and managed to maintain my position. We had quite a tough battle in the first 15 laps. The car was very good on the straights, but the degradation of the rear tires was fatal to our performance.
After the first stop, I was behind Pic, but it was quite difficult to drive in these conditions and I couldn’t catch up with him.
Unfortunately, the drive-through for excessive speed in the pits prevented me from finishing in a better position. But the main takeaway is that we managed to reach the finish in these very difficult conditions.
