Sunday: HRT and Liuzzi hoped for more
After a good qualification for its two drivers yesterday, the HRT team hoped for a better race than the one they ultimately experienced. Daniel Ricciardo and Vitantonio Liuzzi did not get off to a good start and were passed by the Virgin drivers, but they then showed that they had a good car. Liuzzi ultimately had to retire at the end of the race due to an alternator problem. The Spanish team managed in 2011, thanks to its three drivers, to surpass Virgin in the constructors' championship, as in 2010.
Vitantonio Liuzzi – Retirement
At the start, the anti-stall kicked in when I released the clutch, the car stopped, and everyone passed me, so I was last at the first corner, but I managed to climb back up during the rest of the first lap. Everything went well during qualifying, and during the race, we had a good pace and were battling with the Virgins, so it was really unfortunate to have an alternator failure at the end of the race that forced us to retire.
«It’s really unfortunate because we wanted to finish the season with a good result. It’s a shame because we could have made it. Now we are going to work very hard for next year and try to solve this problem and prepare for the future because we need to be strong and competitive in every race.»
Daniel Ricciardo – 20th
The race had its ups and downs because our pace was mixed. In the first stint during the initial laps, I felt faster than Tonio and Glock, but after a few laps, they pulled away, so it was difficult to determine if I was actually faster or not.
« For the second stint, we used the Soft tires again and our pace wasn’t too bad but I think we wore out the tires too quickly and I had to pit earlier than expected to switch to the Mediums because the tires were done. It took a few laps for them to warm up but once they did, the lap times were better. At that point in the race, d’Ambrosio was very far ahead but the positive point is that I was able to continue doing very good laps at the end of the race. »
«It has been six very good months and I am happy with my season, you always want a little more but it has still been good and I have learned a lot. I want to thank HRT and Red Bull for giving me the opportunity to drive.»
Colin Kolles – Director of the HRT F1 Team
After yesterday’s performance, we were hoping for a better race. Neither Tonio nor Daniel had a good start and we lost positions to the Virgins, but from there both drivers had a good pace throughout the race. The pit stops were good as well, but unfortunately, we couldn’t bring both cars to the finish due to an alternator failure on Tonio’s car at the end of the race.
« It has been a tough and difficult season, but I want to thank Tonio, Narain, and Daniel, as well as all the mechanics and the team staff for their efforts and commitment to the team. I am proud of them. »
