Friday: Everything is almost well at Toro Rosso
Once again, the Italian team called in Daniel Ricciardo as a reinforcement, replacing Sebastien Buemi for Free Practice 1, before the Swiss driver reclaimed his place in the afternoon. While the three drivers remain optimistic, the day was nonetheless marred by an unidentified mechanical issue on Jaime Alguersuari's car.
Jaime Alguersuari – 10th and 24th
« I was only able to drive this morning, given that I had an issue with my car that couldn’t be properly analyzed and fixed in time for the second session. However, I had an interesting morning with the medium tires, and we were able to collect a lot of data on them and other aspects of the car, including some new developments we have here. Overall, I would say the car is performing better. I’m sure we’ll resolve the car issue in time to participate in tomorrow’s tests. »
Sebastien Buemi – Non-participation and 15th
As planned, I only drove this afternoon, but we still more or less know what to expect for the rest of the weekend and which areas we can improve the car. The latter had no problems throughout the day, which is always positive.
The conditions are warmer here than in previous races and that must be taken into account. The new medium tire compound seems to be working well even though it’s a bit early to say we know them well enough.
On this track, the key is to have a car that works well in the slowest sections, and that means braking stability is very important. We can still improve the car a bit before qualifying and the race. Overall, it was a pretty good day of work that provided us with a good foundation for the rest of the weekend.
Daniel Ricciardo – 12th and Did Not Participate
« It’s a bit difficult to remember all the turns here because there are so many, and it’s quite a complex track. Fortunately, I was able to spend time in the simulator, which was helpful because one of the characteristics of the circuit is that many turns seem to go in one direction but you actually find they go in the other.
I enjoyed this session and particularly liked the first sector which resembles an urban circuit the most, whereas towards the end, it opens up a bit more and becomes faster.
The car seems to be running well and has improved. The team has worked hard to enhance the performance in this race, and so far, they seem to have gone in the right direction. I feel there is potential, and even though the times and rankings don’t mean much in Free Practice 1, Jaime 10th and me 12th, it’s an encouraging performance.
I only used the hardest tires and my impressions were quite positive.
