Friday Report – Williams Still Needs to Work Hard for Tomorrow

Williams had a completely normal day. The only change for the team was that it wasn’t Alexander Wurz driving the second Williams, but Kazuki Nakajima, the GP2 driver, who will perform the first free practice sessions until the end of the season in Brazil. Wurz was driving only in the afternoon.

Nico Rosberg delivers the best performance, but the Williams was indeed overtaken by Toyota and Red Bull in the second session. For the Anglo-Saxon team, the weekend is just beginning.

Nico Rosberg – 5th and 9th

It took me a few laps to get used to this track, which is still very different from last year, notably because of or thanks to the tires used.

« We recorded interesting results for tonight, notably with the tires and aerodynamics, and we were able to make progress. We still need to improve for tomorrow, but we had a positive day with good hopes for the qualifiers. »

Alex Wurz – 16th (SS2)

« I only drove in the 2nd session today and had to find the rhythm with used tires – which honestly, wasn’t easy. Maybe the tires were heavily influenced by the weather, strange today, but I don’t think it had too much of an impact. That said, it was the same scenario for all the drivers and we managed to find a better balance on the car.

Kazuki Nakajima – 9th (SS1)

« It was a first for me on this Chinese track. I find it quite good and especially fun. The problem was that the track was very dirty in the morning, but it gradually improved. We did a lot of testing today and concluded our program. In summary, we had a good session this morning and I got quite a few laps for my personal experience. Additionally, we set good times this morning. I’m quite happy with this first day. »

Patrick Head – Technical Director

We had a normal Friday, without experiencing any major reliability incidents. The tires are the hardest available, but we are faster with the softer ones – the mediums.

« We will work very hard again for tomorrow. »