Friday Report: Virgin – Beyond 107%!

The first day of free practice for this Australian Grand Prix raises many questions about the performance of the MRV02. Trailing more than six seconds behind Jenson Button in the afternoon, the two drivers would not have qualified if it had been a qualifying session.

It will therefore be necessary to work hard in the small team to hope to take part in the Grand Prix on Sunday.

Timo Glock – 21st and 22nd:

«Not an easy first day. I had some issues with the setup this morning and the car’s behavior wasn’t good. In the second session, we made some progress, but the gap to the leaders is still big, and it’s a bit disappointing. We must do our best to make the car fast.»

Jérôme D’Ambrosio – 20th and 21st:

«Today has been very special for me. I’ve been running since I was eight, so today is a dream come true. It was very exciting to leave the garage this morning and drive here to Albert Park for the first time. It’s a fantastic circuit. »

«We have to work to improve ourselves, that’s obvious. But it’s only the beginning. We have shown that we can make progress in both sessions so we have to do our best to get the most out of our package and continue to push to improve ourselves.»

John Booth – Team Principal:

« This morning’s session wasn’t as smooth a start to the season as we would have liked, but we had to deal with a sensor issue with Timo. The conditions were very slippery and there wasn’t much grip due to last night’s rain, so many teams waited for the track to improve. »

«In the afternoon, we were able to complete many laps and both drivers did a good job. Clearly, we are not where we should be, so we need to analyze the data and see what we can do to improve. Congratulations to Jérôme on his debut today. »