Friday report: Williams – Top 10 is possible tomorrow

Good start to the weekend for the Grove team. Pastor Maldonado and Rubens Barrichello seem capable of competing for the top 10 in tomorrow’s qualifying. The Venezuelan executed a minor maneuver in FP2, but it wasn’t too serious as he was able to return to the track before the end of the day. It is noteworthy that the 2010 GP2 Series champion was ahead of Rubens Barrichello in both sessions of the day. Barrichello is not entirely satisfied with the balance of his FW33.

Pastor Maldonado – 5th and 11th:

I think today went well. The car seems competitive and I have a good feeling. There is room for improvement, from myself and the car, but it seems positive for tomorrow.

« My spin happened because I had some rubber come off my tires, so I slid when I arrived in the pit lane. I spun and ended up in the gravel. Fortunately, despite the damage, the mechanics managed to repair the car quickly, and I was able to get back on track for the end of the session. I thank them for that. »

Rubens Barrichello – 8th and 12th:

We covered our program. It went well, but we still have some issues with my set-up that we need to improve before tomorrow. For now, I am not fully satisfied with the balance, but we completed some good long stints.

Sam Michael – Technical Director:

«After some minor electrical issues with the KERS during the morning session, we had good reliability this afternoon. Our aim was to evaluate various new parts and do long stints to compare the two types of tires. »

« The characteristics and performance of the Pirellis seem similar to what we saw in Melbourne. Our goal now is to prepare the car for qualifying. »