Assessment Saturday: Lotus Renault GP – The R31 is on pace

Despite the time lost yesterday due to a suspension problem, both Lotus Renault GP drivers performed well during this afternoon’s qualifying session. Nick Heidfeld qualified sixth, making up for his poor performance in Australia, while Petrov confirmed his good form and will start from the fourth row.

Nick Heidfeld – 6th:

I am very happy insofar as I think it’s the best we could have hoped for. Especially if we refer to Friday when we almost didn’t run and had very little time for adjustments. I went faster and faster throughout qualifying. But I must point out that in Q1 I held back, in Q2 I pushed a bit too hard and lost a few tenths, and finally in Q3 I found the golden rule and managed a good lap. Obviously, I was luckier with the traffic than in Australia.

Vitaly Petrov – 8th:

Being in the top 10 today is a good result considering the track time lost yesterday. We worked a lot on improving the setup during the free session and in the end, I felt good about the car. Anything can happen in the race. But preserving the tires will obviously be a very important factor, because tire wear is very high here. We will also need to closely monitor the weather, as there is a high risk of rain. But personally, whether it’s dry or wet, it doesn’t bother me.