Saturday: HRT drivers outpace their rivals
If Narain Karthikeyan was at one point affected by the 107% rule, HRT avoided the cut on a circuit where the use of KERS and DRS handicaps the Spanish cars a bit more than usual.
Vitantonio Liuzzi – 20th & 21st
It will be an interesting Sunday. We have shown today that we have taken a step forward: we are ahead of our closest rivals so it promises to be an interesting race. The race could be held in the rain, so it might be different from what we expected, but that will only make it more exciting and we will have to push hard to get the best out of our car.
For me, the 107% rule is no longer a problem but, certainly, on this kind of circuit where DRS and KERS make a difference, we weren’t as safe as that, but it’s not something that should worry us in the future, we just need to stay focused on the idea of beating our rivals.
The new exhaust seems to be working well, but we still need to get the most out of it. It takes a few races to optimize; we need to understand the system better and make it work more efficiently in the future.
Narain Karthikeyan – 22nd and 23rd
« I experienced difficulties getting my first set of tires up to temperature; something changed in the car between yesterday and today. My front left wheel was locking up when I braked hard, so I lost a bit of time with that. A
Apart from that, as I said, it wasn’t my best lap but we are both ahead of our closest rivals. I’ve made some progress in the last races, I’m only a few tenths behind Tonio, so after five and a half years away from the paddocks, it’s good to be so close.
Colin Kolles
I think that proof has been made that we have taken a step forward, we qualified ahead of the Virgins and the gap with Lotus is smaller than in the last races and it could have been even smaller. Tonio was two-tenths faster in his fastest lap when he spun, and I am sure he could have been between two and four-tenths faster if he had finished his lap. All in all, it’s quite positive and we must continue to push and improve our car.
For tomorrow, we do not know the weather conditions, rain is expected but it could change. If it rains, it will be a crazy Grand Prix, which could turn into a lottery, traditionally favoring smaller teams.
