Friday: IRGP is satisfied with its new features
The day for the British team was mainly dedicated to evaluating the new developments, which seem to meet expectations, as well as assessing the tires, particularly the new medium tire brought by Pirelli this weekend.
Vitaly Petrov – 2nd and 10th
« Today, I followed a program with a lot of fuel and then with little fuel to evaluate the car’s behavior on this track. Everything worked well with both different loads. We did not encounter any mechanical issues, which is very positive. Both cars finished in the top 10, and we have every reason to be optimistic for tomorrow where we hope for further progress. I really enjoyed driving with the medium tires, they are quite performant. Of course, the soft tires should be about 1.5 seconds faster, and we will need to use them well tomorrow to prepare for a good weekend. »
Nick Heidfeld – 5th and 9th
« It was a good day. I must say that I did my best long stint this afternoon in the sense that I wasn’t bothered by traffic. It was perfect for learning about the car’s behavior. I was able to make a few adjustments from my steering wheel, which was possible with such a long stint. It also helps to understand the characteristics of the new medium tires. The feeling with these tires is good, and I am quite satisfied with the result, considering they had not really been tested. I think the times at the end of the second session give a good indication of our race pace compared to our competitors. This morning, I believe some teams were following different programs than ours, so the times may have been misleading. »
Alan Permane, Chief Engineer
« The track was very dusty this morning, but it has significantly improved. […] We used fluorescent paint on both cars to check the performance of our new DRS. The new rear wing is working well and should deliver the expected gains. All the other new aero parts have been satisfactory, so we will run tomorrow with all the modifications.
The two types of tires worked correctly, with no issues in warming up, and the softs apparently provide between one and one and a half seconds better on a fast lap.
Vitaly tried a major setup change during the second session, but he wasn’t convinced of its effectiveness, so he reverted to his initial setup.
[From the Lotus Renault GP press release]
