Williams hopes to score points at Suzuka
After seeing its two drivers fall short of the top 10 in the Singapore Grand Prix, the Williams team hopes to do better in Japan this weekend. The goal for Barrichello and Maldonado will be to score points during the race.
Mark Gillan, the new technical director at Williams following Sam Michael’s departure, hopes that the team’s two drivers, Pastor Maldonado and Rubens Barrichello, will both be able to fight for a top 10 finish on Sunday at the Japanese Grand Prix. After a somewhat disappointing weekend in Singapore, the British team believes they have made a step forward in performance with the FW33 and hope to demonstrate this in Suzuka.
« Our understanding of the FW33 issues has improved significantly since Singapore, and we are working very hard to optimize the settings and improve the car for the Japanese Grand Prix. We obviously need to ensure that the car is in the optimal aerodynamic configuration – this is fundamental to maximizing our performance, and our goal is to fight for points with both our cars, » confided Mark Gillan.
Same sentiment from the drivers who hope to score points to improve Williams’ position in the constructors’ championship – the team is currently in 9th place with only 5 points, four for Barrichello and one for Maldonado.
I love Japan and I think Suzuka is a real driver’s circuit. The ‘S’ curves, behind the pit area, is my favorite part of the track. We always have support here and things shouldn’t be different as the championship will take place once again in Suzuka. I just hope to score points this weekend, Rubens Barrichello said.
Maldonado, for his part, hopes to do better than in Singapore – he finished the race in 11th place, just outside the points. The Venezuelan driver hopes to improve on his last result and finish in the points at Suzuka, a circuit he will be experiencing for the first time.
