Friday: HRT successfully tests its new features
The HRT team has brought a new floor to its cars for the Japanese weekend. Pedro de la Rosa and Narain Karthikeyan are satisfied with this development, which allowed them to work calmly on the car's settings.
Pedro de la Rosa – 24th and 22nd:
« I’m happy with the day we’ve had because we were very disciplined. We progressed as the day went on, and that’s always positive. In the morning, we started with the old floor, then moved to the new one to evaluate the car’s speed, and we can now analyze all the extracted data and make comparisons. In the afternoon, we focused on the car’s setup. We have a bit of understeer, like I think most teams do, but we’ve improved in this area. Nonetheless, we still have a lot of work to do. We also tested both types of tires and carried out a qualifying simulation and a long relay simulation. I’m satisfied because it’s been a very productive day. »
Narain Kathikeyan – 22nd and 23rd:
« It was a long workday where we had a lot of tests to conduct with the new flat floor. It was important to carry out this aerodynamic assessment at a constant speed to evaluate its effectiveness while also working on the setup adjustments. It was very positive because we extracted a large amount of data and we have good feelings. But now we need to analyze all this data to make the most of it for tomorrow. There are still areas where we can improve. »
