Friday: Ericsson and Merhi calm, Kobayashi crashes his Caterham F1
The day for the three drivers engaged by Caterham for the first practice sessions of the Japanese Grand Prix in Suzuka was mixed: for Marcus Ericsson and Roberto Merhi, things went smoothly, but Kamui Kobayashi was only able to complete three laps after his crash.
Marcus Ericsson (No. 9) – 19th and 19th
For the Swede, the day went quite well; he even got to test the new wing brought by Caterham to Suzuka: « I am happy. This morning in FP1, we completed the planned program and tried the new wing during the last stint on worn tires: it seemed good, and we will have really useful information. We went back to the old wing in FP2 and it was a decent session. […] The car is really good to drive here. We have something solid to build on for the rest of the weekend. »
Roberto Merhi (No. 45) – 20th [FP1]
For the second time this season after Monza, the young Spaniard participated in the first practice session for the green team. Here too, the program was calmly executed: « Our objective this morning was to cover more kilometers and continue getting accustomed to the car, and everything went as planned. We did not take unnecessary risks, and I didn’t really push hard since it was only a free practice session. I am happy with my performance; I consistently improved as I learned the track. »
Kamui Kobayashi (No. 10) – 22nd [FP2]
The local competitor, on the other hand, had a very difficult day. When he got back into his seat in the afternoon, he had an accident after just three laps in the esses: « It wasn’t the best way to start my home Grand Prix: after missing FP1, I suddenly lost the rear left during my first stint and that was the end of my day as I crashed into the barrier. It’s a shame, but at least we have tomorrow: it’s not a lot of time, but I will need to use FP3 to get a feel for the car. »
