Williams approaches Montreal with points as the objective
After a mixed Monaco Grand Prix where Williams left with only one point, the Grove team hopes to be able to bring both cars into the points in Montreal, in a race that is generally full of action and twists.
After Pastor Maldonado’s victory in Spain, the return to reality was rather harsh for Williams in Monaco, where the Grove team only left with one point, that of the tenth place, earned by Bruno Senna. Williams therefore hopes to do better in Montreal, where the goal will be to get both cars in the points. Montreal is a great race and is traditionally full of action with a very short pit lane which encourages teams to make more pit stops. The high chances of a safety car add a bit more drama, explains Mark Gillan, track operations engineer.
Bruno Senna, who retired during his first Canadian Grand Prix in 2010 with HRT, believes that the Circuit Gilles Villeneuve is one of the most challenging tracks of the season: It’s a mix between a street circuit and a permanent circuit, with a combination of long and very fast straights and tight, slow corners, with heavy braking. It’s also important to drive as much as possible to learn the subtleties of the track because it can evolve quickly.
Accumulating laps during testing will be all the more important as, once again, the tires will play a key role, while rain could possibly be a factor: Pirelli brings to Montreal the same compounds used in Monaco, namely the Super Soft and Soft tires, recalls Mark Gillan. On the weather front, we expect ambient temperatures around 25/30°C, with track temperatures in the high 30°C range, although there is a risk of rain over the weekend.
Returning empty-handed after a collision in Monaco, Pastor Maldonado hopes to achieve a solid result in Montreal, on a circuit he enjoys: « We have worked very hard to improve the car’s performance, and I feel it is improving all the time. I therefore hope to achieve a solid result in Canada, a circuit I really appreciate. It has a nice combination of corners with high-speed straights followed by slow chicanes, and the feeling of speed increases with the proximity of the walls. There is a big DRS effect on the straights too, so we should see some overtaking this weekend. » His teammate sets more or less the same goals: « Our car seems competitive at this stage of the season, so let’s hope we can show good pace here, » confides Bruno Senna.
To do this, the men from Grove will have to solve the Montreal equation: « The circuit is very hard on the brakes and everyone must ensure they have a good aerodynamic balance, » notes Mark Gillan.
