Saturday: Ricciardo saves the day for HRT
Once again, Vitantonio Liuzzi was not spared from technical problems, both during the free practice 3 and in qualifying. The Italian will start at the very back while his teammate, Daniel Ricciardo, will start in 22nd position.
Daniel Ricciardo – 23rd and 22nd:
« In my opinion, it wasn’t a bad session. I approached it well and did what I needed to do. In qualifications, you have to be 100%, and I certainly was. I went a bit wide in some areas where I was pushing a bit too much, but I would say I only lost a tenth there, which wasn’t enough anyway to get ahead of our rivals.
I am satisfied because the balance of the car was better than it has been since the beginning of the weekend, but the others have also improved, and we need to keep working.
It is time to focus on the race where I aim for a good performance.
Vitantonio Liuzzi – 24th and 24th:
« It’s a very bad start to the weekend. Yesterday, I could only do four laps, this morning I did eight after an engine problem, and this afternoon I had more problems, so in the end, I haven’t done many laps in two days.
We will start from the last position, which is not very positive and it’s a shame because the few laps we did were not too bad. But it’s one of the best races of the season with a great atmosphere, so I hope to put this behind me and have a good race tomorrow.
Colin Kolles, Team Principal:
« Another day with ups and downs. Daniel did a good job and always attacked and progressed. But today again, we encountered problems with Vitantonio’s engine. Yesterday, he could only do four laps and ten today. It’s far from ideal, but with his experience, I’m sure he’ll be able to have a good race.
The race is always another story and now we can only hope that it will be uneventful so that both our cars make it to the finish.
