Friday: Trulli faces problems with Team Lotus
Three drivers were on track for Team Lotus today. Karun Chandhok was at the wheel of Kovalainen's car during the first session. The Indian driver had not raced since Germany and was surprised by the progress the team had made since then. Heikki Kovalainen had no trouble getting accustomed to this demanding circuit, despite missing the first practice session.As often is the case, it was Jarno Trulli who encountered the most problems. Mechanical issues prevented him from getting the most out of the car in the morning, while electronic issues plagued him in the afternoon. Nonetheless, the Italian remains optimistic for the rest of the weekend.
Karun Chandhok – 20th and Did not participate:
« It was good to get back on track, especially here at Suzuka, which is a circuit I had never raced on before, and I was looking forward to getting on the track. It takes some time to find the right line, and as the tires started to wear, I couldn’t really improve my lap time even though I was faster in certain sectors. »
« I completed a reasonable number of laps and I think I did exactly what was asked of me this morning. The car definitely feels faster than when I drove in Germany. The new features we brought to Singapore have clearly moved us forward and we are finishing close to Williams, so I think we can fight in the race and hopefully perform as well as last year. »
Heikki Kovalainen – Did not participate and 17th:
« I am happy with how the afternoon went. You are always a bit behind when you miss the morning session on this kind of track because you need a little time to adapt. But the balance was good almost immediately and we were able to complete the entire program, so it was a good session.
« The tires seem to be performing well here. The soft tires are doing well on long stints so I think we have already found good settings. Given that the track is evolving it should get even better so I think we can be in a good position for the race, keeping in mind our race pace and how we manage the degradation of both tire specifications. We’ll see on Sunday! »
Jarno Trulli – 19th and 23rd:
« This morning I had to adapt to the power steering we installed here and it seems good but I was interrupted by mechanical issues before I could really push. »
The changes we made in the afternoon were clearly positive, but when we switched to soft tires, an electrical problem prevented me from making significant improvements. Nonetheless, the car seems to have improved, and looking at Heikki’s times, I think we will do well tomorrow.
