Saturday: A qualification below expectations for Lotus Renault GP
Disappointment for the Lotus Renault GP drivers whose R31 just wasn't up to speed. Vitaly Petrov could have hoped for better if he hadn't been held up in his last stint. On his side, Nick Heidfeld seemed to struggle from Q1, benefiting from his opponents' poor tire choice to advance to Q2.
Vitaly Petrov – 9th and 12th
« Our main difficulty was heating the tires because the weather was so variable. I also had a lot of understeer, especially at turn 9, which cost me two tenths and practically ended my chances of reaching Q3. That, combined with traction problems, was our main concern for the weekend. Sauber seems increasingly competitive compared to us, and we need to understand the root of our issues and fix them. Qualifying in this kind of position is not enough. We are more ambitious than that. Now, the question is how to make the most of this situation tomorrow. »
Nick Heidfeld – 11th and 14th
« Once again, today did not meet our expectations. 14th is not our target when we enter the box for qualifying, but it may be an indication of our current level. At the moment, it is hard to extract more from the car. This will not stop us from fighting in the race for better positions; gaining places is very achievable. For that to happen, we need a good start and the right strategy. We will make sure these two things happen as we line up on the grid tomorrow afternoon.
Alan Permane, Track Engineering Director
« It was a difficult day. The two drivers explained that the car performed better in Free Practice 3 after some changes were made overnight and following Friday’s sessions. Even though we made some progress, we simply didn’t have the pace today to enter the top 10, which is obviously not good.
The soft tire was slower by 1 to 1.5 seconds. Also, the strategy in qualifying was not complicated today. For the race, I expect it to be quite simple in terms of choices, with probably three stops. Vitaly’s last attempt in Q2 was hindered: during his out lap, he was slowed down by a competitor. This prevented him from properly warming up his tires, a crucial point for a qualifying lap on super soft tires.
We detected a fuel supply issue with his car. We therefore replaced the faulty parts in the fuel system, and he hasn’t experienced any more problems.
[From a Lotus Renault GP press release]
