Friday: Unprecedented driver duo for Toyota

Toyota had to change its driver duo for the start of the Japanese Grand Prix weekend. Kamui Kobayashi replaced Timo Glock at short notice, as Glock was suffering from a high fever.

The return after a two-year absence of the Suzuka circuit took place entirely under the rain for this first day of free practice. Kamui Kobayashi made his first appearance behind the wheel of a Formula 1 car for a Grand Prix weekend. The Japanese driver started his free practice with Bridgestone’s rain tires, but a slight lull allowed the track to dry, and the drivers switched to intermediate tires. Kobayashi accomplished his task by staying cautious but posted good lap times on the half-dry track, considering his inexperience. The rain returned in the afternoon, and the drivers did very little running on the circuit during the second session. Each of them completed a stint to check onboard systems and gather valuable data for the rest of the weekend. Timo Glock expects to return to the arena tomorrow.

Kamui Kobayashi – 19th and 12th:

« I only found out that I was going to drive this morning at 8:30 am (local time) when I was heading to the track. It was a surprise because, even though I knew Timo was ill, I didn’t expect this. It’s really a great opportunity for me, but the track conditions are quite bad and I haven’t completed many laps in the end. I had a good run in the first session and was trying to improve step by step. It was important not to make any mistakes because I wanted to do as many laps as possible, for me and for the team. I pushed 100% considering the wet conditions, but despite this, my lap times are good. Especially when you consider the little experience I have on this circuit since I haven’t raced here for 6 years. The car seems to have evolved a lot since the last time I drove it last February. It’s hard to judge in the rain, but I was really impressed by how much the car has improved.

Jarno Trulli – 13th and 8th:

There’s not much to say after that. Unfortunately for the Japanese fans, the weather significantly limited our running today. I hope we have better weather tomorrow and can put on a better show. The car didn’t seem bad in the rain, but it’s hard to say more because of the conditions.

Dieter Gass – Chief Race and Test Engineer:

It was a bad day today because of the very poor conditions, but the weather for the rest of the weekend looks better. So it wasn’t really worth driving a lot today. Between the two practice sessions, the conditions went from bad to worse, and we were only able to do one stint at the end of the afternoon, which wasn’t particularly useful. Considering the bad weather and the fact that he hasn’t done any testing this year, Kamui drove very well. We are really happy with his contribution. Timo should be back tomorrow and won’t be penalized for not having driven today because it is impossible to significantly prepare the car for dry conditions.