Friday: KERS or no KERS for BMW?
BMW-Sauber starts quite poorly in its first free practice sessions of the Malaysian Grand Prix as both drivers, Kubica and Heidfeld, are largely positioned in the last quarter of the timesheet. The reason given by the German team is as follows: The two sessions were focused on race simulation rather than a fast qualifying lap. […]
BMW-Sauber starts quite poorly in its first free practice sessions of the Malaysian Grand Prix as both drivers, Kubica and Heidfeld, are largely positioned in the last quarter of the timesheet.
The reason given by the German team is as follows: The two sessions were focused on race simulation rather than a fast qualifying lap. Therefore, the times should not be directly compared with other teams. The F1.09s were loaded with the maximum amount of fuel. Another question is about KERS, as Heidfeld is not even sure about using it on Sunday.
Robert Kubica – 13th and 17th:
« Today, we focused entirely on preparing for the race, particularly on comparing the tires. The Bridgestone specifications brought to Malaysia are very different from those used in Melbourne, Sepang obviously has different characteristics. »
« Furthermore, the track temperatures are much higher here, which is a new situation this season. We have collected a lot of data for tire use in the race with maximum performance. Tomorrow, we will focus on the single decisive lap for qualifying. »
Nick Heidfeld – 18th and 20th:
Certainly, the results are not good, but in Melbourne last Friday, we achieved similar performances. Nevertheless, we have work to do to improve the car’s balance. During the first session, I operated the KERS, and in the second, I did not use the device.
« Its use or non-use creates a huge difference in the balance of the single-seater, but without it, there is a loss of speed on the straight for a few seconds. This is the experience we wanted to test, which is why we didn’t use it for the afternoon session. »
Willy Rampf – Director of Engineering:
« We followed our program today by focusing on race preparation. A key point was the comparison of the tires. »
We opted for this strategy regarding the KERS with Nick for two reasons: On one hand, we wanted to make a direct comparison and, on the other hand, we wanted to change the mode of operation between the two sessions. We did not have any technical issues.
