Friday: HRT can and wants to do better
For his Grand Prix debut, Jan Charouz, who took part in his first free practice replacing Vitantonio Liuzzi, was the most diligent driver on track during the first session, finishing half a second behind Ricciardo. In the afternoon, the Australian once again outpaced the HRT No. 23, with Vitantonio Liuzzi racing against time to catch up.
Daniel Ricciardo – 23rd and 23rd:
It was another typical Friday with nothing special to report. We made some progress in the second practice session compared to the morning, but I feel like we’re a bit below our true potential. We now have the night ahead of us to make all the changes we want in hopes of being better tomorrow.
It promises to be close once again with the Virgins, but we need a little more to give them a good fight.
The track is a bit bumpy with little room for error. It’s a rather old-school circuit and fun to drive.
Vitantonio Liuzzi – Non-starter & 24th:
« We tried to make up for not being able to drive this morning, so in the end, it was a good afternoon. We did two stints on hard tires to get back into the rhythm and find the car’s balance.
We encountered a small problem at the beginning, so we had to adjust the car’s settings because there was a bit of understeer in the slow sections and oversteer in the faster parts. The car was better after these adjustments, but we are still slightly behind where we would like to be.
Then, we encountered traffic during our stint on soft tires, but overall, the long stint was quite competitive, so we can be reasonably happy.
It will not be an easy Grand Prix, but apparently, the weather can change and anything can happen.
Jan Charouz – 24th & did not start:
« It was fantastic, just being on the track with people like Schumacher, Vettel, and Alonso, it’s incredible. It’s a bit different from testing because there are a lot more cars on the track, so you have to leave room for others to avoid blocking.
I think I did a pretty good job as I was quite close to Daniel, which was the main goal, I don’t think five tenths is excessive.
Immediately, the car seemed quite good, very easy to drive but I would have liked to have a bit more from the tires because by the time I learned the circuit, the tires were no longer at their best, but it’s the same for everyone and I am satisfied with my result.
The goal was to do as many laps as possible and get used to the car and the track, which we did.
