Melbourne: A Leap into the Unknown for Marussia

Timo Glock was the first to test the MR01, it was at Silverstone earlier last week. The German driver was unable to get a precise idea of the competitiveness of his new ride but remains rather confident: « I was really looking forward to trying the MR01 for the first time last Monday. Even if it was not done in representative conditions, it has been a long wait to finally have the car in my hands and I hope we can make a step forward compared to the last two seasons. »

Glock believes he is prepared for this new season, both physically and technically because he had the time to train well: « It has been a frustrating winter for sure, but you have two choices and all you can do is focus on everything you need to do off-track to ensure you’re best prepared when you’re in the car. I’ve done a lot of work in the simulator and with the team in Banbury, and as far as my physical condition goes, I’ve trained harder than ever before. »

The German driver will therefore arrive in Melbourne for the first race of the season with very little information about his car, but this does not worry him too much; quite the opposite, he is eager to be there: « Melbourne will be somewhat of a journey into the unknown, but we have nothing to lose and I am even more excited than usual to see how the car will perform during the first practice session on Friday. Albert Park is a magnificent track, and I love going there for the first race of the season. I wish I could arrive with more preparation, but we will do our best and see where we end up. »

Same motivation from his teammate Charles Pic. The French driver will make his F1 debut this weekend in Australia, and he is eager to be there: « I am ready to race now. I have trained very hard physically and with the team, and mentally I am ready. It’s true that I would have preferred to have more track time before my first Grand Prix, but I’ve worked on the simulator, so we’ll do our best. »

The native of Montélimar will drive for the first time on the Albert Park track, but thanks to the prior work done with the Marussia team and its engineers, he feels ready for this new challenge: « Australia will certainly be a very special race, and I will have a lot of support around me. I am looking forward to settling into the routine of a race weekend and continuing to develop my relationship with my engineers. The team has been very supportive, so I know I can rely on them. This will be my first visit to Melbourne, but I’ve already heard great things about the track and the city. Of course, I’ve already driven several times on the Albert Park circuit in the simulator, but I can’t wait to discover it in real life. »

After a challenging winter, the Marussia team is delighted to have successfully passed all the FIA crash tests and to be ready for the start of the season. John Booth, the director of the Russian team, always believed the team would succeed: « It has been a difficult period for everyone, but it’s situations like these that truly test a team. The early years were expected to be tough for us, but I never had any doubt about everyone’s ability to weather any storm that might come our way. »

He even believes that despite the lack of running with the MR01, the Marussia team is sufficiently well-prepared for this first Grand Prix of the season: « It is this faith that allows us to go to Melbourne in a much better position than you might expect. The journey is, of course, a brief respite, but once we arrive, we will undoubtedly face a real challenge up until the race. »

Minor issues cannot be ruled out during the first races of the season as these will be the real debuts of the MR01, but it doesn’t matter, Booth is delighted with the work done so far by his entire team: « We have not had the track time we hoped for with the MR01 and therefore the time it takes to solve the minor issues that are to be expected with a new single-seater. […] We have not yet been able to test the performance of the Pirelli P-Zero tires or glimpse the first signs of the potential of our package. Nevertheless, we are heading in the right direction, and I would like to take this opportunity to thank every member of the team, and our partners, for all their support and efforts. It’s now up to us to do the best possible job during these first races. »