Valencia: A track that could succeed for Sauber

After finishing on the podium (3rd) in Montreal, his second this season after Malaysia, Sergio Pérez wants to do even better in Valencia: “I really enjoyed the result in Montreal and I want even more. I really like the Valencia circuit and also the atmosphere throughout the weekend because we are close to the fans.”

The Mexican driver doesn’t have very good memories of Valencia, but he hopes that will change after this year’s Grand Prix: «”I don’t have the best memories of my debut in Valencia in Formula 1, as it was last year and it was very difficult for me. I was returning to competition after my Monaco accident, and in fact, looking back, I don’t think I was physically ready. I really didn’t feel well.»”

Kamui Kobayashi also really likes the city of Valencia and the Japanese driver hopes to perform well there: « Valencia as a city is a beautiful destination in many ways, I could easily choose it to spend my holidays. You can also get the best fresh orange juice here. However, my goal is to have a good qualifying session and a good race afterwards. »

Kobayashi knows that with the expected heat, the tires could suffer, but that doesn’t worry him too much, as these are conditions he enjoys: In Valencia, it is usually very hot. I personally like that, but it’s hard to say the impact it will have on the car and the tires. It will be tough, that’s for sure. Tire management will be key, in combination with a good race strategy.

Sergio Pérez believes that due to its layout, the street circuit in Valencia is similar to the Gilles-Villeneuve circuit in Montreal, and the lessons learned from the Canadian weekend will therefore be very valuable: The street circuit in Valencia has long straights with heavy braking into the corners, and what we learned in Montreal will be very important as a result.

Kamui Kobayashi agrees with his teammate; the circuit isn’t very different from the last two visited, Monaco and Montreal: « The city circuit requires a good level of downforce on the car. You are always close to the walls, but after our last two races in Monaco and Montreal, this is not new. Overtaking is not easy but not impossible either. In 2010, it was actually quite fun. »

Giampaolo Dall’Ara, the head of track engineers at Sauber, explains that even though Valencia is considered a city circuit, the Valencian track also has characteristics that bring it closer to real circuits: «Valencia is a city circuit, but not really a typical one, because the asphalt is very soft, and the curbs are not very high. Moreover, aerodynamic efficiency is much more important here than in Monaco or Singapore, for example, and there are real runoff areas. Most of the corners are slow, but you cannot ignore the top speed. Therefore, stability under braking and good traction are two important elements.»

Giampaolo Dall’Ara expects tire management to once again be at the heart of performance in Valencia, given the expected temperatures and the tires supplied by Pirelli: In Valencia, high temperatures are to be expected at this time of year, so the track is likely to be very hot. Pirelli is providing us with Medium and Soft tires, which have somewhat changed since last year and this might require us to study the strategy for using them in more detail.

Wear could therefore be a problem, which would be interesting as it should facilitate overtaking, which is not easy on this track: Rear degradation could be a problem. Overtaking is not easy on this track, so qualifying will be very important. The car has hardly changed since Montreal, however, we could run with more downforce.