Caterham approaches Silverstone with Toro Rosso in their sights
The Caterham team, which had taken part in Q2 in Valencia, arrives at Silverstone with new developments that, it hopes, will allow it to take another step forward and challenge the teams ahead of it, starting with Toro Rosso.
After a mixed start to the season, the Caterham CT01 finally seems to be bearing the much-anticipated fruits as evidenced by the recent performances of the Hingham team, especially in qualifying rounds: « Honestly, I am eager to get back in the car and see what we can achieve at the 2012 British Grand Prix, » enthuses Heikki Kovalainen. « In the last race in Valencia, we clearly improved, enough to help me get the car into the second part of qualifying on merit, and we have more updates coming for Silverstone. »
In the evening of the European Grand Prix, the main satisfaction for Mark Smith, technical director of Tony Fernandes’ team, was seeing the team’s predictions confirmed on the track regarding the developments made: « It gives us a lot of confidence that the upcoming developments will continue to help us close the gap with the teams ahead of us. In Silverstone, we will bring a number of new parts, including new rear bodywork elements, a revised exhaust configuration, and a number of minor upgrades in different areas of the car. I don’t want to make any predictions at this exact moment about what they might bring us, but if we progress as much as we did in Valencia, we should have another positive weekend. »
The same optimism prevails on Vitaly Petrov’s side: “As we have brought new elements for the British Grand Prix, I think it’s another race where we can be able to take a new step forward. I’m sure everyone will also bring new developments, so we have to ensure they improve our car compared to our rivals. It’s a big challenge, but after seeing the gap close with Toro Rosso in Valencia, we now have a target within reach and it’s a real source of motivation for the team.”
Moreover, the Russian believes that, for various reasons, the British Grand Prix is one of the best races on the calendar: It’s a fantastic place to race because of the atmosphere of excitement and the special attachment British fans have for motorsports. Since the UK is home to most of the teams, including Caterham, the place is always full of fans, whether it rains or the sun shines! They are among the most knowledgeable and passionate fans in the world, and they give this place a special atmosphere throughout the weekend.
Like most drivers, Heikki Kovalainen has a special fondness for the Silverstone circuit, even if he’s not exactly a fan of the recent changes to the layout: « It’s a great circuit to race on, both because it’s one of our two home races and because it’s a real driver’s circuit. Even with the changes we’ve seen over the years, it remains the epitome of what F1 is, with high-speed corners that really test the cars’ performance. The new section is probably the least exciting part of the circuit from the cockpit’s perspective, but the classic corners like Copse, Maggotts, and Becketts are among the best on the calendar. »
However, for the Finnish driver, it will be important to have good speed in qualifying and demonstrate a good level of reliability in the race, as he suffered a KERS failure in Valencia: « KERS issues, like I had in Valencia, have an impact on all the hard work the team does at the factory and in the wind tunnel to enable us to be where we want to be. If we succeed [in being fast and reliable], I think we can have another great weekend and I’m really looking forward to giving our fans something to celebrate. »
