Friday: Caterham in good shape despite Petrov’s incident
If the day went smoothly for Giedo van der Garde, who was discovering the Suzuka circuit, and Heikki Kovalainen, Vitaly Petrov, on the other hand, suffered a very rare failure at the end of Free Practice 2: a rear wing breakage, the causes of which are yet to be determined.
Heikki Kovalainen – 18th (Free Practice 2):
A very good session for me today in FP2. Not having participated in FP1, we had a lot to do during this afternoon’s session and we did everything we planned. On the first runs with the hard tires, we had to work very hard to find a good balance, but we made some changes that steered us in the right direction. With the soft tires, the car was better: it immediately felt balanced in the fast runs and the degradation levels and balance on the long runs were very good. We also finished with a time that creates a gap between us and the cars behind, so it’s overall a very positive day.
Vitaly Petrov – 20th and 19th:
« I came to Japan with a cold that made me miss some of yesterday’s track work. I feel better today, but it’s always good to have completed so much work in the car. We covered a lot of laps, worked on the aero, and tested new parts in the morning session, and we focused on the tires in FP2. On the final lap this afternoon, I went off in the first corner after an issue with the rear wing. We will look into what caused that so we can ensure it doesn’t happen again, but apart from that, I had a decent Friday. As the day went on, the car improved on each stint and was quite consistent on both compounds. Having completed the planned program for FP1 and FP2, we have generated a lot of information for the guys to work on, and I think we are in a good position for the weekend. »
Giedo van der Garde – 23rd (Free Practice 1):
« I had fun today. It was my first time in the F1 since China in April, so it took a little while to get used to how to push the car again, especially compared to what I’m used to in GP2, but by the end of the session, it was starting to get better. We had a very clear program, and I’m delighted to have accomplished it. The most important thing in today’s session, and in all those I’ve done this year, is not to show how fast I am, but to do a solid job for the team, not make mistakes, and learn as much as possible. Today was a good way to start, get used to the tires, the KERS, and learn a new circuit, and now I’m looking forward to being in Korea next week in Vitaly’s car. »
