No tire savings for Bianchi
Jules Bianchi confided that he was satisfied with the new developments Marussia brought to Barcelona. The Frenchman also discussed his tire management, stating that for him, it's not really about conserving them; he just tries to get the most out of them at every moment.
Jules Bianchi had a busy day today to evaluate the new parts brought by Marussia – including a new front wing, a new floor, and new suspension parts. The Frenchman was pleased with the gain brought by these different parts, even if the day was not as productive as it could have been.
« We tried to evaluate all the developments we had on the car, but it wasn’t easy because things didn’t go as planned. We had an issue at the beginning of the run, so we couldn’t drive immediately. We fell a bit behind and couldn’t do all the tests we wanted. Then, the new tires were quite far in terms of performance from those we will have for the race, so the first run was somewhat pointless as we were 3 seconds off the pace. When I switched to Medium tires, there was a big gap between the two [compounds]. We managed to get everything we wanted, but there is still work to be done, » Bianchi stated during a press briefing in the Barcelona paddock.
Regarding the tires, the Frenchman is not too worried: « No worries [about the tires], but it’s going to be a difficult race, we will have to manage the tires as usual, I would say, we will have to be more careful. During a stint, I had a new set and did 8 laps and it started to degrade, so we will have to manage that well. »
Regarding the Pirelli tires, the Marussia driver also revealed that it was not his goal to save the tires, as most of the big teams do: « We try to drive as much as possible with the current grip in each tire. We’re still going at full throttle, it’s not like as soon as the tires degrade, we drive slowly and wait for the race to end. That’s not really the case. We’re always pushing to the limit, trying to get the maximum out of the tire. »
When asked if his main objective was to preserve his tires, Bianchi replied in the negative: « This is not the goal [to limit wear through driving]. The goal is to make adjustments around the driving to really be on the limit all the time. Of course, you have to be careful, try not to spin too much, there are little tricks but that’s not the goal. »
From our special correspondent in Barcelona
