Force India eyeing Q3 after promising first day
The Juan Carlos I marina in downtown Valencia provided a scenic backdrop for the opening day of practice for this weekend’s European Grand Prix. The Force India F1 Team put in two productive sessions, with Adrian Sutil and Tonio Liuzzi finishing the day inside the top 12. Paul di Resta was back in action in FP1 for the first time since the Spanish Grand Prix.
As both he and Tonio had not driven the circuit before they used the 90 minute opener to familiarise themselves with the demands of the 5.419km street track. The green, dusty surface did not make conditions ideal however the pair were able to complete 18 and 19 laps to establish a baseline set-up for the weekend.
Adrian Sutil took over his regular chassis for the afternoon and continued the programme of further data accumulation on the switchable rear wing, completing back to back tests between the SRW and the standard rear wing engine cover. Both Adrian and Tonio concluded the day in the top 12, with Adrian’s quickest lap the eighth fastest of the day.
Adrian Sutil (car 14):
"I was only out in FP2 but it went well today, according to plan. I was happy with the balance straight away and didn’t change so much over the session. The switchable rear wing is working very well now and it makes a real difference. The long run pace was also good so overall there were no real problems - quite a relaxing day! At this stage we can’t predict exactly what will happen tomorrow, but based on our pace today I think we are strong here and I hope we can have the same positions we did in Montreal, or around that area – Q3 is definitely possible from what we’ve seen in practice."
Tonio Liuzzi (car 15):
"Quite a good Friday for us. I used the opening session to learn the track: it’s quite a strange circuit as there aren’t too many corners, but it’s quite technical and the kerbs are a little strange as you have to find a very precise line. The car is responding well to changes and we seem to be pretty competitive on lower fuel. We’ve also got some good information on the SRW and it is working better than in Turkey. We just need to make a couple of small steps to adjust the balance but we are going in the right direction and I think we can improve a bit for tomorrow."
Paul di Resta:
"It felt good to be back in the car after a while watching from the garage. Valencia was again a completely new track for me but it was relatively easy to learn as there’s not so many corners – it’s straights, then turn in. The grip was very low at the start and the track was dusty so we found, as I think a lot of the other drivers did as well, that the tyres grained up very quickly. I could get up to speed quickly though, and completed the programme we wanted. I feel I know the car behaviour a lot more so I’m going forward with the schedule and coming back with results that can be fed back into the weekend, so I’m pretty happy with how it went."
Dominic Harlow, chief race engineer:
"We completed our normal programme on the basics during FP1 and 2 today, using Paul, Tonio and Adrian to cover the various items. There was quite a substantial improvement in the track condition during the sessions and all in all we’re satisfied with the way the car was performing by the end of the afternoon. It looks set to continue to be warm and we now need to follow the evolution of the conditions and tyres through the event to get the best result we can on Sunday."
