Mixed fortunes for Toro Rosso drivers
Jaime Alguersuari did a good job today at Singapore as he qualified in 14th position, despite knowing it could even have been a little better. Teammate Buemi however experienced a bad qualifying session, one in which he was unable to find a clear track ahead of him.
Jaime Alguersuari, STR5-03:
FP3: Best lap 1.50.067, pos. 14th, 16 laps
Qualifying: Best lap 1.47.666, pos. 11th
“It’s a shame I didn’t quite make it to Q3 in the end, because overall, my weekend has gone well right from the start. I don’t think we can be unhappy with what we have achieved and I am pleased with this performance, also because the team has made a good step forward with the car. I am surprised to be this high up the grid, because in today’s free practice we had a problem with the car set-up, but we were able to correct it for qualifying. After what was my best performance of the season, I would like to send my best wishes to my regular chief mechanic Alberto Gavarini who is back home in Italy, having had a road accident. This is a very demanding track physically, with the heat and the fact there are no long straights to give you breathing space, but I feel good and I am looking forward to tomorrow’s race, as I think this is the best chance we have to score points, especially as the car is better balanced in race trim than it was for qualifying, so we can be optimistic.”
Sebastien Buemi, STR5-02:
FP3: Best lap 1.49.949, pos. 10th, 16 laps
Qualifying: Best lap 1.48.502, pos. 14th
“Qualifying did not go well for me today and I seemed to be stuck in traffic on every lap and the one clear lap I got was spoilt by yellow flags. The main problem I had was a serious lack of grip. Jaime did a very good lap whereas this morning I was going better than him, so I am not really sure what happened, but obviously, I am disappointed. As for the race, overtaking is never easy on a track like this, but fourteenth on the grid is not a disaster. It is a long race here, so if we don’t make any mistakes, have a good strategy and the pit stop goes well, then who knows what we might be able to achieve in the way of a result. It will also be tough physically, so it will be important to be well hydrated.”
Giorgio Ascanelli:
“Jaime missed out on Q3 by what I estimate was two milliseconds per corner! I think the team has done a good job and, first in Monza and now here, the car has made a step forward. That is not because of new developments, but rather that we have worked out how to run it better. The drivers did a decent job and Jaime drove fantastically well: he could have made Q3 but he still has a bit to learn, in terms of managing to get the most out of the car and therefore set his time on the first lap of a run, although I am sure it will come for him soon. This is our best qualifying performance of the season, so I cannot be unhappy and for tomorrow, we should have a good race pace, particularly with Jaime.”
