At a circuit that has seen the Williams Martini achieve success in the past the team moves to the Red Bull ring for the 2016 Austrian GP. It is another of those circuits which should suit the Williams FW38. Both Williams drivers Valtteri Bottas and Felipe Massa are looking forward to returning to this track. For Felipe he was able to secure a 3rd place finish in 2015 and Valtteri the same result in 2014. The team is confident of securing another good points result.
The Red Bull Ring, located
in the small town of Spielberg, hosted the first grand prix under its
new guise in 2014. What a race it turned out to be for Williams. The
short 4.326km circuit, with its undulating features, was a popular
return to the Formula One calendar. Williams scored its only 1-2 of the
season in qualifying in Austria and Valtteri Bottas went on to claim his
first ever Formula One podium. Williams has won three Austrian Grands
Prix in its various venues. For Spielberg, Pirelli have made available
the ultrasoft, supersoft and soft tyres.
PAT SYMONDS:
We are in the middle of a phase of high-speed circuits of which Austria
is typical, and as such favours the characteristics of the FW38 and the
Mercedes power unit. The circuit itself has brought us success in the
past, and we have every reason to believe that it will do so again.
However, for this third visit here with the hybrid cars we will see a
couple of significant differences. The first is the weather, which is
predicted to be unsettled throughout Friday and Saturday, with current
forecasts showing Sunday as the only potentially dry day. Perhaps more
significantly is the fact that the circuit has been completely
resurfaced. In the recent European F3 race, teams reported that it was
more severe on tyres, which makes the prospect of a dry race following
damp practice sessions even more challenging. That being said, we would
expect to see a two-stop race in Austria and the selected tyre choices
seem to reflect that. Whatever conditions are thrown at us I have every
confidence that the team will come through to gather a strong haul of
points.
FELIPE MASSA:
Austria is a very small but nice track to drive. I’ve had some great
races there over the previous two years. Last year I was on the podium
in third. The year before, we had a pole position and second on the
grid. Valtteri finished on the podium and I finished fourth. That shows
it’s a good track for our car and we are normally very competitive. I
hope we have another year like that! There are some good straights for
the power unit, mixed with some high-speed corners. As a place, it’s
somewhere I really enjoy visiting. We normally stay in a hotel which is
like an old castle, so that’s interesting and different to normal. The
people are always really enthusiastic about Formula One, so it’s always
nice to come here.
VALTTERI BOTTAS:
Austria is where I got my first podium in Formula One, so it’s always
nice to go back. I like the landscape and the beautiful countryside that
surrounds the track because it’s similar to my home in Finland. As a
place to visit, I really enjoy it. The track itself is always fun to
drive. It has a nice flow to it with some big elevation changes and
plenty of high-speed corners. It’s also pretty good for our car, so it
should be an interesting weekend.
Race Data Friday:
Practice 1: 10:00 - 11:30
Practice 2: 14:00 - 15:30 Saturday:
Practice 3: 11:00 - 12:00
Qualifying: 14:00 – 15:00 Sunday: Race: 14:00
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