We hear from Williams F1 Chief Operations Engineer Mark Gillan as he discusses the recent Monaco Grand Prix.
Williams F1
Monaco GP
Debrief
Williams F1 finished the Monaco Grand Prix with mixed feelings. Bruno Senna
finished 10th, bringing home one world championship point for the team, but
the pace of the FW34 had promised a lot more, as the team's Chief Operations
Engineer Mark Gillan explains.
Mark Gillan, Chief Operations Engineer:
Q: Mark, it was a frustrating weekend for Williams F1 in Monaco. So much
potential, yet the team only got one world championship point. How
competitive was the FW34 around the Principality's streets?
MG: The car was good enough for a P4 or P5 qualifying position and our race
pace was also good so it is disappointing not to have come away from this
event with a decent haul of points.
Q: This was the first race of the year for Pirelli's super-soft compound.
Did it perform as you expected?
MG: Yes, the tyre performed pretty well (as expected) in terms of both pace
and durability.
Q: Were you surprised that so many people opted for a one-stop strategy
in the race?
MG: No not really, as the tyres were capable of a one stop and it was likely
to have been the default strategy for the majority of the field.
Q: Pastor’s weekend was compromised by a 10-place grid penalty, following
a collision with Sergio Perez in FP3. What was your opinion of the incident
and the penalty? MG: I think that the incident was avoidable and therefore disappointing
and that the penalty was therefore understandable.
Q: Bruno was more competitive in race trim than in qualifying. Why was
that, and what does he need to do to qualify higher?
MG: Bruno was very honest after qualifying admitting that he could have done
better and he pushed hard through the race but was ultimately frustrated by
Kimi who held him up. We will continue to work hard with Bruno in the
simulator and on the track to help him maximise the new tyres' performance.
Q: The Canadian Grand Prix comes next. What are the technical challenges
of the Circuit Gilles Villeneuve, and what can we expect from the FW34
there?
MG: The team are looking forward to Montreal as we believe that we should be
strong again, but we need to deliver in both qualifying and the race.
Montreal is usually an eventful race, with multiple stops, high brake wear
and with the chance of a safety car being very likely.
Championship Tables After
6
of 20 Races
Drivers
1 F Alonso 76
2 S Vettel 73
3 M Webber 73
4 L Hamilton 63
5 N Rosberg 59
6 K Raikkonen 51
7 J Button 45
8 R Grosjean 35
9 P Maldonado 29
10 S Perez 22
Constructors
1 Red Bull Racing Renault 146
2 McLaren Mercedes 108
3 Ferrari 86
4 Lotus-Renault 86
5 Mercedes 61
6 Williams Renault 44
7 Sauber Ferrari 41
8 Force India Mercedes 28
9 STR Ferrari 6
10 Marussia Cosworth 0
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