After last weekends German GP the Williams F1 teams to the Hungaroing circuit for the 2012 Hungarian GRand Prix. Both Williams drivers, Pastor Maldonado and Bruno Senna, have done well at this circuit before so are looking forward to this race. The team is having to cope with back to back races as well as turning things around and securing a good result.
Mark Gillan, Chief
Operations Engineer:
Logistics of the back to back races are always a bit more difficult with
less turnaround between the events and therefore less time to react to
any issues. The competition is so tight at the moment that one must
ensure that you extract the maximum performance from the car - there is
no room for errors. Pirelli bring the same compounds as used in the
previous race, namely the medium and soft tyres. The circuit layout
leads to very low average speeds, with only Monaco and Singapore being
lower. This low efficiency metric means that you run the maximum
downforce configuration. Teams also have to deal with the potentially
high ambient temperatures which necessitate larger cooling ducts.
Bruno Senna:
The Hungaroring is one of the most challenging tracks we visit all year.
Technically it’s a real test and it’s quite a slow lap so reminds me in
some respects of Monaco. It’s also demanding physically because the
temperature is often high and you have to do a lot of work behind the
steering wheel so can get tired quickly. I’ve done well here in the
past, particularly in GP2 in 2008, so I’m looking forward to this
weekend.
Pastor Maldonado:
The track in Hungary is really slow speed and so we will need to adapt
our set-up for this sort of circuit but we have shown so far this season
that our car has good pace at different sorts of tracks. I’ve won here
before so the track has good memories for me and I’m optimistic about
our chances of doing well.
Rémi Taffin, Head of
Renault Sport F1 Track Operations:
The Hungaroring has the second lowest average speed of the year, after
Monaco. The high number of corners and lack of straights means one lap
is taken at just over 180kph, therefore requiring extremely good low
speed torque response. Cooling also becomes critical due to the lack of
opportunity for the engine to ‘breathe’ and the high ambient
temperatures, plus the high level of dirt and grit from the dusty
surrounding fields that can be ingested into the inlets and radiators.
Paul Hembery, Pirelli
Motorsport Director:
We are bringing the P Zero White medium and P Zero Yellow soft compounds
to the Hungaroring, which should be ideally suited to the circuit. The
track layout is very twisty and compact, but ambient temperatures are
regularly very high – so it’s a question of finding the right balance
between tyre performance and durability. The grip levels tend to be low,
particularly at the beginning of the weekend before the circuit has had
the chance to evolve, but the asphalt generally remains slippery.
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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