Brazilian GP: The soft tires do not suit Lotus F1
Once again, the Lotus cars failed to get past Q1 as they never found the right pace with the soft tires. However, the mediums offer some hope for the race.
Qualification was disappointing once again for Romain Grosjean, who placed 15th, making him the first of those not qualifying for Q2: « We knew that this afternoon’s qualification would be very tight. It seems that other teams managed to find more pace today than we did, which means we couldn’t get beyond Q1. »
The reason for the single-seater’s lack of performance during this session is due to the soft tires, which do not seem to be working optimally: « The soft tires are not suitable for this track. Therefore, it will be necessary to be very careful in managing them during the race. After that, we can attack as much as possible with the mediums. »
However, the Frenchman acknowledges that his team has done a good job since the start of the weekend, which has improved the car’s performance ahead of the race. Thus, we can note a certain change in tone compared to some previous weekends. His future with the Enstone team could therefore be on the verge of being finalized…
Same story for Pastor Maldonado, who finishes last in this session. Yet the Venezuelan believes he is not so poorly positioned for the race: « It may not seem like it looking at the qualifying time, but I think we have a good car here, especially for the race. We haven’t been able to put everything together properly today, and it’s a bit disappointing for qualifying. But it’s the race that counts. »
The hope is such for the driver that he even believes he can achieve the same performance as in Austin, namely finishing in the points. But he still realizes that a little help from the rain wouldn’t hurt: « With the way the car performed in free practice, I think we can fight for points. If it rains, I believe we can be competitive. Given where we start on the grid, maybe the rain would be a good thing for us. »
