Sunday: The Toro Rossos had the pace for points
None of the Toro Rosso drivers were able to score points at the end of the Suzuka race. Jean-Eric Vergne was penalized by poor pit stops and finished only 12th, after starting 17th on the grid. His teammate, Daniel Ricciardo, was set to finish in the points before his penalty for overtaking Adrian Sutil off the track ruined his race.
Jean-Eric Vergne – 12th
« There are positives to take from today because the car performed very well this afternoon. However, our pit stops weren’t the best and cost us time. After the start, I found myself in traffic. So the team decided to call me in earlier than planned to switch from mediums to hards, but the stop was slow and I rejoined the track in traffic. It was difficult to overtake. We tried to extend the next two stints and the rest of the pit stops weren’t any better. Apart from that, my pace seemed reasonable. It’s really a shame because I think I could have done better, especially since I had plenty of new tires for the race. I really hope for more luck and another good car in India. »
Daniel Ricciardo – 13th
« I am disappointed not to have scored points today because I am convinced that I was heading for the top 10, which would have been an encouraging result after struggling with the car’s balance on Saturday. We started on hard tires. After having a good start and gaining two places, everything was going well when I overtook Bottas on the track and was moving up the rankings while others on medium tires ahead of me were pitting. I continued moving up after my first pit stop. I then overtook Sutil on the outside at the 130R and passed him. But after that, I went wide onto the grass, which cost me a bit of time. Unfortunately, the stewards decided that I had gained an advantage off the track, and I had to serve a penalty by going through the pits again, which ruined my race. I was 9th when I came in for the penalty and ended up outside the points. »
