Saturday: Williams takes a hit

Williams is accustomed to regulatory changes in Formula 1. The team is experienced and used the winter testing to develop a formidable single-seater. The tests were promising, but the good performances were not realized in the races.

Barrichello and Hülkenberg aimed today to enter Q3 in the top 10. However, Barrichello stopped at 11th place and the German rookie in F1 at 13th. The hopes are real for tomorrow to score some points, but the team remains realistic.

Rubens Barrichello – 14th and 11th:

What Williams did today isn’t so bad. Of course, we would have wanted more but we made some mistakes and encountered some problems during practice yesterday. We solved all that this morning but we ran out of time to set up the car optimally. However, we hope to have a good understanding of the car and in the end, we weren’t much slower than Jenson Button. I have some new tires left for tomorrow, I will enjoy using them to make progress!

Nico Hülkenberg – 10th and 13th:

« I would have liked to do better for my first qualifying session in Formula 1. The car wasn’t perfect, and I didn’t manage to set a good lap. As a result, I didn’t make it to Q3, but without speculating too much for the race, I hope to be faster. It will be difficult and long, and the important thing will be good tire management. »

Sam Michael – Technical Director:

« We thought we would be able to reach Q3. That was not the case today. Barrichello did a good job after difficult practice sessions, and Hülkenberg had his first qualifying session, so we need to put things in perspective. »

« We are now focused on the race, using our good start to move up the hierarchy on the first lap and race for points. »