Sunday: HRT is reliable but still has room for improvement
Hispania Racing Team brought some updates to their aerodynamic package here in Istanbul. The Spanish team set a good time in practice on Friday and had a strong qualifying session, positioning themselves between the Virgins. However, the race was marked by an incident in the pits and uncatchable Virgins. The team finished last but finished. The reliability was there, and the performance should be as well in Spain in two weeks for their home race.
Narain Karthikeyan – 21st:
I think we can be happy to have crossed the finish line once again today. I had more experience and above all, I was able to finish another race which is important. Now I can work on being more comfortable and improve my performance lap after lap. I couldn’t keep both Virgins behind me today, and we need to understand why we were slower. Overall, I think we can be satisfied and keep in mind the new improvements coming in Barcelona.
Vitantonio Liuzzi – 22nd:
It was a good Grand Prix weekend until qualifying. We showed an improvement in our performances and had a good pace on Friday and Saturday, proving that the gap with Virgin is small. In the race, we need to try to understand why we were slower. We particularly had an issue with the tires and need to ensure this doesn’t happen again. Our expectations are higher in Barcelona, and we are working on updates that could be crucial for the future. I am confident that we will be better there.
Colin Kolles – Team Principal:
The race did not go as we wanted, mainly due to unexpected tire issues during the pit stops. The gun did not function properly during Liuzzi’s refueling, causing him to lose a wheel nut during the race and having to return to the pits several times.
«However, we managed good lap times in the race. Narain [Karthikeyan]’s times were good. We are expecting a significant development of the car in Barcelona. It’s our home race, we hope to make a good step forward and have a better weekend.»
