Friday: The improvements enhanced the performance of the Williams

Felipe Massa (no.19) – 11th and 6th

The Williams team brought some updates to China, and Felipe Massa is satisfied: « All the updates brought here have improved performance, which is already positive. Having new parts that will be used is good news because we have made a good step forward. The balance and feel of the car are better; however, we know that almost all the other teams have also improved. »

However, not everything was ideal, particularly in tire management, as the Brazilian explains: « The low track temperatures made the surface slippery, and if it rains tomorrow, it will be the same for the race. We also suffered from front graining, but we can make changes to resolve this issue. »

The native of Sao Paulo is nevertheless pleased with this first day which allowed for a good start to the Chinese Grand Prix weekend: « Today has been a good day and the long runs have provided us with useful data to work with. »

Felipe Nasr (No. 40) – 13th [FP1]

Felipe Nasr once again took the wheel of the Williams during free practice 1 for a session full of learning: « It was a bit of a challenge because I had never driven on this circuit before. So while testing new parts, I was also learning the circuit, which compromised my ability to push. We had some new things to test, so I focused on that. The track was cold and grip was precarious, but we had to put that aside to get the work done. »

Valtteri Bottas (No. 77) – 14th [FP2]

The Finn only had one session to get into the swing of things in Shanghai, but it was enough for him to notice the progress made thanks to the new developments brought for the Chinese round: « The conditions made things difficult today, but we really gathered interesting data from the new parts. It took me some time to get used to the track this afternoon after missing the morning, made even more challenging by the fact that there are several complicated corner combinations, but once I found my rhythm, it was clear that we had a better package than in Bahrain. »

Valtteri Bottas believes that the weather could play spoilsport on Saturday and Sunday but he remains confident for the rest of the weekend: « The weather could play an important role tomorrow if it rains, it also means that the track will remain slippery for the race which is always interesting. Overall I am satisfied and I know I can do much better in qualifying and in the race. »