Hispania expecting to make most of new aero updates
The 2011 FIA Formula One World Championship continues in Asia for the Chinese Grand Prix, held in the city of Shanghai. The third race of the season will take place at the Shanghai International Circuit, another track designed by Hermann Tilke. The track has a very long back straight followed by a hairpin turn, meaning that, once again, tyres will be tested to the limit.
Another long straight between corners 13 and 14 allows cars to reach their maximum speeds so there are plenty of opportunities to overtake. Hispania Racing arrives in China on the back of a positive weekend in Malaysia and looking to finish the race with both cars.
Colin Kolles, Team Principal of Hispania Racing: “It’s always nice to be in China. The weather conditions will be very different from Malaysia, temperatures will be much lower so we’ll face the race in a different way. The track is quite impressive and we’ll be looking to make the most of our new parts on the car. We will have small improvements regarding the rear wing and, overall, aerodynamic improvements. So there will be small improvements which are all part of the update package for Turkey.”
Narain Karthikeyan, Driver #22: “I like the Shanghai International Circuit, it’s a fast, challenging track. I raced there in Formula 1 back in 2005 and also in A1GP, so I know what we’re up against. The conditions are very different to Malaysia, with lower temperatures, so we must try and adapt the F111 to the track and try and get the most out of the new package. The target for the team is to qualify in a good position and, personally, I’m looking to finish the race.”
Vitantonio Liuzzi, Driver #23: “I’ve got very good memories from the Chinese Grand Prix. I drove one of my best races here back in 2007 when I finished 6th with Toro Rosso. It was a tough race but I really enjoyed it. The circuit isn’t too technical but has a very nice shape which allows a lot of overtaking, also the weather is a little bit crazy so the races tend to be a lot of fun, I’m looking forward to racing there again. After the weekend in Malaysia we are lot more confident heading into this race. We are confident the team will work better, we’ve got a lot more data to work on and have a better idea of what the car needs. We also have some upgrades which will help us be quicker and get closer to our competitors. We are aiming to qualify closer to our main rivals, maybe even ahead of them. Once again we are targeting finishing the race and getting more information on the car in order to be better prepared for the European races.”
Source: Hispania F1