Toro Rosso

Formula 1 Team reports for the 2010 F1 season includes race previews, reports and reviews

Moderator: Ed

Ed
NewsOnF1 Editor
NewsOnF1 Editor
Posts: 22255
Joined: Wed Jan 19, 2005 1:24 pm

Post by Ed » Sun Feb 28, 2010 10:34 am

BARCELONA TEST – DAY 3 27 February 2010

Circuit: Circuit de Catalunya – 4.655 kms
Driver: Sebastien Buemi
Chassis: STR5 - 02
Best time: 1:21.413, 106 laps

“Today’s programme was supposed to be a repeat of yesterday’s – pit stop practice in the morning, followed by a race simulation in the afternoon - with Sebastien taking over from Jaime, ” explained Chief Engineer, Laurent Mekies. “However, the morning rain slightly altered the plans, although we were able to complete the race simulation, as there were only two periods of light drizzle in the afternoon.”

“Despite the rain, my first day in Barcelona has gone well,” commented Sebastien Buemi at the end of the session. “Carrying out a race simulation was very useful and it was particularly interesting to see how the tyre behaviour changed depending on the fuel load. In the races, it will be important to drive smoothly, as on full tanks it is very easy to damage the tyres if you slide too much. Today was good and so we can try and improve a bit more tomorrow, our last chance before Bahrain.”

“With just one more day of pre-season testing remaining, It is very encouraging that we have successfully completed two race simulations on two consecutive days,” said Technical Director, Giorgio Ascanelli.

Ed
NewsOnF1 Editor
NewsOnF1 Editor
Posts: 22255
Joined: Wed Jan 19, 2005 1:24 pm

Post by Ed » Mon Mar 01, 2010 11:45 am

BARCELONA TEST – DAY 4
28 February 2010

Circuit: Circuit de Catalunya – 4.655 kms
Driver: Sebastien Buemi
Chassis: STR5 - 02
Best time: 1:22.135, 88 laps

ALGUERSUARI 3305 kms + BUEMI 2441 kms = 5746 Total Kilometres completed in pre-season testing*

Sebastien Buemi: “I am pleased with my two days here in Barcelona. Today, we concentrated on doing a scan of various mechanical set-up options as well as some aero work. Overall, I think we are in good shape and now I’m looking forward to the first race to see where we stand compared to everyone else.”

Franz Tost: “Just two weeks from today, we will be racing in the Bahrain Grand Prix. It will be Scuderia Toro Rosso’s first ever race with a car designed totally in-house. Thanks to an intensive and effective programme through 2009 and the enormous efforts of all our staff and suppliers we were able to get our car out on schedule and I want to thank them for a job well done. Because the car was ready on time, we have made the most of the 15 days of testing, during which STR5 has enjoyed excellent reliability. We therefore managed to complete a very respectable mileage with both our drivers, despite the bad weather at the two Jerez tests. It was also important that both Jaime and Sebastien completed a full race simulation here in Barcelona. It means we can arrive at the Sakhir circuit reasonably confident as far as reliability goes. We have also seen that our two relatively inexperienced drivers have learned a lot from these test days and that they have been diligent over the winter in their physical preparation. Never before, in its five year history has Scuderia Toro Rosso gone into a season so well prepared. It just leaves the big question – how fast will we be? And the answer to that will have to wait at least until after qualifying and the race in Bahrain.”

*Buemi had one more day of testing than Alguersuari, but our Catalan driver got more dry running, which explains the difference in kilometres completed.

Ed
NewsOnF1 Editor
NewsOnF1 Editor
Posts: 22255
Joined: Wed Jan 19, 2005 1:24 pm

Post by Ed » Sat Mar 13, 2010 7:16 am

Jaime Alguersuari (STR5-03)

“A good day in which we did all the laps we could, trying many different things. I think we improved during the day, but it’s hard to know where you are with the wide range of fuel loads being used. I feel the performance is there and if we have another nice day tomorrow, then we should be able to get the most out of the car. The track was very green this morning, but it started to rubber in this afternoon. The new section is nothing special and very slow, but I knew that from working on the simulator, which meant I already had an idea where to turn in and where were the braking points.”

First Practice Session
Best lap 1.57.722, pos. 11th, 18 laps
Second Practice Session
Best lap 1.59.799, pos. 16th, 31 laps


Sebastien Buemi (STR5-01)
“I’m glad I spent plenty of time driving this track on our simulator, as I did no timed laps this afternoon, because of a problem with the car. The changes to the track were much as I expected and there is a big bump at Turn 6. There are no passing places in the new section, but it makes for a longer track which is more interesting to drive. You need to be competitive in Sector 2 for a good lap time, which means you must compromise between needing high downforce for this slow part, while less downforce will make you quicker in Sectors 1 and 2. Fortunately, we will be able to analyse Jaime’s data and start from a better position tomorrow. However, when you miss most of Friday testing, it doesn’t make life easy. But we have to live with that and concentrate on tomorrow.”

First Practice Session
Best lap 1.58.399, pos. 14th, 13 laps
Second Practice Session
No timed lap

Ed
NewsOnF1 Editor
NewsOnF1 Editor
Posts: 22255
Joined: Wed Jan 19, 2005 1:24 pm

Post by Ed » Sun Mar 14, 2010 2:34 am

2010 BAHRAIN GRAND PRIX – SATURDAY 13/03/10

(slightly) “BETTER THAN EXPECTED”

Sebastien Buemi (STR5-01)

“It’s pretty much what we expected and we appear to be fighting with Petrov, the Saubers and the Williams. As always I felt I could have done better, but not by much, maybe two tenths. Tomorrow for the first race, I would hope to finish in the points, which this year means getting to tenth. That would involve moving up five places, which is not an impossible task, given that it will be a long race and anything could happen.”

Third Practice Session: Best lap 1.56.295, pos. 15th, 17 laps
Qualifying Session: Best lap 1.56.265, pos. 15th

Jaime Alguersuari (STR5-03)
“We hoped to be in Q2 but I made a mistake on my fastest lap on the soft tyres. The grip level was quite low, I was pushing hard and it caught me out, going too fast into a turn. There is room for improvement of course and I hope I can have a good race tomorrow and move up the order a bit, but it looks like it will be tough to score points. We will have to do better next time.”

Third Practice Session: Best lap 1.56.504, pos. 16th, 16 laps
Qualifying Session: Best lap 1.57.071, pos. 18th

Giorgio Ascanelli: “I am disappointed with the fact we were not able to give Sebastien any running yesterday, but today, I am actually quite happy that we did better than seventeenth and eighteenth, which is what I had expected. Jaime had traffic and made a mistake, which can happen, so he is capable of better. With only limited running in free practice, Seb didn’t get the best out of himself and the car, but I am happy with what both drivers did. There is no reason to expect a better race pace, but it will be a tough afternoon during which I hope we will be sustained by our reliability.”

Ed
NewsOnF1 Editor
NewsOnF1 Editor
Posts: 22255
Joined: Wed Jan 19, 2005 1:24 pm

Post by Ed » Mon Mar 15, 2010 4:26 pm

2010 BAHRAIN GRAND PRIX – SUNDAY 14/03/10

TOUGH LOVE!

Jaime Alguersuari
(STR5-03) Pos. 13th

"It was positive that I managed to finish the first race of the season, also the first with the new no fuelling regulations. There is still a lot of room to improve, especially for me and also for the team as we should be in a position to challenge for points, being somewhere around seventh to eleventh in the races. We will need to work hard to achieve that. In terms of my physical condition, I feel that I am in much better shape than last year, when I had very little time to train, so that most of my races were just taxi drives. This track was not the best for us and now we must analyse all the data and see how to improve. One thing is certain, we need to qualify better."

Sebastien Buemi
(STR5-01) Pos. 16th

"I’m not sure what happened at the start, but I got a lot of wheelspin, so I did not get away well and everyone passed me. After that, the first lap was quite hectic and I got a couple of places back. We decided to stay on a one stop strategy and for a while it was going well and I closed on De La Rosa, but those who took on new tyres before me were faster and so they got past me. By the time I pitted, I had lost too many places. After changing tyres, I got stuck behind Jaime and was unable to pass him and with three laps to go, the car just stopped. Tough love!”

Franz Tost

"This first race weekend did not go the way we expected, because, based on the result of our testing in February, we thought we would be closer to the points. Buemi suffered a hydraulic problem on Friday and hardly did any laps and was therefore unable to find the best set-up and we paid heavily for this in Qualifying. As for the race, we have to analyse why Buemi had such a poor start and now we have find out why his car stopped without warning, with what we assume was an electrical problem. At least Alguersuari finished the race, in thirteenth place, so this is another circuit he can tick off his learning book. We will now analyse the whole weekend in the hope of returning to the pace and reliability we had in winter testing and we are looking forward to fighting back in Melbourne.”

Ed
NewsOnF1 Editor
NewsOnF1 Editor
Posts: 22255
Joined: Wed Jan 19, 2005 1:24 pm

Post by Ed » Fri Mar 26, 2010 6:19 pm

2010 AUSTRALIAN GRAND PRIX – FRIDAY 26/03/10

Sebastien Buemi (STR5-01)

“I was quite happy with the way things went, even if the weather was not so good. Unlike Bahrain, I managed to complete all the sessions which is positive. Now we have to analyse the data from FP2 as it should give us a good picture of tyre behaviour in all conditions – wet, dry, high and low fuel – working mainly in race trim. We are quite confident that we can be well prepared for qualifying and the race. A good day’s work.”

First Practice Session
Best lap 1.28.014, pos. 8th, 21 laps

Second Practice Session
Best lap 1.26.832, pos. 6th, 29 laps

Jaime Alguersuari (STR5-03)

“It is my first time here and I think it is an amazing track. It’s a pleasure to be here in Melbourne, because everyone had told me what a great event this is. Luckily the weather was with us in the first session, so I was able to enjoy learning the track and I was quick. This afternoon in the wet in the second session, of course there was a lot less grip, which is made worse by the fact this is a street circuit. All the same, driving for 90 minutes in the different conditions was very useful. A positive start.”

First Practice Session
Best lap 1.28.572, pos. 13th, 21 laps

Second Practice Session
Best lap 1.30.510, pos. 19th, 43 laps

Ed
NewsOnF1 Editor
NewsOnF1 Editor
Posts: 22255
Joined: Wed Jan 19, 2005 1:24 pm

Post by Ed » Sun Mar 28, 2010 7:39 am

2010 AUSTRALIAN GRAND PRIX – SATURDAY 27/03/10

TRENDY

Giorgio Ascanelli: "Both drivers did a good job, even if Jaime made a mistake at Turn 14, which he is unhappy about, but I'm happy that he's unhappy about it! We have introduced a few changes to the car since the last race and it has made a difference today. It is too early to talk about an improving trend, but if we can repeat this type of qualifying performance in Malaysia, then that would be a confirmation that we are moving forward. And what a fantastic lap from Vettel in the Red Bull!"

Sebastien Buemi: “I am reasonably happy with today's performance as I don't think I could have done much more and I was unable to improve on my second set of soft tyres. I am very happy to be twelfth as eleventh was too far out of my reach as I was about five tenths off Hamilton. I hope we can come up with a good strategy for tomorrow, because if we do, then hopefully, I can finish in the points.”

Jaime Alguersuari: “I think my performance was quite okay, especially with the harder tyre. Maybe if I had got more out of the soft tyre I could have improved a place or two. But because the track is not so long, the times are all very close. I am quite happy with what I did today, as I am getting closer to my team-mate's performance which is one of my objectives. But there is still plenty of room for improvement.”

Ed
NewsOnF1 Editor
NewsOnF1 Editor
Posts: 22255
Joined: Wed Jan 19, 2005 1:24 pm

Post by Ed » Tue Mar 30, 2010 9:30 pm

Was this exciting enough for you?

Jaime Alguersuari
STR5-03
Pos. 11th
“I think on the one hand I’m quite happy as I had a long fight with Michael (Schumacher) which was nice. I was under a lot of pressure, but I was able to keep him behind me for many laps until I made a small mistake at Turn 13 with a few laps to go and he managed to pass me. That mistake might have cost me a point, but we have to be happy with the progress we made this weekend, especially as I feel there is still a lot more to come.”

Sebastien Buemi
STR5-01
Retired
“Today went really badly for me as I was involved in someone else’s accident on the opening lap and I don’t really know how it happened; I guess Kobayashi must have braked really late. I did not get the best of starts but I was still holding position. Then I was hit from behind at Turn 6. It’s a very disappointing end to what had looked like a promising weekend with a very real chance to score points at the end of Sunday. But that’s racing and at least we only have to wait a few days to try again in Malaysia.”

Franz Tost: “This was a fantastic and very interesting Formula 1 race and a lesson to those who seem to want to change the rules of the sport every five minutes. Unfortunately, Buemi was involved in an opening lap incident with Kobayashi. As for Alguersuari, he did a solid job right from the start of Friday and it was by far the most competitive race weekend of his F1 career. His performance continues to improve with every race and he would have deserved a point today. He also learned an interesting lesson from Michael Schumacher, in that if you lose concentration for just one tenth of a second, he will pass you. Overall, I am quite confident for the forthcoming races, as when compared to our work in Bahrain, the team made a significant step forward here in Melbourne.”

Ed
NewsOnF1 Editor
NewsOnF1 Editor
Posts: 22255
Joined: Wed Jan 19, 2005 1:24 pm

Post by Ed » Mon Apr 05, 2010 2:03 am

2010 MALAYSIAN GRAND PRIX – FRIDAY

Sebastien Buemi (STR5-01)
“I am happy with the way today went. In the morning we concentrated on finding out how our car behaved on this track and then in the afternoon, we completed a lot of laps, including a very long stint, to assess tyre behaviour. On the long run, I did 30 laps, which is over half a race distance and although the conditions are very tough in terms of the high temperature and humidity, I was fine in the cockpit. I am looking forward to tomorrow, because I think we have established a good base line from which to make progress in the last free practice, before tackling qualifying.”

First Practice Session - Best lap 1.36.100, pos. 10th, 20 laps
Second Practice Session - Best lap 1.35.660, pos. 8th, 39 laps

Jaime Alguersuari (STR5-03)

“This is another new track for me, apart from a session on the simulator. Driving it for real is a different matter and I found it was quite a difficult track to learn, at the same time as understanding the behaviour of the two types of tyre. This afternoon’s long run went well. I lost a little bit of time this morning with an electrical problem, but we have improved over the day and there is still more to come from me and from the car.”

First Practice Session - Best lap 1.36.645, pos. 13th, 18 laps
Second Practice Session - Best lap 1.36.325, pos. 14th, 39 laps

Ed
NewsOnF1 Editor
NewsOnF1 Editor
Posts: 22255
Joined: Wed Jan 19, 2005 1:24 pm

Post by Ed » Mon Apr 05, 2010 2:05 am

2010 MALAYSIAN GRAND PRIX – SATURDAY

Giorgio Ascanelli: "Malaysian rain is like English tea: it comes around five and it’s the same temperature. Seriously though, we got our tactics right in going out immediately in Q1. But in Q2, if we had more confidence in the forecast, we should have gone out earlier on Intermediates, but we thought it was too risky. We called Sebastien in at the right minute, but he did not come in and we missed the best slot. Jaime was very lucky not to run out of fuel in Q1 as he stayed out for one lap too long and in Q2, I would say he is pretty much where we would have expected. Therefore, something of a missed opportunity today.”

Sebastien Buemi:

“I’m angry because I did not make the most of Q2. But there’s nothing I can do about it and so we will have to tackle the race from where we are. I started Q2 on full wets because we felt the conditions demanded it, but I stayed on track too long and then, after I came in and switched to the Intermediates, it was too late because the rain had started to get stronger again.”

Jaime Alguersuari:

“When you look at what happened to some of the quicker guys, I would say this qualifying result is reasonably okay for me. However, maybe if I had come in earlier in Q2 to switch from full wets to intermediates, then maybe I could have had a chance of seeing Q3. If the conditions are similar to this tomorrow and I believe that is the forecast, then you never know what could happen, although personally I would prefer a dry race.”

Ed
NewsOnF1 Editor
NewsOnF1 Editor
Posts: 22255
Joined: Wed Jan 19, 2005 1:24 pm

Post by Ed » Mon Apr 05, 2010 2:07 am

2010 MALAYSIAN GRAND PRIX – SUNDAY

Jaime Alguersuari (STR5-03) Pos. 9th

“I am very happy to have scored points today and I have to say I never expected to do it so early in the season. A big thanks to everyone in the team who have worked so hard to achieve this result. Step by step, I have improved my performance, but this weekend was very tough because I didn’t know the track. I enjoyed this race, especially the fights I had with some of the others: I think I learned a bit about the art of fighting with Michael (Schumacher) last weekend in Melbourne. Towards the end, I was a bit worried about how the tyres would last, as I was on the soft ones, but I had no degradation. It is very satisfying and I feel a lot more confident now going into the upcoming races.”


Sebastien Buemi (STR5-01) Pos. 11th

“This race didn’t go so well for me, because, after quite a good start, my front wing was damaged on the first lap when I made contact with Kobayashi. It meant that from then on, I lacked grip and had a lot of understeer. I ended driving for much of the race with a damaged wing, but once it was changed I was able to put in some very fast lap times, but by then it was too late to do much. A one stop strategy in any case was not on for me, as I did two stints on the Option tyre. In general, these two races in one week have not gone well for me, but we can be optimistic about Shanghai, as the whole package, the car and the team seems to have made a step forward this weekend. And congratulations to Jaime for his first F1 points.”

Franz Tost: “A very good weekend for Red Bull, with three out of four cars in the points. Well done to Red Bull Racing for this well deserved one-two finish. We are very pleased to have scored our first points of the season and well done to Alguersuari for the first two points of his F1 career. Jaime continues to improve each weekend. He got a good start and then drove a fantastic race, not only defending his position but also carrying off some daring overtaking moves. Then for the last third of the race, he controlled the situation, looking after his tyres and the engine to complete an excellent race performance. Buemi made a reasonable start, but unfortunately, he made contact with Kobayashi at Turn 2 on the opening lap, which damaged the nose and front wing end plate. After this, he soon complained of heavy understeer, so we brought forward his first pit stop. Having calculated that a nose change at this time would have lost him too much track position, we did not change it, again bringing him in early at the second stop when we did fit the new nose. After that, his lap times improved and he brought the car home eleventh. We are looking forward to China with optimism, because not only do the drivers continue to improve, but the team also worked very well, so I hope we can pick up some more points in Shanghai.”

Ed
NewsOnF1 Editor
NewsOnF1 Editor
Posts: 22255
Joined: Wed Jan 19, 2005 1:24 pm

Post by Ed » Fri May 07, 2010 1:56 pm

2010 CHINESE GRAND PRIX – FRIDAY 16/04/10

Jaime Alguersuari (STR5-03)
“Another new circuit for me: it’s impressive, tough and technical but enjoyable to drive. Today went well for me, as we completed a lot of work, trying different fuel loads and working on set-up, as well as a tyre comparison. The hard tyre definitely takes a lot longer to come up to temperature, while the soft tyre seemed to work very well for us and should be good in the race. We still have work to do to improve tomorrow, but I am happy with what we have achieved so far.”
First Practice Session - Best lap 1.38.161, pos. 11th, 19 laps
Second Practice Session - Best lap 1.36.377, pos. 8th, 43 laps

Sebastien Buemi (STR5-01)
“There’s not much to say about what happened in FP1. I braked, the wheels came off and that was it. Physically, I was fine though. But I have to say, I am extremely disappointed that, once again, through no fault of my own, I have been unable to run for almost all of the three hours available. I will have to try and catch up on Saturday morning and we will be relying on Jaime’s data from today to see which way to go.”
First Practice Session - Best lap 1.39.939, pos. 17th, 5 laps
Second Practice Session – No time

Giorgio Ascanelli: “Sebastien’s accident this morning was down to a technical problem on the right hand upright, which proved simple to identify once we got the car back. We have resolved the problem, which the many laps completed by Jaime this afternoon confirms. Sebastien’s FP1 session was interrupted shortly after the start because of a fluid leak around the pedal area, which we discovered after his installation lap. Apart from the upright, the afternoon accident caused some damage to the gearbox and a combination of fixing this problem and changing the front end meant that, despite the best efforts of the mechanics, we could not get Seb out before the end of the day. Fortunately, Jaime did a lot of laps in a trouble free session, after we had stopped him as a precaution towards the end of FP1, until we had identified the problem on his team-mate’s car. For his debut on this circuit, Jaime did quite a good job today.”

Ed
NewsOnF1 Editor
NewsOnF1 Editor
Posts: 22255
Joined: Wed Jan 19, 2005 1:24 pm

Post by Ed » Fri May 07, 2010 1:57 pm

2010 CHINESE GRAND PRIX – SATURDAY 17/04/10

Giorgio Ascanelli: “I don’t like having all our eggs in one basket, so we split them, with one car anticipating rain tomorrow and one with a downforce level more suited for the dry. Guess which one was fastest today. Tomorrow we will see what happens! The team worked efficiently, making no mistakes. Both drivers did a good job and in Buemi’s case, we could not have expected more from him, after he got no running yesterday. I’m glad we sorted out the problem on his car quickly, so I’d say that, overall, things are looking up!”

Jaime Alguersuari: “We are getting closer to Q3 and I think we did a good job so far this weekend, especially as it’s my first time at this track. I expect we can have a good race tomorrow, as the car works well over a distance, running consistently and we seem to have got it to work better than in Malaysia. We will have to wait and see what the weather brings, but I think I have a realistic chance of scoring points tomorrow, whether it is wet or dry, so I would prefer it if it does not rain.”

Sebastien Buemi:“I had no problem with getting back in the car after what happened yesterday, although of course the lack of track time affected me. In any case the team did a good job to rebuild the car so that I could run trouble free today. To be honest, I was expecting to get a better grid position, but it’s understandable when you don’t drive on Friday. As for the race, we have gone for a compromise setting that should also work if the predicted rain arrives tomorrow. P13 is not too far away from the points, so let’s wait and see what we can do.”

Ed
NewsOnF1 Editor
NewsOnF1 Editor
Posts: 22255
Joined: Wed Jan 19, 2005 1:24 pm

Post by Ed » Fri May 07, 2010 1:58 pm

2010 CHINESE GRAND PRIX – SUNDAY 18/04/10
TIME TO GO HOME…IF WE CAN!

Jaime Alguersuari (STR5-03) Pos. 13th
“I tried to get points today, but in the end it wasn’t possible as I made a mistake lapping a Hispania, who was slower than me and was shown the blue flag, but he moved from side to side. I tried to get past on the right, but he came back on me and touched my wing, which is how I lost it. We tried to switch to Intermediates before everyone, but in the end I had to pit for an additional set. I did what I could in what was a crazy race. On the slick tyres, we were really fast and I got past Sutil and there were some good passing moves, but I’m disappointed with the result. Now we go to my home race in Barcelona where I hope to challenge for points again.”

Sebastien Buemi (STR5-01) Retired
“Not running on Friday was my first problem, because that means you don’t qualify so well and once you have to start the race from the middle of the pack, the risk of this type of accident is always greater. I don’t want to blame anyone for the crash, but Liuzzi lost his car and crashed into me. It has been a very difficult weekend and now we need to work and see what we can do in Barcelona. I also need a bit more luck.”

Franz Tost: “Sebastien made a good start, but unfortunately, he was hit by Liuzzi, who spun under braking. This was the second time this season that Sebastien has been involved in an accident not of his own making. Overall, he performed well this weekend up to that point, recovering from his lack of running on Friday. I’m sure a good result will come his way soon. Jaime drove another good race, even if the changing weather conditions were not so easy for him to deal with. He had to make two extra stops, once after the first lap when he thought he had damaged his front wing, after touching Kobayashi. But when he came in, we did not see any damage, so did not change it. The second stop came when he lost the front wing after a coming together with a backmarker and, but for these two extra stops, I’m convinced he could have finished in the points once again. Our car performance was good here and the team worked well in this afternoon’s complicated conditions, so we are looking forward to Spain.”

Ed
NewsOnF1 Editor
NewsOnF1 Editor
Posts: 22255
Joined: Wed Jan 19, 2005 1:24 pm

Post by Ed » Fri May 07, 2010 1:59 pm

SPANISH GRAND PRIXVIEW

The Spanish GP signals the start of the European part of the season: a good time to quiz our drivers and team principal about the season so far and expectations for the upcoming races.

JAIME ALGUERSUARI

Are you looking forward to the Spanish Grand Prix?
JA: “Yes, because every time I have raced here it is has been special as it is my home track and there is plenty of support for me, making for a great atmosphere. This will be the first time I race in the Spanish Grand Prix and I expect there will be a lot of my friends and fans coming to watch, also because there are several Spanish drivers on the grid this year. One important factor is that this is the first track of the season I have driven on before, so that should make life easier for me.”

Will you treat this race differently to any other?
JA: “No, because after all, it is just one more round of the championship. However, as a home race, all the support from the fans will make a slight difference, in the same way that football teams have an advantage playing a Home match. But in the way we will go about doing our work, it will be the same as all the others.”

You scored your first F1 points in Malaysia. Did you expect that to happen so early in the season?
JA: “No, because there is so much for me still to learn. I am like a sponge at the moment, absorbing every bit of experience I can. The speed is coming, but I am still not getting one hundred percent out of the car and this will get easier as I learn the tracks and get more confident, so I am expecting a lot from the Barcelona weekend.”

You have been involved in some exciting duels on the track. Have you enjoyed that?
JA: “At the moment we don’t have a winning car so we have to battle for points. It’s the only chance we have. When you get in the car you are relaxed but aggressive because you know you are going to fight. And that is what we drivers like; we don’t like to race on our own having an easy race. Of course we all want to win but it’s more fun to fight someone and it’s been like that since I was go-karting. That has always been my mentality to be aggressive and to win the fight.”

Your opinion of the Catalunya track?
JA: “Catalunya is a very nice track as it has a good variety of slow, medium and high speed corners and it is very technical. Corners like the blind Turn 7 are very exciting and there are some overtaking opportunities, especially the first corner, as long as you get a good run out of the final turn. The circuit layout tests every aspect of a car’s performance, aero, mechanical, engine, so if the STR5 works well here, it will be a good sign for the rest of the year.”


SEBASTIEN BUEMI

How would you describe your first part of this season?
SB: “In the past, in other formulas, I’ve had some poor starts, but in terms of experiencing bad luck and suffering from a few technical problems, I cannot remember one quite as tough as this, so it’s a case of there being a first time for everything! The first four races have been very difficult to deal with, especially when in three of them I have been knocked out by other drivers’ accidents. Therefore I hope Barcelona will be a turning point with an improvement in my situation.”

How would you assess your car, the STR5 in terms of its performance?
SB: “I believe in terms of theoretical pace, the car is certainly capable of putting us just outside the top ten, making us the sixth team, whereas currently we are eighth in the championship. We have had difficulties, but on a positive note the car is definitely competitive and I am reasonably confident that in the coming races we will be able to score points. Not only does the car show potential, but also the team is working very hard and doing a good job. You also need a bit of luck in Formula 1, so I hope this is the weekend when my luck will change for the better and I can have a trouble-free weekend, with a good result waiting at the end of it.”

Last week, you drove at Vairano, completing an aerodynamics test. Was the work you did aimed at the Spanish Grand Prix?
SB: “No, the aim was a bit more long-term, looking at developments for a bit later in the season. The main objective was to validate some of our research work, to see if the track produced the same results and data as we have seen in the wind tunnel. It went very well, which with only four aero tests permitted during the year, was very important and the team was pleased with the results we obtained. Now, the engineers have to analyse all the data thoroughly to ensure we move forward in the right direction.”

You are now well into your second F1 season. How do you feel about the job compared to your debut year?
SB: “I am much better prepared, physically and mentally and I am making far fewer mistakes than last year. Now, I have to keep pushing, because the speed is there, the ability to get a good result is also there and I have already managed some good qualifying performances. What we need to do is put together the perfect weekend, with no bad luck or technical problems, as we know how important it is to have a good Friday practice. I believe I am capable of doing much better, so I am very much looking forward to Barcelona, a track I know well, where I am convinced we can have a good race.”

The media spotlight will focus on your team-mate this weekend, as he is the “local boy.” Does the fact that Jaime now has more experience with a few more races under his belt help you, in terms of what he can bring to the team?
SB: “In the half season he did last year, he was a long way back, which made it difficult for him to contribute much in the briefings and in terms of developing the car. Now, he has improved a lot and is much faster and therefore able to provide much better feedback. This is entirely positive, as it means we can work together better to move the car forward.”


FRANZ TOST

Before the season, you said we had to finish in the top eight in the Constructors’ championship and currently that’s where we are. Does that mean you are happy with the team’s performance so far?
FT: “Not entirely, as we could have had better results. Through reliability problems, we lost some Friday sessions and in such a closely contested championship, every minute of track time is vital to set up the car correctly and to get the most out of the package. On top of that, in the races, our drivers have been involved in accidents, generally not their own fault, which has cost them a finish in the points. Analysing the actual race performance, it’s clear we should have picked up more points than the two we have so far. However, I am optimistic that our package is capable of delivering more points in the near future.”

What is your assessment of the STR5, the first car we have designed completely in-house?
FT: “The STR5 seems quite competitive in terms of performance, however, you can only be truly happy if you win races, but within the limitations of our resources, I believe we are working in an efficient manner and making progress, because building the infrastructure to become a front-running team takes time. We are on the right road.”

For the fourth consecutive year, the team is using Ferrari engines, which have experienced some problems this year, with the Ferrari team itself and its other customer team. How is it that we seem to have avoided these issues?
FT: “It is possible that we have adopted a more cautious approach in the way we manage the engines. This does not mean we can afford to be complacent as engine failures are always a possibility.”

In Barcelona, the spotlight will be on local boy Jaime Alguersuari. How do you assess his season so far?
FT: “He has made a great step forward from when he competed in the second half of last season. In that time, he discovered how much he had to learn and the level of commitment required to become a successful Formula 1 driver. He was clever enough to understand this and therefore he put himself through a very intensive and disciplined testing and physical training programme and everyone in the team is impressed by his progress, so we expect him to deliver very good race results at some point this year.”

And what about our “veteran” Buemi?
FT: “Sebastien’s performance this year has been much better than the results would indicate. Apart from at the opening round in Bahrain, every race has seen him involved in accidents not of his own making: twice with Kobayashi and in China with Liuzzi. I have absolutely no doubt he will deliver some very good results soon.”

There have been some interesting technical developments in these early races. Can Scuderia Toro Rosso keep pushing on this front as the season progresses?
FT: “Our technical department is working very hard and we will deliver some updates over the forthcoming races and I believe we can step up in terms of our performance level. Specifically for the Spanish Grand Prix, we will introduce new brake ducts and a new engine cover. In the last couple of races we already saw an improvement in our package, so in Barcelona, I would hope that if we do everything perfectly, we could get at least one driver through into Qualifying 3 for the first time this season, or if not, then at least very close to tenth on the grid, so that more points has to be a realistic target for us this weekend. Both drivers tested here during the winter and for Jaime specifically, it is his home race, on the first track of the year that is not new to him, where he has competed on a regular basis in the lower formulae.”

Post Reply