10 July 2011
The team achieves its objectives for the race as Timo and Jérôme finish 16th and 17th in the British Grand Prix
It was sunny all morning at Silverstone, but as the race got nearer the clouds got darker, and about an hour before the race, rain started falling.
It had already stopped by the time the pitlane opened, but the track was still very wet at the far end of the circuit but completely dry on the Hangar straight. After discussions on the grid, both drivers opted to start on Intermediates, as did the rest of the field.
It wasn't long before a dry line appeared, and the radio was constantly in use, trying to work out the best time to switch to slicks. Timo and Jérôme both stopped on lap 11, with the team doing a great double-stop to get them back in the race without delay. Once on Options, Jérôme was able to pass Liuzzi, and was able to pull out a safe margin.
Blue flags are always something to be avoided, and the team tries to adapt strategies to minimize the time lost allowing the leaders past. Aiming for one further stop, again to take on Options as the wet start meant there was no need to use both types of dry tyre in the race, both drivers needed to look after their tyres - especially difficult given the limited dry running in the Free Practice sessions.
Towards the end of the race, Jérôme's front left tyre was suffering significant deterioration, but he was able to hang on to the finish without having to make a further stop. Timo was classified 16th and Jérôme 17th, a good result for the team.
Timo Glock
“A good race for us today and a good result for the team in getting both cars to the finish in our home Grand Prix. It was quite a normal race for us I would say. I got a good start and a good first lap. The first couple of corners were a bit of a mess but when everything started to settle down I was in front of Jarno and could hold my pace okay to stay in front of him. After they were out of the race I had a relatively easy time. It wasn’t possible to gain places so I didn’t push too hard; I just concentrated on achieving our objective today which was another two-car finish. I’m happy for us and hope for more of the same in my home race in Germany in two weeks’ time.”
Jérôme D’Ambrosio
“It was very difficult at the beginning when it was wet and I lost quite a bit of time there. Then in the second stint it was ok. I had a good fight with Tonio and managed to overtake him. The last stint was very difficult, after a couple of laps I had no grip on the front left tyre so I couldn’t attack much and I just had to back off all the time and just make sure I could last until the end of the race. I was quite worried I might have to come back into the pits again but I managed to keep going and get to the end.”
John Booth, Team Principal
“A good finish to the team’s home race weekend, not only with both cars finishing but also a clear positive in terms of an improvement in pace. Timo managed the 17th fastest lap in the race and Jérôme pulled off a good overtaking move on Liuzzi in Copse, so both drivers are leaving the track on a positive note. The engineers coped well with the decision that had to be taken on the grid with the tyres and determined a good strategy. This was all helped with some good pit-stop work by the mechanics, including some late calls and coping well with both drivers stopping on the same lap. We’ve got a busy week ahead before the next race in Germany, with an aero test at RAF Cottesmore and also further rig tests. We are all looking forward to maintaining our current form at Timo’s home race.”
Credit: Virgin Racing (www.virginracing.com)
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