Lewis Hamilton hoping for a wet qualifying at Interlagos
Lewis Hamilton admitted that his McLaren still needs a little more downforce after he finished fourth fastest behind the Red Bulls and Fernando Alonso's Ferrari in Friday free practice.
Despite being behind his main rivals on Friday, Hamilton remains confident that he can put his McLaren on the front row, especially if it rains on Saturday.
"The car felt good today - I'm getting everything out of it - but I still felt it needs just a little more downforce," said Hamilton. "Still, I'm optimistic for qualifying tomorrow - especially if it rains, which I'm told it probably will. This year's car is much better than last year's car in the wet, so I feel confident that if it rains we should be able to fight for the front row.
"In terms of pure pace in the dry, the Red Bull looks very quick. But a number of factors will play a part in deciding how things pan out in the next two grands prix - weather, engines, reliability - so it's all still up for grabs."
McLaren team principal Martin Whitmarsh echoed the thoughts of Hamilton in saying that new components and adverse weather conditions will have a big influence on the remainder of the weekend.
"Today was an extremely busy day of testing for us as we gathered data on a number of new components, including floor modifications and a selection of rear wings," said Whitmarsh. "Both drivers reported that the car wasn't as well-balanced as they'd ideally like, but we feel we have enough data to be able to effect some very positive changes ahead of running tomorrow.
"Neither Jenson nor Lewis was able to set optimal lap times during their Option-tyre runs, owing to a yellow flag adversely affecting their running. However, our long-run pace looks particularly encouraging and is a very good basis for Sunday's race.
"In the meantime, the weather forecasters are predicting an 80 per cent chance of rain tomorrow - and that will inevitably have some influence over some of the decisions we take this evening - but we believe we're heading in the right direction for the rest of the weekend."
Credit: ESPN F1
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