07/10/2014
NEWS STORY
Romain Grosjean and Pastor Maldonado look ahead to this weekend's Russian Grand Prix.
Japan was a difficult weekend for many reasons...
Romain Grosjean: Yes and we all wish Jules the very best recovery. We know he is in the best hands so all we can do now is hope and pray. It was such difficult conditions and it looked like a freak occurrence.
How was your performance on track?
RG: It was certainly a race where you had to really concentrate and focus for every moment. It was right that we should start behind the safety car, but it was right that the race was red flagged once it became clear the conditions were too difficult. Once the rain stopped, the restart was good. We quickly moved from full wets to intermediate tyres and that gives a good gauge of how wet it was. As a team we didn't always make the correct decision with strategy, but it's hard to say if anyone does in changeable conditions like that.
Tell us what you know about Sochi.
RG: I've been driving the Sochi circuit on the simulator. It didn't look very sexy from the outside but it actually seems to be really good fun. There's a great mix of corners and some good high speed areas too. The setting looks to be pretty impressive with a new facility and one where there are mountains not far away as well as being right next to the Black Sea.
For me, it's also quite special to race at the site of and Olympic Games. I'm a huge fan of the Olympics and especially the Winter Olympics, because my grandfather competed in skiing events at the 1948 and 1952 events. Hopefully that will bring me some luck!
It's good to go to Russia as well. It's such a big country. When you fly to Japan most of the time you seem to be just flying over Russia! I've been to Sochi once before in 2009 for a team event and I'm looking forward to seeing more of it.
If you were not a Formula One driver and had to pick an Olympic discipline, which would you most like to do?
RG: I would probably go for skiing or bobsleigh. Like Formula 1, both events are about high speed and picking a racing line. It's all part of my DNA. I actually started my career in skiing before I went into racing so that would probably be the discipline I would choose.
How about driving an F1 car on studded tyres in the snow?
RG: I would love to give it a go! It has been done before, by Lotus F1 Team in Dubai in 2009, but that was indoors so let's try a full outdoor ski slope! I've done a few car races on ice so I'd be happy to try an F1 car in the snow.
How quickly do you learn a new circuit?
RG: Even without a simulator you get a basic idea of the track pretty quickly. What the simulator does is let you speed up this process and make initial decisions about car set-up and so on. What the simulator can't do for a new circuit is give a precise idea of the grip levels you will find as it's a surface we've never raced on before. With any new surface, we'd expect the grip levels to change over the course of the weekend, so that will be part of the challenge.
Does a new circuit afford you any greater opportunities?
RG: We all face the same challenge, but there is an element of how good the driver and team are at quickly getting a handle on the track. Hopefully Sochi is a circuit which suits our car. We won't know the answer to that till we get there!
How have you been able to prepare for Sochi?
Pastor Maldonado: We've been preparing on the simulator, where the track looks very interesting. It's a long lap with some unusual corners. From the simulator work we should know more or less what the racing lines will be and when we arrive on Thursday we will double check as many things as we can. It's good. I'm happy to go there. I'm happy every time Formula 1 opens the door to new countries. I saw some of the Winter Olympics but I've never been to Russia before, so it will be my first time.
Would you say that grip levels and track evolution are the biggest unknowns?
PM: Everything is new and especially in terms of the surface there is no way for us to know how the track will develop during the weekend. In the past we saw situations like in Austin where the track was super slippery at the beginning and then session after session we were making improvements of two or three seconds. It's vital to stay on top of everything because parts of the set-up that were working well might hold you back when you go five or six seconds a lap quicker. You can't take anything for granted and it will be important to keep an open mind throughout the weekend. Have you ever been to Russia before? For me it will be an all-new experience, and one I'm looking forward to a lot. I've met many Russians and I know it's a very big country which has changed a lot over the past decades so it will be very interesting to experience it for myself.
The Japanese Grand Prix was a difficult weekend, what are your thoughts looking back on it?
PM: Firstly, all our thoughts are with Jules, his team and his family. Even though we all know the danger of motorsport, no-one wants an accident like that to happen. We hope he makes a full recovery. For me, it was a solid weekend in the car. We showed some good potential on the Friday, but then we weren't able to show that in qualifying. In the race, which was held under very difficult conditions, we were able to put in some good lap times, even when the grip levels were very poor. It's a big challenge for a racing driver racing when the weather is like that.
What's your aim for the final four races of the season?
PM: We are keeping focused and we still want to get the very best results possible. Even though it's been a tough year, there are still improvements being made to the E22, so there's still potential to get more points before the season ends. We're also as a team starting to focus on 2015 in terms of some of our evaluations at the tracks so we can get as early a start as possible in terms of information for next year's car.
How frustrating has this year been for you?
PM: We all want to get good results so of course this has not been the year that me or the team has wanted. But there have been and there are many positives. Seeing how the team has reacted to all the problems we have faced has shown me many strengths. We have a very clear development path for next season as we have learnt many lessons about this latest generation of car. We have four races left this year, so there's still time for some improved results and more lessons to be learnt.