12/04/2016
NEWS STORY
Fernando Alonso: "It was disappointing to be told I couldn't race in Bahrain, but I fully respected the decision of the FIA medical team. While I hope I'll be back in the cockpit on Friday, until I get the all-clear from the doctors to race - whenever that may be - we cannot assume anything, but I'm continuing to prepare for the race weekend as normal.
"Stoffel did a great job in Bahrain, and although Jenson suffered reliability issues, it was positive to see that both cars ran quite strongly during the weekend. It was also interesting for me to see the race weekend unfold from a different perspective, which helped me to understand everything that goes into getting the cars on track and learn a lot about the different processes, although I'd still prefer to be racing! I've always enjoyed driving in China - I've won there twice before - and I hope we'll be able to have some good battles on track and see more progress this weekend.
"The Chinese Grand Prix is always a little bit of an unknown: the weather is often changeable as it's spring time in Shanghai and the temperatures can often fluctuate, which influences the car's set-up and balance over the course of the weekend. Track temperatures will be much cooler than what we saw in Bahrain, which means keeping heat in the tyres is harder to maintain, so we'll need to focus this weekend on optimising our set-up for the variable conditions.
"The track itself features a challenging mix of corners, and the two long, fast right-handers place a lot of wear on the tyres, especially the front left. It can therefore place huge emphasis on tyre wear and graining, so it's important we get the tyres working properly from the start of every stint so we can manage them during the race and get the best out of them. The circuit is enjoyable to drive, and there are some fun, high-speed sections around the back, so I'm excited to see what our chassis and power unit are capable of there this year."
Jenson Button: The Bahrain race weekend was bittersweet on my side of the garage. We definitely saw another step in the car's performance from Australia as we keep learning more about the handling and characteristics of the car, and bring new upgrades to each grand prix. Friday practice was a real positive, but unfortunately we couldn't make it stick in qualifying and then suffered reliability issues in the race. Saying that, until the point when we lost power, the car had felt very good, and I'm hopeful that we can continue that momentum in Shanghai and make the most of the package we have.
"As always though, we need to work hard on our reliability. We've definitely seen an improvement in that area, but anything less than 100 per cent is never enough, and it's important we take advantage of our progress to bring home the points we deserve and have something to show for all of our efforts. The Chinese Grand Prix is a very different challenge from the past two races, and I've enjoyed racing there in the past. My victory there in 2010 was very memorable and a great race - it just shows how the changeable conditions can really mix things up - so I hope we can enjoy some more good racing there this weekend, and most importantly, see the chequered flag.
"The Shanghai International Circuit has an interesting mix of requirements - quite a few slow- and medium-speed corners, which are followed by two very long straights - one being 1.17km (0.727 miles), and the longest of the season. That places a lot of stress on both the tyres and the power unit, but I'm hopeful that with this year's package, we won't suffer as much on this track as we have done previously. The key will be preparation and set-up: getting the aero balance right from Friday onwards, and getting on top of the tyre wear with every new set.
"This won't be an easy race for us - the conditions will be very different to Australia and Bahrain - but it'll be good for us to test the characteristics of the MP4-31 there, and understand as much as we can about how it behaves on this sort of track and with the cooler temperatures. It's important we gather as much information as possible and take into account all variables as we visit each circuit, so that we can adapt this for grands prix later on in the year. It's a long season, and we're looking for improvements and progress at every race."
Eric Boullier, Racing Director: "While we definitely saw a reassuring improvement in our performance in Bahrain, we cannot take anything for granted, and it's imperative that we don't waste opportunities to score valuable points due to lack of reliability, as we saw at the last race. At the very least, we must learn from every situation, and in the case of Jenson's power unit issue, we've done so, so we go to China with continued optimism that we can try to maximise the potential of our package.
"Despite the decision from the FIA medical team that Fernando was not able to race, the team prepared admirably for the weekend, and Stoffel did a fantastic job to score his and the team's first championship point of the year, in his debut grand prix. Once again, Stoffel will be on standby until Fernando has his routine meeting with FIA doctors on Thursday, and until then we will be readying ourselves as normal. Fernando has been recuperating at home and training as usual, and we, like him, hope to see him back in the car. We'll accept the outcome - whatever that may be - and plan accordingly.
"Next weekend will also see the return of the 2015 qualifying format, which is certainly a positive step for the fans and will hopefully offer a more watchable, engaging qualifying process than the interim solution we saw at the last couple of races. Operationally, the McLaren-Honda team will adapt in our usual way and make the most of the track time and resources available to us in each session. Tyres and power units will be the big talking points this weekend on this challenging, but nonetheless varied and interesting Shanghai International Circuit, so set-up, management and reliability will be key to ensuring we achieve our potential in China."
Yusuke Hasegawa, Honda R&D Co Ltd Head of F1 Project & Executive Chief Engineer: "As we saw from Stoffel's pace in Bahrain, we have surely come a long way since last year. We still need a bit more overall package performance to tackle the long, one-kilometre straight in Shanghai, but it's reassuring to know that we're heading in the right direction.
"There was a mechanical issue on Jenson's ICE which we will replace for the upcoming race weekend. The situation has been thoroughly investigated, and will be rectified in all future engines to be used."
Circuit length: 5.451km/3.387 miles (10th longest track of the year)
Distance to Turn One: 380m/0.236 miles (longest of season: Barcelona, 730m/0.454 miles)
Longest straight: 1.17km/0.727 miles (the longest of season)
Top speed: 340km/h/211mph, on the approach to Turn 14 (fastest of season: Monza, 350km/h/217mph)
Pitlane length: 351m/0.218 miles, estimated time loss 21s (longest of season: Silverstone, 457m/0.283 miles)
Full throttle: 55 per cent (highest of season: Monza, 75 per cent)
DRS zones: Two, on the approaches to Turns One and 14
Key corner: Turn One, a 270-degree right-hander through which the cars slow from 300km/h (186mph) at the end of the pit straight down to 50km/h (31mph) at the apex. Huge amounts of energy are put through the front-left tyre as a result.
Fastest corner: 220km/h (137mph), Turn 13
Slowest corner: 65km/h (40mph), Turn 14
Major changes for 2016: None
Fuel consumption: 1.7kg per lap, making it not quite as critical as the last race in Bahrain
ERS demands: Low
Brake wear: Medium. There are eight big stops from high speed, but the long straights help to cool the brakes
Gear changes: 51 per lap/2856 per race
Built on marshland that was deemed unsuitable for housing, the Shanghai International Circuit is one of the most impressive purpose-built Formula 1 facilities in the world. It cost $450m to construct and the 5.451km/3.387-mile layout is shaped like the Chinese character 'shang', which stands for 'high' or 'above', and the team buildings resemble the ancient Yuyan-Garden in Shanghai.
The combination of one very long back straight - the longest of the entire season - and a couple of 270-degree corners that put a lot of energy through the tyres. Car set-up is a delicate compromise between straight-line speed and cornering grip.
The circuit isn't used much during the year, so there's quite a lot of track evolution during the weekend as rubber is laid down. Last year the lap time improvement was 3.3s from the beginning to the end of the weekend.
This track was designed by Hermann Tilke and Peter Wahl, the creative brains behind the F1 tracks in Bahrain, Abu Dhabi and Malaysia - all of which have substantial run-off areas. The Shanghai International Circuit is no different.
Watch out for... The weather. It's fair to expect a range of temperatures and conditions over the course of the weekend.
Start time: 14:00hrs local/07:00hrs BST
Race distance: 56 laps (full world championship points will be awarded after 75 per cent distance/42 laps)
Safety Car likelihood: 45 per cent. The substantial run-off areas make it relatively easy to remove stranded cars.
When to press record: Don't miss the start. Making consistent getaways has proved tougher than expected this year, since Formula 1 reverted to a single clutch, and that will make the drag to Turn One in China more exciting than ever.
Don't put the kettle on... when the race reaches laps in the mid-teens and mid-30s. These were the two pitstop windows for the top 10 cars in last year's race. Sergio Perez was the first three-stopper to finish, in 11th place.
Weather conditions now: 19 degrees and cloudy
Race forecast: 22 degrees, but there's a chance of rain over the weekend. Fifty per cent of Chinese Grands Prix have been rain-affected.