BAHRAIN KICKS OFF ON POSITIVE NOTE FOR HRT
Karthikeyan continued solid progression for the Spanish squad through
the opening two practice sessions at round four of the 2012 FIA Formula
1 championship.
The 5.412 km long circuit saw Karthikeyan complete a total of 50 laps in the two sessions, including long runs on heavy fuel to work on race pace and map tyre degradation. The small upgrades brought by the team seemed to help the HRT F112 on the cooling front, ensuring reliable running despite considerably high temperatures compared to the last round in China.
Tyre degradation, especially the rears emerged as the major concern for the team, but it was somewhat expected given the high temperatures and track layout that lays emphasis on traction.
“Today we tried a lot of different options trying to save the tyres because it’s very hot out there and degradation is high. But that seems to be the same for everyone.
“Apart from that, we worked with both tyre compounds, covered a lot of laps to see if the car would overheat, but it seems to be doing fine. So now we’re fairly confident on that front.”
For tomorrow final practice session, the aim is to further optimise the race setup and fine-tuning.
“We will change things a bit tomorrow and adapt the car for the race and, although the weather conditions are a bit extreme, it responded well today”, said the Indian.
The 5.412 km long circuit saw Karthikeyan complete a total of 50 laps in the two sessions, including long runs on heavy fuel to work on race pace and map tyre degradation. The small upgrades brought by the team seemed to help the HRT F112 on the cooling front, ensuring reliable running despite considerably high temperatures compared to the last round in China.
Tyre degradation, especially the rears emerged as the major concern for the team, but it was somewhat expected given the high temperatures and track layout that lays emphasis on traction.
“Today we tried a lot of different options trying to save the tyres because it’s very hot out there and degradation is high. But that seems to be the same for everyone.
“Apart from that, we worked with both tyre compounds, covered a lot of laps to see if the car would overheat, but it seems to be doing fine. So now we’re fairly confident on that front.”
For tomorrow final practice session, the aim is to further optimise the race setup and fine-tuning.
“We will change things a bit tomorrow and adapt the car for the race and, although the weather conditions are a bit extreme, it responded well today”, said the Indian.
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