The two Sauber drivers were unhappy with the balance of their cars during Friday practice in Canada, but expect it to improve tomorrow after the team analyse all the data they have gathered today.
“It was a difficult day,” said Pedro de la Rosa, who finished the day 15th fastest. “We tried to find a good balance for the car on a very slippery track, which is not easy. But I think we have a clear understanding of the tyre compounds and can improve the car after we analyse the data tonight.“
Just one position behind the Spaniard after second practice was his teammate Kamui Kobayashi. “Although the track improved a bit compared to this morning, the lack of grip was a major problem and both tyre compounds degraded very quickly,” explained the Japanese driver. “We had hard sessions today, but we do have time to improve the car for tomorrow.”
The Sauber technical director James Key explained the problems facing the team during Friday practice: “Kamui had to learn the circuit today, and for Pedro it was about getting a feeling for the car with the lower downforce level.
“We are lacking general grip at the moment. When it's there, the car looks reasonable, when it's not it turns into a difficult situation. We need to look into how we can maximise the general grip of the car by not only analysing where we are with the aero setting, but mechanically as well and see if we can improve the car over one lap.
“The race pace looks reasonable, but we have to see how the tyres are performing. So we have some work to do.”
