Pastor Maldonado heads to the Hungaroring this weekend hoping to return to the top ten this weekend after seeing his British Grand Prix hopes ended on the first lap following a multi-car crash that also involved his Lotus F1 Team team-mate Romain Grosjean.
The Venezuelan driver feels the race in Hungary is amongst the best of the season with the expecting large crowds providing a positive atmosphere at an event he enjoys.
“The Hungarian Grand Prix is one of the best of the season,” insisted Maldonado. “We are very close to the city of Budapest which is a place that I like very much. There is a big community of fans at the race weekend and the people are very friendly.
“On track it can be very challenging. The weather is usually very hot there meaning that it is very demanding from a physical point of view. It is one of the races that I enjoy best because of these demands and I really like the challenge that it presents.”
Maldonado hopes the E23 Hybrid, which has shown good pace in low speed corners following development by the Lotus team, continues to be quick in Hungary. He also hopes to be able to qualify well on Saturday because of the limited opportunities to overtake around the twisty Hungaroring circuit.
“It is a very demanding circuit for drivers as it is often very hot and there are limited overtaking opportunities,” said the Venezuelan. “It has quite a slow speed layout and we’ve looked quite good with the E23 in low speed corners so it will be interesting to see how quick we are here.
“Qualifying is so important at this track because of the small number of overtaking opportunities, but I’ve qualified well there in the past so hopefully I can deliver a strong performance.
“I have won in Budapest in other categories so the track has good memories for me. The fans create a good atmosphere and it’s always nice to race at a track where there is a good feeling like this. I am looking forward to the weekend.”
Maldonado insists his target in Hungary is the same as it has been so far this season, which is to finish as high up inside the top ten as possible, something he has only managed twice so far in 2015 despite showing promising pace throughout the season.
“My target is the same as for all the races at the start of the year; to score as many points as possible and finish the race in the best position I can,” said Maldonado.
“I think my first half report card would say good things for effort, but the results didn’t come. Certainly I believe we’ll get better finishes in the second half of the season.”
