Pastor Maldonado missed out on a possible podium finish in the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix when his Williams car lost KERS midway through the race. The Venezuelan was running a strong second after the retirement of Lewis Hamilton but the subsequent problem left him powerless to prevent Fernando Alonso, Jenson Button and Sebastian Vettel demoting him to fifth.
“We missed the opportunity to finish on the podium today after we lost the use of KERS following the first safety car period. For sure there was more in the car. The pace was good and at the beginning I was closing the gap to Kimi but we still collected some good points today and it was a great race. I feel very motivated within the team. We now need to keep the car at the top and I am looking forward to the last two races.”
Teammate Bruno Senna gave Williams a double points finish by taking eighth despite being caught up in a first lap accident. The Brazilian fell to the back of the field but was delighted with the way he fought back through the field.
“It was a very tough weekend but it had a sweet taste in the end. I had a good start getting myself into a good position for Turn 1 but then a few cars tangled ahead and hit me. I had to start from zero again but I kept my cool. There was a lot going on but we had good pace when we needed it and scored some solid points for the team. It is what we are here for and we never give up. There is a good energy and feeling now going into the final two races in Austin and Brazil.”
