Toro Rosso drivers Jean-Eric Vergne and Daniel Ricciardo admit the team slightly lost their way this afternoon at Monza as they struggled to fifteenth and seventeenth respectively. Both were happier with their car in the morning but Vergne doesn’t see their problem as something they can’t overcome.
“The car worked well in the morning, but we were not so competitive in the second session. On my short runs and also on the long one, I had a problem with the balance of the car, although this afternoon, that aspect was a little bit better than in the morning. Generally though, I suffered with a lack of grip, which I can’t explain at the moment. However, I am confident we can find ways of moving forward and enjoying a competitive weekend at our home race.”
Ricciardo didn’t feel he got a clean lap in on option tyres this afternoon but feels the set-up is still short of what he would like.
“Our performance was quite good this morning and we tried to improve for FP2, but unfortunately, we seem to have gone in the wrong direction. Having run only the Hard in the morning, in the afternoon, I did not set a competitive time on the Medium. I did make some mistakes and I will admit to that, but there were too many of them so we definitely need to get the car to suit me a bit better. At the moment, it’s on a knife edge. I was happier on the long run I did this afternoon and that was the most positive aspect. Driving here at Monza is always different and this morning, on the first runs, you definitely feel that extra speed down the straight, which is a nice feeling and something I enjoy about being here.”
