Day two at the Circuit de Catalunya saw the Sahara Force India team debut their 2015 VJM08, with Nico Hulkenberg putting good mileage onto the new machine after taking to the track for the first time just before the lunch break.
The German completed 77 laps of the Spanish circuit, concentrating on reliability, and was happy to do as many laps as they did without any noticeable problems.
“It was a very good day, at least in terms of the running we managed to do,” insisted Hulkenberg. “We were able to run reliably straight out of the box and that is very encouraging.
“The boys and girls at the factory and here at the track have been pushing really hard in the last couple of weeks and to do 77 laps in little more than one afternoon is a remarkable job by the team. Obviously we still have a big task ahead of us and we are playing catch-up in certain aspects, but I am quite satisfied so far.”
Hulkenberg felt the car performed well straight from the box, but comparisons with last years VJM07 that he tested with last week were unclear due to the different weather conditions. He hopes to get more running on Saturday before handing over the car to team-mate Sergio Perez for the final day.
“The car feels pretty good, although making a direct comparison with our 2014 car is not easy as the conditions in winter testing are always very particular,” said Hulkenberg. “One of our team’s strengths is to learn about the car quickly, so we will need to get as much data as possible to get in a good position for Melbourne.
“Tomorrow we will be looking at doing more long runs, working with the various tyre compounds and putting more mileage on the car.”
