The Infiniti Red Bull Racing team arrive in China for round three of the 2015 Formula 1 World Championship hopeful the team can turn around its lacklustre start to the season. Both Daniel Ricciardo and Daniil Kvyat finished lapped last time out in Malaysia, with the Russian just ahead of the Australian in ninth and tenth.
Ricciardo, who finished just off the podium in fourth in China twelve months ago, revealed the extreme tyre wear of the Shanghai circuit means when qualifying happens, drivers will have to go slow on their out-laps so not to take the best out of their tyres, especially the fronts.
“I’d call it ‘technical’,” said Ricciardo about the track. “Turns One, Two and Three are all very long and technical. I don’t think there’s any other corner like it on the calendar. And it’s very, very aggressive on the front tyres.
“It’s pretty extreme – but I’d still prefer it to the scenario with a tyre that takes three laps to come in. The fact it comes in straight away is awesome. In qualifying, you drive the out-lap like your grandma, desperately trying to not kill it before the flying lap starts.”
Team-mate Kvyat scored a point for Scuderia Toro Rosso in China in 2014, and is ready to return in 2015 with his new employers. He feels the circuit is a good one, and is able to push all the way around the lap, with the Russian hoping to be able to find a good rhythm so he can get good lap times.
“The start of the lap is always really tough and it’s very easy to get wrong,” said Kvyat. “The lap starts with a big test but the big thing is to find a good rhythm through it. That’s the case everywhere there really.
“The long straight is good and the heavy braking zone at the end of that is interesting. It’s a pretty good circuit, wide open, you can really push hard all the way through.
“I had a good race there last year and managed to get a points finish, so I’m happy to go back.”
