Williams Martini Racing’s Chief Technical Officer Pat Symonds, is hoping that the new Mercedes power unit upgrade being introduced this weekend will help improve the Grove based team’s performance and see them score some good points at the United States Grand Prix on Sunday.
The update was originally scheduled for release in Japan but held back by the Mercedes AMG Petronas Formula One Team following the engine failure of driver Lewis Hamilton in Malaysia, and Symonds hopes the Austin track will be one that allows them to feel the benefits.
Circuit of the Americas (COTA) is a challenging circuit to drive, and the uneven surface is a tricky one to deal with in terms of tyre degradation and the overall strain being applied to the car. The Williams man is hoping that it has not deteriorated anymore across the last twelve months, or feels they could find things tough going again on Sunday.
“Austin is one of those modern tracks that has been built to really stretch both the driver and the car. After turn one, the succession of corners is reminiscent of the first part of Suzuka and just as challenging, may be even more so than that classic track.
“Whilst last year’s event was severely disrupted by weather, we hope for a more straightforward weekend this time around. Apart from the weather, one of the surprise features last year was how bumpy the circuit had become in just twelve months. We certainly are hoping that it hasn’t degraded any further as last year was a challenge, and ultimately led to the retirement of both our cars.
“That aside, we hope the circuit will reward our new power unit upgrade being introduced for this event.”
Having had a disappointing run in Japan last time out, Symonds is placing his faith in the new power unit to aid Williams in finishing higher up the order in Austin.
