Sergey Sirotkin was disappointed to complete only ten laps of the Autódromo José Carlos Pace on Friday as a wiring loom issue kept him in the garage for a long period of time.
The Russian returned to the Renault Sport Formula 1 Team RS16 in place of Kevin Magnussen during opening practice, and as a result of his limited running, propped up the leaderboard, 3.905 seconds adrift of Lewis Hamilton’s session topping time, and just under nine-tenths of a second shy of regular Renault racer Jolyon Palmer.
It was Sirotkin’s first appearance for Renault since the Russian Grand Prix at the end of April, and although he would have liked to have had more track time, he was happy to have been given the opportunity by the Enstone-based team.
“It was very nice to be back at the wheel of the R.S.16 this morning as it’s been a while,” admitted Sirotkin. “Interlagos is a legendary circuit so it was great to drive around this historic track behind the wheel of an F1 car.
“Unfortunately we didn’t do as many laps as we would have liked due to a problem with the car after I’d completed ten laps. These things happen and that’s what practice is for.
“Of course, it was frustrating not to get more time driving, however I’m still really looking forward to my next opportunity for an outing with the team.”
