Williams Martini Racing Chief Technical Officer Pat Symonds is expecting a challenging weekend in Brazil as he expects the weather to play a factor in the outcome of the race.
“We are expecting very poor weather in the lead up to the Brazilian Grand Prix weekend with a chance of showers on both Saturday and Sunday,” said Symonds. “We are hoping it will be dry, however we could see a situation similar to 2013 when the first real dry running we had was on race day.”
Symonds understands that the race will be very close as the overall lap time is very low, qualifying will be very tight which can create an exciting race. Interlagos is an exciting and challenging circuit with high speed corners and long straights that make for some high-octane action.
“Generally, we expect a two-stop race irrespective of tyre choice. In qualifying the laptime is very low, probably approaching 70 seconds this year, and so this leads to a very close grid where hundredths of a second really count.
“As a circuit it is quite sensitive to mechanical grip, more so even than downforce, although good aerodynamic performance counts in the middle sector. Whilst straight-line speed is important for overtaking, the preferred pass into turn one comes largely from getting a good exit from turn twelve.”
