2011 LRGP Brazilian GP Preview

2011 FORMULA1 BRAZILIAN GRAND PRIX

• INTERLAGOS, 25TH – 27th NOVEMBER 2011 •

• BRUNO: “I’m very excited about racing in my homeland” • Vitaly: “Brazil will be a very special race” • Eric Boullier: “I would love nothing more than a strong performance at Interlagos to round things off” • James Allison: “We look forward to moving on in 2012” •

Q&A: Bruno Senna

Lotus Renault GP • Race Driver • Car 9

“I’m very excited about racing in my homeland” A home race is an exciting time for any driver, but particularly if your name is Senna and you come from Brazil

How have you recovered from the disappointing weekend in Abu Dhabi?

“I’m going to have a great level of support and that will undoubtedly help me as I look to secure a good result for the team”

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Well, you just have to put it behind you and concede that it really was a very poor weekend.

In one sense we knew we would be up against it; the Yas Marina Circuit was always going to be a circuit that the R31 struggled with. In the race, we struggled with a KERS failure, drive through penalty and generally a car that was not on the money.

Strategically we took a gamble that didn’t pay off. I certainly think that overall in Abu Dhabi my pace was as good as it could have been. For Brazil we will need to have an improved baseline to ensure a better race weekend.

It’s all eyes to Brazil now – not only the last race of the season but your home race…

I am very excited about racing in my homeland. I did, in fact, travel straight to Brazil from Abu Dhabi to prepare for everything.

It’s going to be another difficult race because of the type of circuit we are facing. It’s a classic track, and it’s my home race which will make it extra special but there are also some

long, slow corners in the midsection of the track. We will have to prepare fully to give ourselves the best chance of success there. One thing is for sure – people will remember the last race of the season and how we perform in that. That will be the lingering thought for many as we enter 2012, so we want to end the season on a positive note.

You say you went straight to Brazil – how much extra is there to contend with at your home race?

There will be a lot going on during the race week. I headed straight to Brazil from the Middle East. I have a number of PR and sponsor commitments leading into the race weekend; these are additional things to my normal race weekend, but I’m doing most of this ahead of the Thursday so I can begin my race preparations as I would do at any other track.

Certainly, there will be the fan presence too. I’m well aware that I’m going to have a great level of support and that will undoubtedly help me as I look to secure a good result for the team.

Talk a bit more about the fans – you have a very special relationship with F1 fans in general, not to mention Brazilian F1 fans…

Yes, I know the fans will be great there. I learnt last year that they gave me a lot of care, a lot of passion and I would love to reciprocate that by putting in a result to be proud of in the black and gold livery. The flags will be waving for us Brazilian drivers on the grid, and that will be an extremely nice feeling.

Looking at your season as a whole – it must have been a good step forward for you…

It has. I’ve been learning, I’ve been improving and working with the engineers to get the most out of the car. We have been working on some different strategies, and some haven’t paid off. Other teams have taken strides forward that we have not, and we have paid for that in terms of results. This is all part of the learning curve I’ve been on, and I’m sure we can use what we have learnt to take ourselves forward.

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Q&A: Vitaly Petrov

Lotus Renault GP • Race Driver • Car 10

“Brazil will be a very special race” Vitaly reflects on a season of mixed fortunes, and looks forward to the season finale at Interlagos

What conclusions can you draw from Abu Dhabi?

I did like the track but the trend of slower tracks not clicking with the R31 has repeated itself.

To qualify P12 was almost the maximum we could have done and we were satisfied with that result. We also tried out a number of things in preparation for next year, so this should be taken into consideration as well.

The race was quite difficult for us because from the beginning my DRS failed; it was quite a frustrating race because the pace was just not good enough to be able to overtake other cars and score points. We knew that the Yas Marina circuit may not favour our car but still, that was not what we were looking for.

You seemed very upset after the race in Abu Dhabi...

Let’s just say that I acted a bit stupidly. I was very disappointed, very tired, I had to answer a lot of questions and somehow I didn’t handle it correctly. But I had a chat with the team later on and everything is now OK.

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This is the last race of your second season with LRGP – what’s your assessment of the year?

It started very positively.

Finishing third in Australia was a big boost for both me and the team. After that, I was fighting high up the grid in pretty much every race and we scored a lot of points – not nearly enough though. Next year I want to achieve a lot more, and we are already working hard to take another step forward.

We have all been disappointed with our performance this year but we understood the tyres and tactics, and I believe we will be much more confident going into the next campaign.

What are your thoughts for Brazil?

It is not easy to set up the car for Interlagos. When you think you are on the limit you try to push a little further, especially at turns six and seven which are very, very special. The challenge here is to set up the car well and to have it fully prepared for Saturday and Sunday.

Sometimes it rains, like it did last year when the visibility and aquaplaning were incredible, but the track is still safe enough to drive well on. People just love coming here. Interlagos is a is very lively track due to the nature of the straight and the tiny bends which give you a chance to find the slipstream.

Brazil will be a very special race.

What are your plans for 2012?

I am here to achieve and to reach my targets. Generally, I feel good. Throughout my first two years, I have always felt I’ve been improving, but maybe less so than at the very beginning.

I am still learning how to work with the team and how to get the car to work for me. I am not yet at 100 percent, but it is difficult to ever be. First things first, I must give Brazil my best shot. Then, I will look at next year.

“Interlagos is a very lively track due to the nature of the straight and the tiny bends which give you a chance to find the slipstream”

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Eric Boullier

Team Principal and Managing Director

A wORD WITH THE BOSS Race number 19 for Eric’s troops, and where has the time gone?

The LRGP Team Principal & MD gives his assessment on 2011

“I would love nothing more than a strong performance at Interlagos to round things off”

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Firstly, Abu Dhabi – what went wrong for the team in the desert?

The result was not what we were looking for. We knew that the weekend would not be our finest of the season; the trend of slower tracks not suiting the R31 repeated itself over the three days. For the race, we adopted differing strategies but neither one paid off. Our reliability problems did not help either. The boys put in a big effort to try and give us something to smile about at the fantastic Yas Marina Circuit but unfortunately it was not to be.

All eyes now to Brazil and what we hope will be a decent end to the season.

the staff at Enstone. As far as we are concerned, the matter is closed.

From one fantastic venue, Yas Marina, to another in Interlagos – what are your hopes and expectations?

Well, my hopes are for a fine end to the season. The boys in the team have worked hard and relentlessly to get the best from this season, and it would be nice to be rewarded with a good result. Expectations?

Well, we did not perform at the Yas Marina Circuit. Interlagos is going to be another tricky venue, but it’s a classic place to race and I’m looking forward to taking the team there and giving it our best shot.

Vitaly had some strong words after the race in Abu Dhabi...

It’s the 19th and final race of the season – how much does a season take out of a team?

Well, the interview you mention was made minutes after Vitaly jumped out of the car last Sunday. The race was tough, he was upset not to have scored points, he was exhausted.

Drivers are not robots, they’re human beings. Also, like every driver, Vitaly is a competitor.

Had he been on the podium in Abu Dhabi, he would have complained about not winning the race. We take this incident as exactly this - an incident.

Vitaly has apologised to the team and sent an email to all

Yes, it’s a long and draining season. When you score points and achieve positive results, it helps a team’s motivation and keeps people upbeat. On the contrary, when a team is suffering from lack of form and other adversity it becomes challenging to keep the spirits of the troops high. During a long, hard season that challenge becomes more prevalent, and hopefully we have managed to keep morale at a reasonable level during the hard times we’ve faced in recent weeks.

India and Abu Dhabi were poor races from our perspective, but it’s important that we maintain our focus and enjoy the last race of the season.

How would you summarise the season? What were the highlights?

It has certainly been a season of contrasting fortunes. The highlights, naturally, remain the podiums that Vitaly and Nick secured us in Australia and Malaysia. That was an amazing way to start the season and it was always going to be difficult to preserve that level of performance as the other teams found their feet. As it happened, we did continue to score a healthy number of points at some of the other races in the first half of the season – Canada was a particularly good race for Vitaly – but that petered out as our level of development failed to advance at the same rate as that of our competitors. Bruno did well to get his name on the points board for the first time when we raced in Monza but, as of late, there has not been the consistency required to do well. Of course, the positives of the season are lessened by Robert’s pre-season incident, which was a big setback for the team. As for the here and now, I would love nothing more than a strong performance at Interlagos to round things off.

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James Allison

Technical Director

“ We look forward to moving on in 2012”

Ahead of the final race of the year, James looks back at the R31’s exploits throughout the year and PLOTS brighter times ahead in 2012 What are your musings on the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix?

A tough weekend for us, but given the nature of the track, we had expected these difficulties.

A host of second gear corners and traction issues exposed the worst aspects of the R31.

Interlagos is quite a rollercoaster of a circuit – what are its biggest technical challenges?

The run up the hill to turn 1 is quite long, and there is an opportunity for overtaking here, so it is important not to set the straight-line speed of the car too low. However, the corners in the middle section of the track are all quite long and slow, demanding higher downforce.

It is important to set the correct compromise between the two.

The track is also pretty bumpy which makes the correct compromise of mechanical setup very important. It often rains at Interlagos, and the rain can fall without warning from clouds that don’t appear to be threatening; this always keeps the race team on their toes.

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What has been the impact of Pirelli’s tyres, DRS and the return of KERS in 2011?

That’s quite a big question!

Overall, the mix of these three elements has led to some very interesting racing in 2011.

Dealing with them in turn: The Pirelli tyres have been very interesting to deal with. At several races the degradation has been such that the race has been a frantic affair, with small differences in tyre consumption between teams giving rise to huge on-track performance differentials. As the year has progressed, the tyres have been better dialled into the surfaces, but they have still provided an interesting strategic challenge owing to the normally quite large performance differences between the prime and the option rubber.

In my view, DRS has had a positive effect on the spectacle this year. The FIA have been generally canny in their selection of DRS sectors with the result that DRS has made overtaking possible but far from a formality at tracks where it was previously impossible.

Early on in the year, much of the overtaking was as a result

of huge tyre degradation, but as the season has progressed DRS has become more and more important in preventing processional racing.

KERS is more evident by its occasional absence than anything else. There is no relative benefit when a KERSequipped car fights another KERS-equipped car. However, once the unit fails then the difference is quickly evident.

A failed KERS unit quickly causes significant lost lap time and makes a car very vulnerable to attack from a car whose KERS is functional. This was most evident early on in the season when RedBull had some teething troubles with KERS that left them vulnerable on occasion.

Looking over the year, how would you evaluate the R31?

I regard it as a bold, but ultimately failed experiment.

We were the only team to adopt a forward exhaust layout, and we did so with high hopes, buoyed by very strong wind tunnel numbers. We came out of the blocks adequately well, although it was clear from the first test that the delivered downforce was not

“We look forward to moving on in 2012 with all-new exhaust rules and a chance to wipe the slate clean” as high as we had expected.

The season which followed has been difficult for everyone at Enstone. The layout which had promised so much (and which, had it delivered, would have been almost impossible to copy) proved very tricky to develop and had a fundamental weakness in slow corners that has been an albatross around our neck all year. We look forward to moving on in 2012 with all-new exhaust rules and a chance to wipe the slate clean.

What’s the schedule for the team in the build-up to the 2012 season?

This time of year is frantic.

It is very busy right now, but the intensity of the new car’s development will build steadily to insane levels as January approaches. There is always way more to do than time to do it, and yet somehow each year it all gets done in time to put the new car on the track for winter testing. A change for this year, which requires all teams to have passed their FIA crash tests before they are allowed to take part in pre-season testing, adds even more tension to an already difficult period.

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Brazil

TECH TALK

RENAULT SPORT F1 The engine Interlagos features a lot of gradient changes throughout the lap, but is also set at high altitude – around 800m above sea level.

The lower air pressure can mean the engine will produce around 8% less power than at a lower altitude.

INTERLAGOS A set-up guide 1. ENGINE

Nothing specific is required for the engine. A good top-end is needed for the long straight. Good driveability is valued too, particularly for the lower speed corners.

TURN 1

Leading into the first corner, there are good overtaking opportunities, due to the fact it follows a very long straight.

TURNS 8 – 10 TURNS 6 – 7

Very high speed. Turn 6 is taken flat-out before heading immediately into turn 7.

TURN 12

The low-speed hairpin bends of turns 8, 9 and 10 possess low curbs, however these will not be one of the team’s primary concerns.

A strong exit here is important, as is good traction to maximise your speed and provide a good overtaking position.

2. BRAKES

It is not a circuit that is hard on brakes. The temperatures need to be managed to ensure they are hot enough after the long straight leading into turn 1. There will be attention paid to the temperatures, but there is not expected to be too much difficulty in terms of brake wear.

3. SUSPENSION

A reasonably stiff set-up is required due to the lack of curbs and also the higher speed corners (than were seen in Abu Dhabi). In comparison with the Yas Marina Circuit, Interlagos has very few curbs and faster corners.

2 3 4

1

6 5

4. REAR WING

Due to the long straight at Interlagos, there is a lower level of downforce required than at the last few tracks so cars will generally trim a bit more wing for this race.

5. TYRES

Pirelli are bringing their soft and medium tyres once again.

These were used in Abu Dhabi, so there are not expected to be too many issues here.

6. FRONT WING

This needs to be set for the quicker corners such as turns 4,6 and 7 in order to minimise understeer.

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TURNs 3 – 5

Relatively high speed corners which can put quite a strain on the drivers’ necks.

TURN 11

An interesting corner, which is downhill and taken almost flat out. This is quite high speed and off-camber so can prove quite tricky before braking into turn 12.

LO T US RE NAU LT GP • B RAZ I L GP P RE VI EW • 11

BRAZILIAN GRAND PRIX THE REST OF THE NEWS

The Mechanic’s Wife At race weekends this season, we have documented the daily diaries of various members of the LRGP jigsaw. For Abu Dhabi, we decided to speak to someone from outside of the race team – a mechanic’s wife! Here, Number 2 Mechanic Norman Ballantyne’s wife Bernadette tells us about her experience…

Onwards and Upwards with Paul Seaby

AHEAD OF THE INDIAN GRAND PRIX LAST MONTH, PAUL SEABY BECAME LRGP’S NEW RACE TEAM MANAGER. HERE, ‘SEABS’ TELLS US ABOUT THE CHALLENGES HE FACES How long have you been with the team?

What does Team Manager mean on a daily basis?

What’s the job like at the races?

I’ve been with the team since 1990, so it’s 21 years now- a fair while. I have been through all sorts of different things – world championships, highs and lows, a rollercoaster but it’s been good all the way.

Two things really: it means that the team needs to go forward and I’m here to present the team in a better way, to bring it up. We want to look like a top team because that’s what we are. So I am going to work on the presentation of the team and also pit stops which is very important- that’s another big part of my role. I will be looking at ways to improve pit stops.

Keeping the guys at work happy – that’s the aim. We can take the team on and make it more successful.

It is exciting because there are so many things to do. I like being busy! There are plenty of things to organise; there are always questions from people, so I’m there to make sure that the team is presented well before people turn up.

I help with the set-up, make sure things look good and that things are prepared properly along with Geoff Simmonds who is a very good Race Team Co-ordinator. It’s important to ensure the garage looks right.

Any problems that occur, I’ll sort them.

What was your initial position?

Initially I worked in subassembly, in the gearbox shop and then I became a mechanic on the car, number two mechanic and a number one mechanic on and off the race team before then becoming a chief mechanic. I went on to an engineering co-ordinator role, before being appointed Race Team Manager.

“Keeping the guys at work happy – that’s the aim” 12 • BRA ZI L GP P R E V I EW • L O T US R ENAU LT GP

A

fter five years of husband spotting on the TV and listening to accounts of race weekends, I decided it was time to go to a race and find out what Norman actually does.

I have seen him putting the front left tyre on the car during pit stops and looking busy at the side of the car when the cameras focus on the garage, but what happens for the rest of the day? Does he really work as hard as he says he does?

Or is he just trying to get out of doing any housework when he gets home? It was time to find out…

Arriving at the Yas Marina circuit at midday, I was propelled along the underground tunnel to the paddock by the tide of car crews. The husband introduced me to his team mates and I was glad to be able to put some names to faces.

The garages lay in a row along the pit lane with a huge grandstand overlooking them. I wondered how I would feel if hundreds of people watched me at work, and then realised it was not just hundreds of people – it was millions.

No wonder the husband spends more money on haircuts than I do!

It was explained that I could go into the garage and the motor home, but had to stay out of the pit lane. I looked for a big static caravan bearing the Lotus Renault GP logo – in Abu Dhabi they are actually modern two storey villas with roof terraces that overlook the Yas

Marina Hotel. Screens are everywhere so there is no danger of missing anything, and the team are looked after extremely well by the girls and chefs.

Back in the garage the cars were hoisted up and the bodywork removed within minutes, allowing the mechanics to check that everything underneath was in perfect condition. The FIA scrutineers were present and observing everything, making notes on all the activity.

The mechanics then had to bleed the brakes, sterilise and refill the driver’s water bottle and make sure that the kinetic energy recovery system, bearings and engine were all at the right temperature. Pit stop practice followed and the guys flew through the tyre changes over and over again. It looked a lot faster in real life.

After lunch, the team had to fire up the engine and check that the car was behaving as it should. I was grateful for the earplugs at this point, although they did not stop the physical vibrations that are side effects of the engine activity.

Nor did they stop the heat from the exhaust which I could feel from a metre away.

Up until now it had been rather quiet in the garage and there were no spectators in the grandstand, but all of a sudden the pit lane was absolutely full.

“How did that happen?” I asked the husband. “Pit walk” he said, “Go and have a look around”. I infiltrated the pit

walk to do some celebrity spotting and was delighted to spy Danni Minogue almost immediately.

Back at the team garage, Bruno Senna and Vitaly Petrov appeared and had some pictures taken with fans and celebrity visitors. I didn’t recognise all of them, but there was no mistaking one of the world’s greatest ever footballers, Ronaldo.

By now it was getting close to the start time and the guys were suddenly all in race suits firing up the engine again.

I was given headphones and a radio so that I could hear what was happening, and I felt like part of the team.

The 55 laps passed quickly as I enjoyed my bird’s eye view, and although the team didn’t make it onto the podium this time, I still made my way down the pit lane to watch the trophies being presented. Seeing other people so happy is contagious and everyone was cheering, regardless of whom they supported.

So that was the end of the race, but not the end of the day for the car crew.

Preparations had already begun for the Abu Dhabi test which would start on the Tuesday after the race. I left the circuit at 11pm after an amazing day where the team could not have been more welcoming. The husband however, did not get back until 6:30am, so all things considered maybe I won’t ask him to do the washing when he gets home…

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BRAZILIAN GRAND PRIX THE REST OF THE NEWS

MEMORIES ARE MADE OF THIS After a year of ups and downs, we asked team members to send in photos of their 2011 experience. And, well, this is what we got…

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BRAZILIAN GRAND PRIX

9

Bruno Senna

Q: 18 P: 12 Q: 6 P: 3 Laps: 57 Laps: 56

Q: 16 P: 12 Q: 9 P: 7 Laps: 56 Laps: 58

Q: NT P: 8 Laps: 65

Q: 16 P: 8 Laps: 77

Q: 9 R: A Laps: 55

Q: 9 P: 10 Laps: 56

10

Vitaly Petrov

Q: 6 P: 3 Laps: 58

Q: 8 R: A Laps: 52

Q: 10 P: 9 Laps: 56

Q: 7 P: 8 Laps: 58

Q: 6 P: 11 Laps: 65

Q: 11 R: A Laps: 67

Q: 10 P: 5 Laps: 70

Q: 11 P: 15 Q: 14 P: 12 Q: 9 P: 10 Laps: 56 Laps: 52 Laps: 59

1

Sebastian Vettel

Q: 1 P: 1 Laps: 58

Q: 1 P: 1 Laps: 56

Q: 1 P: 2 Laps: 56

Q: 1 P: 1 Laps: 58

Q: 2 P: 1 Laps: 66

Q: 1 P: 1 Laps: 78

Q: 1 P: 2 Laps: 70

Q:1 P:1 f’lap Laps: 57

Q: 2 P: 2 Laps: 52

2

Mark Webber

Q: 3 P: 5 Laps: 58

Q: 3 P: 4 f’lap Laps: 56

Q: 18 P: 3 f’lap Laps: 56

Q: 2 P: 2 f’lap Laps: 58

Q: 1 P: 4 Laps: 66

Q: 3 P: 4 f’lap Laps: 78

Q: 4 P: 3 Laps: 70

Q: 2 P: 3 Laps: 57

3

Jenson Button

Q: 4 P: 6 Laps: 58

Q: 4 P: 2 Laps: 56

Q: 2 P: 4 Laps: 56

Q: 6 P: 6 Laps: 58

Q: 5 P: 3 Laps: 66

Q: 2 P: 3 Laps: 78

Q: 7 P: 1 f’lap Laps: 70

4

Lewis Hamilton

Q: 2 P: 2 Laps: 58

Q: 2 P: 8 Laps: 56

Q: 3 P: 1 Laps: 56

Q: 4 P: 4 Laps: 58

Q: 3 P: 2 f’lap Laps: 66

Q: 9 P: 6 Laps: 78

5

Felipe Massa

Q: 8 P: 7 f’lap Laps: 49

Q: 7 P: 5 Laps: 56

Q: 6 P: 6 Laps: 56

Q: 10 P: 11 Q: 8 Laps: 58 R: DNF Laps: 58

6

Fernando Alonso

Q: 5 P: 4 Laps: 58

Q: 5 : 6 Laps: 56

Q: 5 P: 7 Laps: 56

Q: 5 P: 3 Laps: 58

7

Michael Schumacher

Q: 11 R: D Laps: 19

Q: 11 P: 9 Laps: 56

Q: 14 P: 8 Laps: 56

8

Nico Rosberg

Q: 7 R: D Laps: 22

Q: 9 P: 12 Laps: 55

Q: 4 P: 5 Laps: 56

Q: 11 R: A Laps: 9

Q: 14 R: F Laps: 23

Q: 7 P: 13 Laps: 44

Q: 16 P: 11 Q: 12 P: 13 Laps: 59 Laps: 54

Q:3 P: 4 Laps: 60

Q: 1 P: 2 Laps: 70

Q: 1 P: 1 Laps: 44

Q: 1 P: 1 Laps: 53

Q: 1 P: 1 Laps: 61

Q: 1 P: 3 Laps: 53

Q: 2 P: 1 f’lap Laps: 55

Q: 1 P: 1 f’lap Laps: 60

Q: 1 R: P Laps: 1

Q: 1 P: 3 Laps: 52

Q: 1 P: 3 Laps: 60

Q: 6 P: 5 Laps: 70

Q: 3 P: 2 f’lap Laps: 44

Q: 5 R: A Laps: 4

Q: 2 P: 3 Laps: 61

Q: 6 P: 4 Laps: 53

Q: 4 P: 3 Laps: 55

Q: 2 P: 4 Laps: 60

Q: 4 P: 4 f’lap Laps: 55

Q: 6 P: 6 Laps: 57

Q: 5 R: Wh Laps: 39

Q: 7 R: H Laps: 35

Q: 3 R: 1 Laps: 70

Q: 13 P: 3 Laps: 44

Q: 3 P: 2 Laps: 53

Q: 3 P: 2 f’lap Laps: 61

Q: 2 P: 1 f’lap Laps: 53

Q: 3 P: 4 Laps: 55

Q: 4 P: 2 Laps: 60

Q: 3 P: 3 Laps: 55

Q: 5 R: A Laps: 7

Q: 3 P: 4 Laps: 57

Q: 10 P: 4 Laps: 52

Q:2 P: 1 f’lap Laps: 60

Q: 2 P: 4 Laps: 70

Q: 2 R: A Laps: 12

Q: 2 P: 4 f’lap Laps: 53

Q: 4 P: 5 Laps: 61

Q: 3 P: 5 Laps: 53

Q: 1 P: 2 Laps: 55

Q: 5 P: 7 Laps: 60

Q: 2 P: 1 Laps: 55

Q: 6 R: A Laps: 32

Q: 3 P: 6 Laps: 70

Q: 5 P: 5 Laps: 57

Q: 4 P: 5 Laps: 52

Q: 5 P: 5 Laps: 60

Q: 4 P: 6 f’lap Laps: 70

Q: 4 P: 8 Laps: 44

Q: 6 P: 6 Laps: 53

Q: 6 P: 9 Laps: 60

Q: 4 P: 7 Laps: 53

Q: 5 P: 6 Laps: 55

Q: 6 R: S Laps: 32

Q: 6 P: 5 Laps: 55

Q: 4 P: 5 Laps: 65

Q: 4 P: 2 Laps: 78

Q: 2 R: A Laps: 36

Q: 4 P: 2 Laps: 57

Q: 3 P: 1 f’lap Laps: 52

Q: 4 P: 2 Laps: 60

Q: 5 P: 3 Laps: 70

Q: 8 P: 4 Laps: 44

Q: 4 P: 3 Laps: 53

Q: 5 P: 4 Laps: 61

Q: 5 P: 2 Laps: 53

Q: 6 P: 5 Laps: 55

Q: 3 P: 3 Laps: 60

Q: 5 P: 2 Laps: 55

Q: 8 P: 12 Laps: 58

Q: 10 P: 6 Laps: 65

Q: 5 R: F Laps: 32

Q: 8 P: 4 Laps: 70

Q: 8 P: 17 Laps: 56

Q: 13 P: 9 Laps: 52

Q: 10 P: 8 Laps: 59

Q: 9 R: G Laps: 26

Q: 24 P: 5 Laps: 44

Q: 8 P: 5 Laps: 53

Q: 8 R: A Laps: 28

Q: 8 P: 6 Laps: 53

Q: 12 R: A Laps: 15

Q: 11 P: 5 Laps: 60

Q: 8 P: 7 Laps: 55

Q: 3 P: 5 Laps: 58

Q: 7 P: 7 Laps: 65

Q: 7 P: 11 Laps: 76

Q: 6 P: 11 Laps: 70

Q: 7 P: 7 Laps: 57

Q: 9 P:6 Laps: 52

Q: 6 P: 7 Laps: 59

Q: 7 P: 9 Laps: 69

Q: 5 P: 6 Laps: 44

Q: 9 R: A Laps: 0

Q: 7 P: 7 Laps: 60

Q: 23 P: 10 Q: 7 P: 8 Laps: 52 Laps: 55

Q: 7 P: 6 Laps: 60

Q: 7 P: 6 Laps: 55

Q: 16 P: 9 Laps: 70

Q: 13 P: 12 Q: 15 P: 13 Q: 14 Laps: 56 Laps: 51 R: OL Laps: 16

12

Pastor Maldonado

Q: 15 R: Tr Laps: 9

Q: 18 R: E Laps: 8

Q: 17 P: 18 Q: 14 P: 17 Q: 9 P: 15 Laps: 55 Laps: 57 Laps: 65

Q: 8 R: A Laps: 73

Q: 12 R: Sp Laps: 61

Q: 15 P: 18 Q: 7 P: 14 Laps: 56 Laps: 51

14

Adrian Sutil

Q: 16 P: 9 Laps: 57

Q: 17 P: 11 Q: 11 P: 15 Q: 12 P: 13 Q: 17 P: 13 Q: 15 P: 7 Laps: 55 Laps: 55 laps: 57 Laps: 65 Laps: 77

Q: 14 R: A Laps: 49

Q: 10 P: 9 Laps: 56

15

Paul di Resta

Q: 14 P: 10 Q: 14 P: 10 Q: 8 P: 11 Laps: 57 Laps: 56 Laps: 56

16

Sergio Pérez

Q: 13 P: DQ Q: 16 R: A Laps: 23

Q: 12 P: 17 Q: 15 P: 14 Q: 12 P: 9 Laps: 55 Laps: 57 Laps: 65

17

Kamui Kobayashi

Q: 9 P: DQ Q: 10 P: 7 Laps: 56

Q: 13 P: 10 Q: 24 P: 10 Q: 14 P: 10 Q: 13 P: 5 Laps: 56 Laps: 58 Laps: 65 Laps: 78

18

Sébastien Buemi

Q: 10 P: 8 Laps: 57

17

Jaime Alguersuari

Q: 12 P: 11 Q: 13 P: 14 Q: 7 Laps: 57 Laps: 55 R: Wh Laps: 9

20

Jarno Trulli

(Karun Chandhok)

Q: 20 P: 13 Q: 20 Laps: 56 R: C Laps: 31

21

Heikki Kovalainen

Q: 19 R: WL Laps: 19

Q: 19 P: 15 Q: 19 P: 16 Q: 18 P: 19 Q: 15 Laps: 55 Laps: 55 Laps: 56 R: A Laps: 48

Q: 18 P: 14 Q: 20 Laps: 76 R: Dr Laps: 28

22

Daniel Ricciardo

DNQ

Q: 24 R: H Laps: 14

Q: 24 P: 23 Q: 22 P: 21 Q: 21 Laps: 54 Laps: 55 R: G Laps: 28

DNQ P: 17 Q: 23 P: 17 Q: 24 P:24 Q: 24 P: 19 Q: 22 P: 19 Q: 22 P: 18 Q: 23 Laps: 74 Laps: 69 Laps: 54 Laps: 49 Laps: 57 Laps: 66 R: M Laps: 13

23

Vitantonio Liuzzi

DNQ

Q: 23 R: RW Laps: 46

Q: 23 P: 22 Q: 22 P: 22 Q: 22 P: 21 DNQ P: 16 Q: 21 P: 13 Q: 22 P: 23 Q: 23 P: 18 Q: 23 Laps: 54 Laps: 53 Laps: 61 Laps: 75 Laps: 69 Laps: 54 Laps: 50 R: E Laps: 37

24

Timo Glock

Q: 21 P: NC Q: 21 P: 16 Q: 22 P: 21 Q: 21 Laps: 54 Laps: 54 Laps: 54 P: DNS

25

Jérôme d’Ambrosio

Q: 22 P: 14 Q: 22 Laps: 54 R: A Laps: 42

Q: 13 R: Wh Laps: 44

Q: 16 P: 9 Laps: 58

Q: 16 P: 12 Q: 14 P: 12 Q: 11 Laps: 65 Laps: 76 R: A Laps: 67 Q: 10 DNS

Q: 12 P: 14 Q: 6 P: 15 Laps: 56 Laps: 51

Q: 12 P: 13 Q: 11 P: 7 Laps: 59 Laps: 69

Q: 15 P: 7 Laps: 44

Q: 17 P: 9 Laps: 59

Q: 18 P: 8 Laps: 70

Q: 18 P: 8 Laps: 56

Q: 13 R: G Laps: 12

Q: 9 P: 8 Laps: 60

Q: 11 P: 11 Q: 10 P: 11 Q: 8 P: 9 Laps: 53 Laps: 55 Laps: 59

Q: 10 P: 6 Laps: 61

Q: 12 P: 12 Q: 9 P: 10 Laps: 53 Laps: 55

27.11.11

Q: 23 P: 14 Laps: 54

Q: 9 P: 8 Laps: 55

Q: 12 P: 13 Q: 10 P: 9 Laps: 59 Laps: 55

Q: 15 R: G Laps: 32

Q: 11 P: 10 Q: 17 P: 8 Laps: 60 Laps: 53

Q: 17 P: 16 Q: 20 Laps: 54 P: 10 Laps: 59

Q: 11 P: 11 Laps: 54

Q: 13 P: 11 Q: 12 P: 12 Q: 17 Laps: 69 Laps: 44 R: G Laps: 21

Q: 17 P: 14 Q: 7 P: 13 Laps: 59 Laps: 53

Q: 14 P: 15 Q: 17 Laps: 54 R: D Laps: 0

Q: 16 P: 10 Laps: 54

Q: 13 P: 9 Laps: 55

Q: 9 R: Te Laps: 24

Q: 13 R: H Laps: 19

Q: 16 P: 15 Q: 11 P: 7 Laps: 53 Laps: 55

Q: 10 P: 8 Laps: 59

Q: 15 P: 15 Laps: 54

Q: 24 P: 15 Q: 23 P: 8 Laps: 59 Laps: 69

Q: 11 R: A Laps: 11

Q: 18 P: 10 Q: 16 P:12 Q: 16 P: 10 Q: 6 Laps: 52 Laps: 59 Laps: 69 R: A Laps: 0

Q: 19 P: 19 Q: 17 Laps: 55 R: G Laps: 2

Q: 12 R: M Laps: 9

Q: 17 P: 11 Q: 11 P: 8 Laps: 44 Laps: 52

Q: 13 P: 7 Laps: 70

Q: 20 P: 19 Q: 19 P:18 Q: 18 P: 18 Q: 19 P: 13 Q: 19 P: 16 Q: 20 P: 20 Q: 21 Laps: 55 Laps: 57 Laps: 64 Laps: 76 Laps: 69 Laps: 55 R: OL Laps: 10

Q: 20 P: 19 Q: 21 Laps: 63 R: S Laps: 30

Q: 8 P: 14 Laps: 68

Q: 15 P: 11 Q: 10 P: 15 Q: 9 Laps: 59 Laps: 68 R: M Laps: 27

Q: 11 P: 14 Q: 17 P: 10 Q: 15 P: 10 Q: 17 P: 13 Q: 19 Laps: 65 Laps: 77 Laps: 70 Laps: 56 R: A Laps: 25

Q: 17 P: 16 Q: 13 P: 16 Q: 20 Laps: 57 Laps: 64 R: A Laps: 66

Q: 15 P: 13 Q: 14 P: 16 Q: 13 P: 12 Q: 12 P: 13 Q: 13 P: 17 Q: 18 P: 12 Q: 15 P: 15 Q: 24 P: 12 Laps: 68 Laps: 43 Laps: 52 Laps: 60 Laps: 53 Laps: 54 Laps: 58 Laps: 54

Q: 17 P: 12 Q: 16 P: 11 Q: 12 P: 7 Laps: 70 Laps: 56 Laps: 52

Q: 14 P: 16 Q: 8 Laps: 56 R: OL Laps: 23

Q: 15 P: 13 Q: 14 P: 12 Q: 14 P: 16 Laps: 54 Laps: 59 Laps: 54

Q: 13 P: 14 Q: 17 P: 16 Q: 21 P: 10 Q: 14 P: 11 Q: 13 P: 11 Q: 14 P: 14 Q: 16 Laps: 59 Laps: 68 Laps: 44 Laps: 52 Laps: 60 Laps: 53 R: E Laps: 30

Q: 11 P: 11 Q: 8 P: 6 Laps: 52 Laps: 59

Brazil

13.11.11

Abu Dhabi

30.10.11

India

16.10.11

Q: 8 R: A Laps: 16

Q: 15 P: 13 Q: 11 P: 15 Q: 19 P: 17 Q: 12 P: 9 Laps: 56 Laps: 57 Laps: 64 Laps: 76

Q: 9 P: 16 Laps: 53

Korea

09.10.11

Japan

Q: 18 P: 17 Q: 10 P: 9 Laps: 59 Laps: 53

Q: 15 R: H Laps: 22

(Narain Karthikeyan)

25.09.11

Q: 7 R: A Laps: 0

Q: 17 R: Tr Laps: 48

(Narain Karthikeyan)

Singapore

Q: 12 P: 12 Q: 10 P: 9 Laps: 69 Laps: 44

Rubens Barrichello

Q: 12 P: 13 Q: 9 P: 14 Laps: 55 Laps: 56

11.09.11

Q:15 P:15 Laps: 59

11

(Pedro de la Rosa)

Italy

28.08.11

Belgium

31.07.11

Q: 10 P: 9 Laps: 52

(Nick Heidfeld)

Q: 16 P: 8 Laps: 52

Hungary

24.07.11

Germany

10.07.11

Great Britain

26.06.11

Europe

12.06.11

Canada

29.05.11

Monaco

22.05.11

Spain

08.05.11

Turkey

17.04.11

China

10.04.11

Malaysia

27.03.11

Australia

THE REST OF THE NEWS

Q: 16 P: 10 Q: 14 P: 12 Q: 15 Laps: 52 Laps: 60 R: Wh Laps: 11 Q: 18 P: 7 Laps: 52

Q: 16 R: A Laps: 56

Q: 20 P: 20 Q: 19 Laps: 56 R: OL Laps: 17

Q: 18 P: 14 Q: 19 P: 14 Q:20 Laps: 43 Laps: 51 R: G Laps: 47

Q: 18 P: 16 Q: 18 Laps: 58 R: WL Laps: 55

Q: 16 P: 15 Q: 20 P: 13 Q: 19 P: 16 Q: 18 P: 18 Q: 19 P: 14 Q: 18 P: 14 Q: 17 P: 17 Laps: 43 Laps: 51 Laps: 59 Laps: 53 Laps: 54 Laps: 58 Laps: 54

Sebastian Vettel Jenson Button Fernando Alonso Mark Webber Lewis Hamilton Felipe Massa Nico Rosberg Michael Schumacher VITALY PETROV

374 255 245 233 227 108 83 76 36

10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19

Nick Heidfeld Adrian Sutil Kamui Kobayashi Jaime Alguersuari Paul di Resta Sebastien Buemi Sergio Perez Rubens Barrichello BRUNO SENNA Pastor Maldonado

34 30 27 26 21 15 14 4 2 1

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12

Q: 21 P: 20 Q: 22 P: 19 Q: 24 Laps: 65 Laps: 43 R: A Laps: 0

BRAZIL IN NUMBERS 3 48 71 300 1000

This is the highest g-force the drivers experience in the lap at T6/T7 for 3.5 seconds

Q: 22 P: 15 Q: 21 P: 21 Q: 20 P: 16 Q: 19 P:17 Q: 20 P: 17 Q: 19 P: 18 Q: 21 P: 15 Q: 21 Laps: 69 Laps: 55 Laps: 50 Laps: 57 Laps: 66 Laps: 43 Laps: 51 R: A Laps: 9

Q: 21 P: 20 Q: 21 P: 18 Q: 24 Laps: 51 Laps: 54 R: D Laps: 0

Q: 19 P: 19 Laps: 53

Q: 22 P: 18 Q: 20 P: 21 Q: 22 P: 20 Q: 21 P: 16 Q: 21 Laps: 59 Laps: 51 Laps: 54 Laps: 57 R: B Laps: 18

KEY: A accident B brakes C clutch D damage DNF did not finish DNQ did not qualify DNS did not start DQ disqualified E electrics F fire G gearbox H hyraulics M Mechanical NT no time OL oil leak P puncture RW rear wing S suspension Sp spin Tr transmission Te technical WL water leak Wh Wheel

607 482 353 159 72 57 42 41 5 0 0 0

Number of gear changes per lap

Number of laps In km/h, this is the highest apex speed at T15

Meet Ronaldo

WHERE CAN YOU FOLLOW US? On our website, to start with:

15 62 74 315

www.lotusrenaultgp.com

The percentage of the lap spent braking

The percentage of the lap spent at full throttle

(English, French, Portuguese, German, Polish and Russian versions) On Twitter: twitter.com/OfficialLRGP On Facebook: facebook.com/LotusRenaultGP On YouTube: youtube.com/LRGPTV Vitaly on Twitter: twitter.com/vitalypetrov10 Bruno on Twitter: twitter.com/BSenna Romain on Twitter: twitter.com/Rgrosjean

In km/h, this is the lowest apex speed at T10

Who’s who at LRGP? In km/h, this is the top speed approaching T1

In metres, the longest distance on full throttle between T12 and the start/finish straight

Q: 19 P: 19 Q: 20 P: 17 Q: 19 P: 19 Q: 18 P: 18 Laps: 53 Laps: 54 Laps: 55 Laps: 53

Q: 24 P: 20 Q: 24 P: 23 Q: 23 P: 21 Q: 23 P:17 Q: 22 P: 20 Laps: 57 Laps: 53 Laps: 52 Laps: 57 Laps: 53

Red Bull Racing Vodafone McLaren Mercedes Scuderia Ferrari Marlboro Mercedes GP LOTUS RENAULT GP Force India Sauber F1 Team Scuderia Torro Rosso AT&T Williams Team Lotus HRT F1 Marussia Virgin Racing

POINTS SYSTEM 1ST = 25 2ND = 18 3RD = 15 4TH = 12 5TH = 10 6TH = 8 7TH = 6 8TH = 4 9TH = 2 10TH = 1

Q: 23 P: NC Q: 23 P: 19 Q: 22 P: 22 Q: 24 P: 19 Q: 22 P: 18 Q: 20 Laps: 39 Laps: 57 Laps: 51 Laps: 54 Laps: 57 R: E Laps: 48

Q: 21 P: 20 Q: 23 P: 20 Q: 23 P: 20 Q: 22 P: 15 Q: 24 P: 14 Q: 23 P: 22 Q: 22 P: 17 Q:21 P:18 Q: 24 P: 19 Q: 20 P: 17 Q: 22 Laps: 54 Laps: 56 Laps: 62 Laps: 75 Laps: 69 Laps: 55 Laps: 50 Laps: 57 Laps: 65 Laps: 43 R: G Laps: 1

16 • BRA ZI L G P P R E V I EW • L O T US R ENAU LT GP

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9

Bringing a bit of Brazilian flavour to the team garage in Abu Dhabi was none other than former FIFA World Player of the Year Ronaldo Luís Nazário de Lima (better known simply as Ronaldo). There were no pre-race ‘keepy uppys’ but the Brazilian did sprinkle a bit of stardust on the team garage ahead of the race and met compatriot Bruno Senna in the process.

Gooooooooooooaaaaaaaaaaaaallllllllllllllllllllllllllllllll!

• Gerard Lopez Chairman • Eric Boullier Team Principal and Managing Director • Patrick Louis Chief Operating Officer • James Allison Technical Director • Naoki Tokunaga Deputy Technical Director • Martin Tolliday Chief Designer • Dirk de Beer Head of Aerodynamics • Paul Seaby Race Team Manager • Alan Permane Trackside Operations Director • Gavin Hudson Chief Mechanic • Stephen Curnow Chief Commercial Officer • Stephane Samson Head of Team Marketing and Communications • Federico Gastaldi Business Development Director • Frederic Garcia Head of Event Marketing TRACKSIDE Hospitality • The girls in our hospitality who will look after our guests are Simona, Adriana and Daniela • Catering: Massimilian, Riccardo and Simoneto

LO T US RENAU LT G P • B RAZI L G P P RE VI E W • 17

And Finally…

Media Contacts

Cirebox

Team Principal and Managing Director

Lotus Renault GP Press Office Address Lotus Renault GP

Whiteways Technical Centre Enstone

Oxfordshire OX7 4EE UK Telephone

+44 (0) 1608 678 000

Facsimile

+44 (0) 1608 678 609

Email pressoffice@lotusrenaultgp.com

Media contacts Stephane Samson, Head of Team Marketing and Communications +44 (0) 7827 307 185 stephane.samson@lotusrenaultgp.com Ben Nichols, Senior Press Officer +44 (0) 7748 920 072 ben.nichols@lotusrenaultgp.com Andy Stobart, Press Officer +44 (0) 7703 366 151 andy.stobart@lotusrenaultgp.com Justine Hoffmann, Press Officer +33 (0) 6 89 66 30 18 justine.hoffmann@lotusrenaultgp.com Website lotusrenaultgp.com Facebook facebook.com/LotusRenaultGP Twitter twitter.com/OfficialLRGP

18 • BRA Z I L G P P R E V I EW • L O T US R ENAU LT GP