Yuki Tsunoda is pleased to see the evolution of the RB F1 VCARB 01 since Las Vegas, as the car received the rear suspensions of the Red Bull RB20. Ninth in the race in Nevada, the Japanese is confident before Qatar, even if he knows that the strategy will be difficult to manage.
“From FP2 in Las Vegas we have improved our understanding of how the car works, which I hope will continue this weekend” Tsunoda said.
“I am optimistic that we can have another good race, even if we go from a circuit with long, high-speed straights and 90-degree turns to one with fast, flowing corners.”
“Last year's very hot conditions in Qatar didn't affect me too much, but as the race is a month later this time, the weather seems a lot nicer.”
“Last year all drivers were only allowed to do a maximum of 18 laps on one set of tires due to a problem with the kerbs, but this has now been resolved.”
“So in terms of race strategy, we're starting from a clean sheet. There's only one hour of practice before Sprint qualifying, so I'm going to focus on performance so we can continue to improve. to fight for sixth place among the constructors.”
Liam Lawson returns to a circuit he knows and explains the challenges: “Qatar is a very difficult circuit and it is probably the hardest race I did last year. The temperature was quite high last year and I hope it will be cooler this year. It’s also a very fast circuit, which I’m looking forward to.”
“It's a Sprint weekend, which makes things difficult; we have to push hard enough, early enough, to make sure we're in a good window for the Qualif Sprint. It's a weekend where “We need to score points to be in the fight for sixth place, so we'll make sure we maximize the car as much as possible.”
Alan Permane, the performance director of the Faenza team, explains the challenges for the cars and the team at the Qatar round: “The penultimate race of the 2024 season brings us to the Lusail International Circuit in Doha. In 2023, this race was an extremely difficult physical test for the drivers due to the exceptionally high ambient temperature and humidity .”
“This year things should be relatively easier with temperatures predicted to be around 20 degrees Celsius for the start of the race on Sunday. The circuit is a real test for the drivers and cars, with the high-speed corners being the most great challenge.”
“With no significant low-speed corners, the car settings will likely be stiffer than usual in order to maintain maximum aerodynamic loading, particularly during the long high-speed sequence of turns 12, 13 and 14 .”
“Due to these requirements, Pirelli will supply tires at the harder end of the 2024 compound range. This is the final sprint weekend of the season, so there is only one hour of running left to the drivers and engineers to finalize the settings before the sprint qualifying on Friday evening.”
