Thursday, 20 November 2014

Sauber hoping to score points in the season finale in Abu Dhabi

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(Sauber F1 Team)

The Sauber F1 Team head into the final race of the season, the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix having endured an extremely difficult 2014 Formula One season which has seen the team fail to score points. The team will hope to correct this at the Yas Marina circuit. 

The Swiss based outfit head into the final race of the season having announced a brand new line-up for 2015 with both Marcus Ericsson and Felipe Nasr joining the team replacing both Esteban Gutierrez and Adrian Sutil.

Speaking ahead of the final race of the season, Gutierrez commented by saying:

'The Abu Dhabi Grand Prix is another great event, and I will enjoy driving on this track. It will be important to find a good set-up, and this is where we need to put our focus the most on Friday. 

The track is quite spectacular with nice surroundings that are quite unique. One example is the hotel on top of the track. All in all, the atmosphere is special. The race starts late in the afternoon, which makes it even more interesting, and I would say the event has a bit of the same style as Singapore. It is very exciting to come back to Abu Dhabi, and I am looking forward to enjoying the race weekend there. We will keep fighting for a good result'.

Adrian Sutil commented on this weekend's race by saying:

'The Abu Dhabi Grand Prix will be the last race of the season. It is always a great event attended by many fans. The track itself is in perfect condition, it is very modern and it has some run-off areas. 

As the circuit has a few long straights, engine power will be crucial. On the other side, there are also hairpins and some slow speed corners. Besides that, the surroundings are also nice. We will again do our best to score points, and, especially on this weekend, we have to take the opportunity for double points. I am looking forward to an exciting weekend.'

Sauber F1 Team young driver Adderly Fong will drive for the Swiss based outfit in Friday's opening practice session at the Yas Marina circuit. Speaking ahead of his Grand Prix weekend debut with the team Fong, who drive for the team at the Circuit de la Comunitat Valenciana Ricardo Tomo stated:

'I am very excited about my Formula One debut in Abu Dhabi, but also at the same time a little bit nervous. Last month I drove the Sauber C31 for the first time in Valencia, and it was good to get the mileage to be able to familiarise myself with the speed of a Formula One car. 

Obviously the C33 is a bit different, as it is a new generation car with a 1.6-litre V6 turbocharged engine. It will be interesting to see how the ERS and the brake-by-wire systems work. 

As I will have only 90 minutes in FP1, I will not have a lot of time to get used to the car. However, being able to drive during a Formula One weekend is a great privilege, and I am very happy to have the opportunity. It is good that I already know the track as at the same time here last year I did a GP3 race.'

The Sauber F1 Team's Head of Track Engineering Giampaolo Dall'Ara commented by saying:

“The power demand of the race in Abu Dhabi promises a tough weekend at the end to our toughest season to date. Nevertheless, after some steps forward were witnessed in the recent qualifying sessions, the team is fully focused and pushing for a result we all feel we would deserve. The set-up will be biased towards low-speed cornering. 

Stable braking and strong traction are also relevant for the lap time. We are pleased with the allocation of soft and super-soft tyres for the weekend, as the race at sunset will help keep their temperatures under control.”

© Ben Johnston 2014

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