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Mike Coughlan:
Bahrain is a circuit that has some key characteristics that will present
new challenges for the teams. It’s a high braking circuit so brake wear
will be a factor, it is tough on rear tyres and it has a high ambient
temperature. We feel that the current car, whilst not as competitive as
we would like, will be more competitive in Bahrain because of these
factors. For engines it is a high power, high efficiency circuit that
places a premium on straight line speed and the Renault engine should be
robust at this sort of circuit. It’s been disappointing not to score
points in our first three races, but we can be pleased with the fact
that Valtteri has managed to bring the car home in every race so far
with very solid drives.
Pastor Maldonado:
Because the Sakhir Circuit is in the desert the track conditions can
change quite a lot during the weekend, especially with the sand being
blown across the surface, so the teams will have to be ready to react to
the different conditions. The temperatures in the cockpit are also going
to be very high so as a driver you have to be prepared both physically
and mentally to deal with that and I’m expecting to lose between 2 and
3kg during the race. Tyre degradation is also expected to be quite high
at this race which can always throw up some interesting challenges for
the teams.
Valtteri Bottas:
It’s been a very busy start to my career with two back to back races in
a row, but it has meant that I have had a lot of time in the car and the
chance to try and understand its characteristics. The track in Bahrain
isn’t used much throughout the year so can be quite green and the dusty
surface means that the conditions can change quite a lot from one
session to another, so it will be important to keep searching for the
best grip on each lap. The tyres also tend to drop off quite a lot at
this circuit so in Friday practice we need to try and find a good car
setup to maximise the long run performance for the race so we can keep
the tyres alive longer than others.
Rémi Taffin, Head of Renault Sport F1 Track Operations:
Sakhir sits in the middle of the table for the demands put on the
engine, with drivers at full throttle for 50% of the lap in the race and
57% in qualifying. However the high ambient temperatures and low
humidity are the main challenges for engines in Bahrain. The hot
conditions mean that the bodywork may have to be slightly opened to aid
the cooling configuration, while the aridity increases pressure within
the cylinder chamber, which can cause internal failure. We can
counteract this by tuning the engine.
Paul Hembery, Pirelli Motorsport Director:
Bahrain is one of the few circuits on which we will be competing for
only the second time and we’re bringing the P Zero Orange hard and P
Zero White medium: the two hardest tyres in the range, which was a
combination last used in Malaysia. The big challenge in Bahrain is
normally the heat, which can be in the region of 30 degrees ambient and
45 degrees on track, and this accentuates the amount of energy going
through the tyres. The grip in Bahrain can be very variable, due to the
sand that gets blown onto the surface from the surrounding desert and
this makes track evolution quite hard to predict. Traction and braking
are the two key aspects of Bahrain, both of which are very demanding on
the tyres, and I would expect to see a three-stop race from most teams,
as was the case last year. Degradation rather than actual wear will
decide the strategy.
Race Data
Friday:
Practice 1: 10:00 - 11:30
Practice 2: 14:00 - 15:30
Saturday:
Practice 3: 11:00 - 12:00
Qualifying: 14:00 – 15:00
Sunday: Race: 15:00
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