Bahrain GP: Preview - HRT
10/03/2010 HRT F1, Hispania Racing F1 Team, the team formerly known as Campos prior to its acquisition by Jose Ramon Carabante in February, is ready for its Formula One debut this weekend in Bahrain. The team joins the F1 paddock with ambitious, but realistic targets after a fight against time to be ready for the season opener at Sakhir, Bahrain. Team principal Dr Colin Kolles has a passion for motorsport and is back at the helm of a Formula One team and relieved to have conquered the first battle getting the team name approved by the FIA ahead of the launch on 4 March 2010. His second battle was to ensure that the entire team was ready and able to field two cars for the start of the season in Bahrain, despite the lack of pre-season testing while the outfit's future was secured by Jose Ramon Carabante's investment. Kolles is confident in the team's potential for this season and is looking ahead to the team's first race this weekend with ambitious, but realistic goals. Colin Kolles: "With our driver's line up, we have all tools in hands to be one of the more successful new teams in the F1 paddock this year. We have identified two talented young drivers for our first season and combined with our passion and determination to learn with every lap, we feel ready to enter the F1 Hall of Fame this weekend. In a curious coincidence, our drivers are teammates for the second time, having partnered each other at iSport in 2008 - making them the first drivers to have been teammates in both GP2 and F1. Our drivers are already familiar with the Bahrain track layout, which will be a real benefit as our car takes to the track for the first time on Friday." Karun Chandhok: "I am really looking forward to my F1 debut this weekend. It will also be the first time I will be driving the new HRT F1 car so I can't wait to get my hands on it. Fortunately I have driven in Bahrain before in GP2 so that will help the learning process a bit! I was on the front row in 2008 and was very competitive when I was back here in 2009, so I've got pretty good knowledge of the circuit. However, F1 is a completely different ballgame and we will have a tough challenge in front of us. I have spent time back in Europe with the guys in the factory and it is great to see that the whole team is very motivated about our first race together. Finishing the race will be a fantastic achievement for a team put together so late and the objective here will be to get as many miles under my belt as possible. I am overwhelmed by the support I have been getting back home in India and want to thank the media and the F1 fans. There are a lot of Indians who live in Bahrain and I hope to see some good support at the circuit over the weekend!" Bruno Senna: "I've been to Bahrain twice, one time in GP2 in 2007 then in GP2 Asia in 2008. I had a great result in 2007 with Arden International, qualifying fifth and finishing fourth, which was great considering it was my first ever GP2 race. Bahrain is difficult because the track is usually very dirty to start with and improves all the time all the way to the end of the race, so the car set-up is very challenging. Also the sand in the air makes it very dry and the track can be quite slippery, which is another challenge when we are also dealing with the high temperatures. I hope that we can put the car on the track and sort out as many teething issues as possible during our first weekend, the car's track debut. My goal is to do everything I can to bring the car home to the chequered flag and set a good benchmark for the rest of our season. We'll certainly focus on the reliability side of things first and from then on, focus on performance." |
