For race day temperatures returned to something closer to normal for the Hungarian summer and the sun shone all day, meaning that the race would be held in different conditions to those where the set-up had been determined. Virgin Racing had high hopes for a strong finish, as Timo had qualified fastest of the new teams, but starting on the dirty side of the grid meant that he was unable to capitalise on this.
Lucas made a good start though and he looked as though he would be able to benefit from a quick pitstop by the team when the Safety Car came out in order that some debris could be retrieved from the track. The pitlane was transformed into a hive of activity as most of the Option-shod drivers rushed to the pits where a number of the teams encountered difficulties. Lucas was also a victim of bad luck when there was a problem with the fitting of the left rear in his first pitstop and he was forced to drive slowly round to assess the problem and have a further new set of tyres fitted, which compromised his race.
From this point the race stabilised, with Timo circulating in formation with the two Lotuses, the gap between them determined mainly by the blue flags. Timo finished 16th, with Lucas two places behind, and although the team is pleased to have both cars finish, there is a strong sense of unfulfilled promise and a determination to put the record straight when we return after the summer break at Spa Francorchamps in Belgium.
Timo Glock: "I had a great start but I took the wrong line into the first corner, going round the outside when the inside would have worked out better and I lost several places. When the Safety Car came out I had to queue behind Lucas in the pits because he was first in. After the Safety Car I was behind Kovalainen and then Trulli pitted later and came out straight in front of me and we had a bit of a battle into turn one. Then I just tried to follow Lotus but with all the blue flags I couldn't help but drop back and ended up finishing 16th. However, we finished the race with both cars and had an otherwise strong weekend and I think everyone is ready to enjoy the summer break now. Thanks to everyone in the team for all their hard work so far and I'm sure we can look forward to some good results in the rest of the season. I'm having a week's holiday and the rest of the break will be taken up with training, so that we all come back ready for action again in Spa."
Lucas di Grassi: "I had a very good first lap and I was running just behind Trulli and in front of Kovalainen. When the Safety Car came out we decided to pit. It was the perfect strategy move as it put me ahead of the new team cars, but unfortunately there was a problem with one of the wheels and I had to come in again on the next lap for another stop. This put me a lap down and my race was effectively over, so all I could do was push the car to the limit and in doing so I was able to secure the fastest lap of the new teams. This just underlines how far our car has progressed but I am disappointed that I wasn't able to get more from the race today. Now we have the summer break and I'm heading home to Brazil to spend some time with my family and friends. I'd like to thank the team for all their hard work so far and I hope they have a good rest and we can all come back and take the fight to Lotus in the last seven races."
John Booth, Team Principal: "This isn't the result we were hoping for as we had an excellent weekend up until the race and a car good enough to finish ahead of the other new teams today. But we take away from Hungary the same sense of satisfaction at the underlying car performance that we have enjoyed for the past few races and the knowledge that there's more of that to come in the remaining seven races. For now though our team head off on the summer break and to say that is richly deserved is something of an understatement. We have come so far since March and the guys have done an incredible job. I'm very proud of our team and I know there will be even more to come when we return to the track to race in Spa in four weeks' time."
Nick Wirth, Technical Director: "The results don't lie and the combination of getting boxed in at the start, plus a pitstop problem effectively put us behind and once there, the nature of this track plus the blue flags meant that any possibility of finishing higher was over after the safety car. Still, we leave here with a lot of positive feelings - we are clearly performing at a good level now and the fact that we ended qualifying and the race with clearly the fastest laps of the new teams and a solid and reliable two-car finish gives us a good platform for the next phase of the season, where we must continue this trend of improving performance"
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