11/11/2010
NEWS STORY
The Virgin Racing team have made the trip from Interlagos to Yas Marina in an incredibly short time to be ready for this weekend's Grand Prix in Abu Dhabi. The pack-up in Brazil was completed by 11pm and the team had already arrived in Abu Dhabi by 05:00 on Tuesday morning. This is the second year that the 5.541 km Yas Marina circuit has been used, with the most interesting feature of the race being the transition from daylight to darkness, as the sun sets and the multi-coloured lights take over.
Timo Glock: "This is a new experience for me as I missed last year's race as a result of my leg injury. It's always great to learn a new circuit, but we already have a good idea from the simulator so it won't be too much of a challenge. The circuit itself is a typical modern circuit, quite different to the track at Interlagos with its changes of elevation, and in general there aren't many high-speed corners. It's obviously the last race of the season so our final chance to show what the VR-01 can do, and I'm looking forward to that, but also to next season which isn't that far away!"
Lucas di Grassi: "It's hard to believe we've already reached the last race of my first season as a Formula One driver. I'm looking forward to racing at the Yas Marina circuit with its change from daylight into darkness. I'm well prepared for it after driving it on the simulator, our target is to be the best of the new teams and we won't give up until the last lap is over."
John Booth, Team Principal: "So here we are at the final stage of our journey through the 2010 season, Virgin Racing's first in Formula One. I'm very proud to look back and see how the team has developed into a cohesive unit, dealing effortlessly with challenges like moving all of our equipment from Brazil to Abu Dhabi in such a short space of time. We're looking forward to this race as an opportunity to show how we can perform - in Brazil we were a little unlucky at the start and our race was compromised. So here we are looking for a good performance both in qualifying and in the race to give everyone a true impression of how we can perform. It will be our last race on Bridgestone tyres, and I'd like to thank them for all of the support and the great tyres that they have given us throughout the year. After the race we won't be resting, we'll be going straight into tyre testing with Pirelli as well as the young driver tests, before heading home and concentrating on next year's car."
To experience the Yas Island circuit in more detail click here