Nick: « We Can Fight With The Big Guys »

We're catching up with Nick after free practice on day 1 at Istanbul.

Nick, how did the day go?

NH: Not too bad. Obivously, because of the rain this morning, we could not do a lot of useful work. This said, I have been able to use the extreme tyres for the first time. The afternoon was dry, so I did a long run with a high fuel load.

Have you been able to learn for the first races?

NH: Yes, quite a bit, not just from China but from the first three races because there was a bit more time to investigate and understand.Obviously we found places where we could improve, but on the other side it also seems that we have done some good races, and got some good results with the two podiums.

Is the future promising?

NH: There is definitely room for improvement, though, and personally I am not really happy with the amount of points we scored as a team in the first three races. I think the potential was clearly there for more. I am very happy if I look at the calendar that there have only been three races, and that there are so many more to come because I believe that I can score a lot better and higher consistently. That should bring me in a good championship position, and also the team especially, to fight with the big guns.

So you like the car?

NH: Yes. I have a positive feeling that our car should suit all circuits. This said, I am not 100% sure that the R31 will be as good as it was on low speed tracks, because it really was very good in the last one or two years there. That will be interesting to find out.

Are you confident for this weekend?

Nick: We have a reasonable package here, but we know and see there is more potential to come. We see in the wind tunnel that there are some new directions, some bigger steps and bigger changes, obviously, and you obviously want things to move quicker. But on the other side, if you look at the development speed of Lotus Renault GP, I think it is already very good and you always want more!