Distance from Sao Paulo to Hingham (approx.): 9,584 kms

Number of people who connect via Dell servers every day: > 1 billion

Approx. number of AirAsia crew at work in the air on a typical day across total route network: 550

Weather

Dry, sunny

Max air temp: 28˚

Max track temp: 40˚

Runplan

Driver: Jarno Trulli

Chassis: T128-03

1331: Car leaves for grid / 2 laps

Start on soft tyres

Lap 22: Pitstop 1 (soft tyres)

Lap 42: Pitstop 2 (medium tyres)

Finished 18th

Runplan

Driver: Heikki Kovalainen

Chassis: T128-04

1330: Car leaves for grid / 2 laps

Start on soft tyres

Lap 17: Pitstop 1 (soft tyres)

Lap 31: Pitstop 2 (soft tyres)

Lap 49: Pitstop 3 (medium tyres)

Finished 18th

Heikki Kovalainen, Car 20 - Chassis T128-04: "Thank you to everyone for another excellent weekend for the team where I don't think we could have got anything more from the whole package. All afternoon the car felt great and we managed to make the most of the performance we put in yesterday in qualifying. I had another great start today, they've really been excellent for some time now, and from there I got straight into a good rhythm right throughout the whole race. I had a few issues with the blue flags towards the end, with so many cars coming around it kind of messes with your own race, but that's just something you have to deal with. All year we've kept on progressing and we've finished on a real high with that tenth place so we're set us up perfectly for next year where we can take another step forward in the development of this team."

Jarno Trulli, Car 21 - Chassis T128-03: "For me it was a pretty standard race. I didn't have a great start but was easily ahead of the cars we needed to beat today and it was really just about getting the car home in one piece so we could seal our place in the championship. I want to thank the whole team for the work they've done this weekend and all year. We keep on progressing and it's great to be part of something that shows real signs of where it can go."

Thierry Salvi, Renault Sport F1 Support Leader: "That was a good race for us. Both drivers were able to maintain their positions which was not such an easy task because of the amount of activity on track, but they finished where we aimed for and that was what was all important. What I do want to talk about is the relationship between Team Lotus and Renault Sport F1. We have had a very good year in terms of how our partnership has developed. The whole team were very easy to work with right from day one and we have put ourselves in a very good position to keep moving forward next year."

Mike Gascoyne, Chief Technical Officer: "I think that is a great way to end the season and secure tenth place. It was a tense afternoon for us with all the possible weather changes, but the conditions held off and we had the sort of race we have been putting in for much of this year. Both drivers were pushing all afternoon - with Jarno we put him on a two stop race which meant he had to look after his tyres. That might have ended up costing him some time, but with Heikki we ran a three stop race and he brought his car home where we thought he could. Really though today is about doing the job for our shareholders and our partners, in particular Renault Sport F1 and Red Bull Technology who have played such a key role in today's success. Congratulations to our shareholders for the rewards we have now gained from finishing tenth for two seasons running. They deserve this success for the incredible support they give us every day and we will keep working hard to make them proud."

Tony Fernandes, Team Principal: "Almost tears for me today! I am absolutely overjoyed. Two years of hard work have paid off today and it was great to see both cars home safely, helping us win tenth place. The icing on the cake was beating a Renault - that meant a lot to me as I have always said the good guys do win. We have a fantastic little team here, and some incredible partners in GE, Dell, Intel, APC and CNN and I know how much it means to each and every person associated with us to have finished this season where we wanted to. Now we look forward to our new life as Caterham F1 Team and we say goodbye to Team Lotus. Colin - we hope we did you proud and we hope you keep an eye over us as Caterham F1 Team. We know we will do you proud there as well."

Team Lotus Information

Engine performance deficit per 100 metre increase in altitude: 1%

Number of Caterham cars sold since 1973: 12,000

Go to www.teamdellracing.com to see how Team Lotus has the power to do more with Dell

Weather

FP3: Sun / Overcast

Qualifying: Sun / Overcast

Min / max air temperature: 28˚ / 30˚

Min / max track temperature:   36˚ / 41˚

Positions / fastest laps

FP3

TRU 18th, 1.15.843 (lap 23) / KOV 19th, 1.16.026 (lap 20)

QUALIFYING

Q1

KOV 19th, 1.15.068 (lap 10) / TRU 20th, 1.15.358 (lap 13)

Total laps

FP3

TRU: 24 / KOV: 22

QUALIFYING

Q1

KOV: 11 / TRU: 14

Runplan

Driver: Jarno Trulli

Chassis: T128-03

FP3

1100 - 1102: Installation, 1 lap (medium tyres)

1102 - 1115: System checks / Adjustments - brake balance

1115 - 1128: Run 2, 9 laps (medium tyres)

1128 - 1136: Adjustments - front inerter, front & rear brake blanking, rear wing gurney flap

1136 - 1148: Run 3, 8 laps (medium tyres)

1148 - 1152: Adjustments - front brake blanking, front wing flap angle

1152 - 1202: Run 4, 6 laps (soft tyres)

Qualifying

Q1

1359 - 1406: Run 1, 4 laps (medium tyres)

1406 - 1407: Refuel

1407 - 1414: Run 2, 5 laps (soft tyres)

1414 - 1415: Refuel

1415 - 1422: Run 3, 5 laps (soft tyres)

Finished: 20th

Runplan

Driver: Heikki Kovalainen

Chassis: T128-04     

FP3

1100 - 1102: Installation, 1 lap (medium tyres)

1102 - 1115: System checks

1115 - 1126: Run 2, 8 laps (medium tyres)

1126 - 1132: Adjustments - front wing flap angle

1132 - 1142: Run 3, 8 laps (medium tyres)

1142 - 1154: Adjustments - front wing flap angle

1154 - 1202: Run 4, 5 laps (soft tyres)

Qualifying

Q1

1359 - 1407: Run 1, 5 laps (medium tyres)

1407 - 1408: Refuel

1408 - 1413: Run 2, 3 laps (soft tyres)

1413 - 1415: Refuel

1415 - 1421: Run 3, 3 laps (soft tyres)

Finished: 19th

Heikki Kovalainen, Car 20 - Chassis T128-04: "That is a great way to end qualifying for the season, one of the really good laps. I've had a lot of good sessions this year but that really stands out as one of the best. Jarno has been strong here all weekend and I was just behind him after the first runs so I had to really pull out everything to beat him. We made a couple of adjustments to the tyres and it paid off with that final lap with seconds left on the clock. We've also finished here closer to the opposition than we have all season, and even though it's a shorter lap here it's still a very good sign that we've found quite a bit of time with the new rear wing and I think that will help us again tomorrow. The forecast looks like rain and that always makes it interesting around here, so I think whatever happens it'll be a good Sunday, and hopefully a great way to end the season."

Jarno Trulli, Car 21 - Chassis T128-03: "I'm reasonably pleased with how it went today. The second set of tyres weren't as good as the first and even though I improved my time I still couldn't really push - I've had a pretty good weekend so far but still haven't found a balance I'm really happy with, but the main thing is we've increased the gap to the cars behind us and moved closer to the teams directly ahead."

Thierry Salvi, Renault Sport F1 Support Leader: "The challenge for us here has been to help maximise the potential of the new rear wing and DRS system on the cars. The update is a big step forward for the team and it means we have had to work on the ratios and find the right balance between the settings we use for qualifying and the race. That is what the top teams ahead have had to do all year and for us that is the first time we really had to work in that area this season, so it has been a good challenge, and a sign of how far the team has come. It looks like it has worked out because the feedback from the drivers has been positive and the result today is what we were hoping for, so this goes down as a good result for the whole team."

Mike Gascoyne, Chief Technical Officer: "That was a strong end to qualifying for this season. This morning we were having some issues getting the pace out of the soft tyres but this afternoon we turned that around and Heikki in particular got everything he could out of the car. Jarno was a little less happy with the balance but for me this is a good way to finish qualifying this year. Throughout the second half of the season we have moved closer to the group in front and that was particularly evident today, so the aim for tomorrow is clear - have a strong race and give ourselves a successful last race of 2011."

Tony Fernandes, Team Principal: "What a great way to end the last qualifying session for Team Lotus. We were within a second of cars right up to 11th place, and just over 0.4 off Williams, so to bring to an end our qualifying for 2011, having made up that amount of time, is a real achievement. People forget that we do not have KERS this year. If we had KERS, as we do next season, would clearly be fighting in the midfield, so I am very happy with how far we have come in such a short amount of time. Our next qualifying session will be as Caterham F1 Team and that is a whole new chapter for us, something we are all very excited about and if we can maintain the progress we have shown in our first two years we will be right on course to achieve our long-term goals."

Percentage of Brazilian GPs won by Renault engines: 25%

Total Team Lotus Facebook fans: 117,536

Maximum G level through Curva Do Sol: 4g

Weather

Dry, sunny

Min / max air temperature: 20˚ / 27˚

Min / max track temperature: 26˚ / 42˚

Fastest laps / positions

FP1

KOV: 19th, 1.16.514 (lap 32)

RAZ: 20th, 1.17.595 (lap 23)

FP2

TRU: 19th, 1.16.298 (lap 21)

KOV: 20th, 1.16.338 (lap 31)

Total laps

FP1

KOV: 33 / RAZ: 32

FP2

TRU: 36 / KOV: 48

Runplan

FP1: Luiz Razia

FP2: Jarno Trulli

Chassis: T128-03

FP1: Luiz Razia

1000 - 1003: Installation, 2 laps (Pirelli development tyres)

1003 - 1029: System checks, brake material change

1029 - 1041: Run 2, 8 laps (Pirelli development tyres)

1041 - 1054: Adjustments - rear wing change: new to old spec, front brake blanking

1054 - 1108: Run 3, 10 laps (Pirelli development tyres)

1108 - 1115: Adjustments - front wing flap angle

1115 - 1131: Run 4, 11 laps - brake temperature test (medium tyres)

FP2: Jarno Trulli

Adjustments: Front wing flap angle, front brake blanking, rear wing - old to new spec

1400 - 1411: Run 1, 8 laps (medium tyres)

1411 - 1422: Adjustments - rear ride height, front brake blanking, front anti-roll bar

1422 - 1429: Run 2, 4 laps (medium tyres)

1429 - 1447: Adjustments - refuel

1447 - 1454: Run 3, 5 laps (medium tyres)

1454 - 1500: Adjustments - front wing flap angle, front torsion bar

1500 - 1509: Run 4, 6 laps (soft tyres)

1509 - 1514: Adjustments - front wing flap angle

1514 - 1533: Run 5, 13 laps (soft tyres)

Runplan

Heikki Kovalainen

Chassis: T128-04

FP1

0959 - 1002: Installation, 2 laps (Pirelli development tyres)

1002 - 1027: System checks, brake material change

1027 - 1042: Run 2, 10 laps (Pirelli development tyres)

1042 - 1058: Adjustments - rear wing change: old to new spec, front brake blanking

1058 - 1114: Run 3, 10 laps (Pirelli development tyres)

1114 - 1117: Adjustments - refuel

1117 - 1133: Run 4, 11 laps (medium tyres)

FP2

Adjustments: Front wing flap angle, brake balance, front anti-roll bar

1359 - 1412: Run 1, 9 laps (medium tyres)

1412 - 1419: Adjustments - front anti-roll bar, brake balance

1419 - 1439: Run 2, 14 laps (medium tyres)

1439 - 1448: Adjustments - front wing flap angle

1448 - 1501: Run 3, 9 laps (soft tyres)

1501 - 1509: Adjustments - front wing flap angle

1509 - 1532: Run 4, 16 laps (soft tyres)

Luiz Razia, Car 21 - Chassis T128-03: "I'm really pleased with how my session went today. It was a very proud moment for me to be back on track in Interlagos, this time in an F1 car, a real dream come true, so I want to thank the whole team for the chance to drive here today. I'd had a good run in the car last week in Abu Dhabi so I felt comfortable pretty quickly, and I think my laptimes showed that. We worked through a busy programme, including comparisons with the new rear wing the team's brought here against the previous spec we used in Abu Dhabi - I could feel immediately what a good step forward that is and I'm pleased I could play my part today in helping the team keep progressing, right up to the last race here in my home country."

Heikki Kovalainen, Car 20 - Chassis T128-04: "I had a good day today. The new rear wing is another step forward and it's encouraging to see that sort of update coming right at the end of the season. I got through a very good number of laps today and every change we made helped us find a bit more time on both tyre compounds, so with a bit more hard work tonight I think tomorrow and Sunday could be pretty good for us."

Jarno Trulli, Car 21 - Chassis T128-03: "I'm pretty pleased with my run this afternoon. We need to do a bit of work on fine tuning the balance, and I think there's more to come from the new rear wing, but the update is working and hopefully we can show in qualifying the sort of pace we've had recently in the races - that's the aim for tomorrow, and then to carry that over to Sunday."

Thierry Salvi, Renault Sport F1 Support Leader: "From the engine perspective I think we can be pleased with how today has gone. We have completed very decent mileage on both cars and have amassed enough data to help us progress more tomorrow around what is a pretty unique track. We have to find the right balance between strong driveability and top end power and give the drivers good responsiveness to maximise the lap times around Interlagos, and from where we finished today it looks like we are heading in the right direction."

Mike Gascoyne, Chief Technical Officer: "An excellent Friday for the team. In the first session we ran Luiz Razia and he did a really good job, completing his whole programme and apart from one small mistake on his quickest lap, which probably cost him half a second at the last corner, he can be very satisfied with his day's work. With the two race drivers we were evaluating a new rear wing which maximises the effect of the DRS system. That worked exactly as we had predicted and gave us a significant improvement in lap time which has helped us move another step closer to the cars immediately ahead so I think we can look forward to a good final weekend of 2011."

Riad Asmat, Group CEO: "That was a good last Friday of the season for us. This time last year we were racing a car that we had stopped development on in the middle of the season, and this year we have come to the last race with a new rear wing that has immediately paid dividends. That is a good sign of the continuing progression of our team and it bodes well for next year that the investments we have made in critical areas are giving us good returns right up to the end of the season. We have had a strong latter part of 2011 and I think we can push even more over this weekend, so we will aim to keep up this momentum tomorrow and see what we can do in qualifying."

2010 Qualify Result

P1 HUL 1.14.470 Q3

P2 VET 1.15.519 Q3

P3 HAM 1.15.637 Q3

TL best P20 KOV 1.22.250 Q1 (wet)

2010 Race Result

P1 VET 1.14.283 L70

P2 WEB 1.14.047 L69

P3 ALO 1.13.855 L69

TL best P18 KOV 1.17.161 L69

Quick description

Fuel consumption and fuel effect are low compared to other tracks

Kerbs are not a problem and the track is no longer particularly bumpy

Hard race for the drivers with many compressions and a greater lateral loads than most circuits

Low atmospheric pressure due to highest altitude of the season: ~700 m above sea level

Top speed can be reached in T1 or T4 depending on wind condition

Typical balance issue

Traction is usually the main issue

Gears ratio (1st gear/others)

1st gear not used on the track

Circuit particularity

Bumpiness: Medium

Overtaking chance: Low

Kerbs: Smooth

RH setting particularity: None

Sensitivities

Engine severity: Medium

GBX severity: Low

Lat/Long grip: Lateral

Aero eff ratio: High

Track and base setup

Track grip evo during WE: High

Aero settings: Medium / High

Brake wear severity: Medium

Brake cooling necessity: Medium

Team Lotus Partners

Pirelli tyre compounds in Brazil: Medium / Soft

Heikki Kovalainen, Car 20 - Chassis T128-04: "This has been a long, hard season and it will be good to bring it to an end in Brazil, but for me this has been one of the best seasons I have had in motor racing. As the team keeps growing and keeps developing I've just had to make sure I am driving as hard as I can, and every time I get out of the car I've been satisfied that I couldn't get any more out of it, so I can't really do any more than that. There is a great spirit in this team - we are definitely going in the right direction, so we will all look back on this year as another step forward, and then make sure we keep that momentum up as soon as we hit the track in 2012.

"For Brazil there's no reason why we can't have another very strong weekend. We have a new rear wing that should give us a bit more quali and race pace, and we have the same medium and soft tyre compounds we used in Abu Dhabi, so we should be able to put in the same kind of performances we showed there and in several races before."

Jarno Trulli, Car 21 - Chassis T128-03: "Brazil is a track I always look forward to but one I've never been too lucky at. It's one of the old style tracks, not the stop / start long straight / tight turn we see at a lot of the modern circuits - it's the sort of place you can build up a good rhythm as it's a mix of high speed turns merging into slower corners and from inside the cockpit that feels good. I want to try and finish the season as well as I can - the car has felt good in the races and with the update we have to the rear wing I think we can finish the season with a step forward in qualifying, so let's see what happens."

Mike Gascoyne, Chief Technical Officer: "We head to Brazil in good spirits after a long year but we have enjoyed a strong latter part of the season. We have been pushing ahead since Singapore, and there will not be one person in the team taking their foot off the gas until we see both cars cross the line on Sunday ahead of the teams behind us.

"Our progress on track has been clear to see and another sign of our ongoing development this year is the fact we are bringing a new rear wing to Brazil. Our race pace has been good all season, but we have not been able to match that in qualifying, and the update to the rear wing is designed to help us do that by improving the efficiency of our DRS system. In simple terms, because DRS can be used anywhere on track in qualifying our performances in Q1 have not matched our race performances where DRS usage is limited, and bringing a new wing that gives us more downforce and improves the efficiency of the system should see us being able to close the gap in qualifying to the cars ahead compared to the previous races. Last year we had stopped development on the T127 halfway through the season and this year we have new parts right up to the final race and that is how we will be operating next year and for many seasons to come."

Tony Fernandes, Team Principal: "The Brazilian Grand Prix is a very important race for us for a number of reasons. On track we still have a fight ahead of us to secure our primary goal of the season, and we will also be saying goodbye to Team Lotus.

"Our stewardship of Team Lotus will come to an end in mid-December.

In our short time as custodians of the brand we have had highs and lows but the fundamental point is that we brought Lotus back into Formula One and we did it in the right style. We have built up our Formula One team and all our associated businesses from a starting point of an empty factory in Norfolk in just two years, and now we have secured our future and are in control of our own destiny, and therefore we have achieved our first goal. After this race we will say goodbye to Team Lotus with very fond memories and then we will look forward to next year when the Caterham F1 Team will signal the start of the next chapter of our very exciting story."

Distance from Abu Dhabi to Sao Paulo (approx.): 11,592 kms

Time spent at full throttle on RS27 engine between T7 & T8: 14 seconds

Approx. number of AirAsia crew at work in the air on a typical day across total route network: 550

Weather

Dry

Min / max air temp: 25˚ / 27˚

Min / max track temp: 28˚ / 35˚

Runplan

Driver: Jarno Trulli

Chassis: T128-03

1632: Car leaves for grid

Start on soft tyres

Lap 17: Pitstop 1 (soft tyres)

Lap 43: Pitstop 2 (medium tyres)

Finished 18th

Runplan

Driver: Heikki Kovalainen

Chassis: T128-04

1631: Car leaves for grid

Start on soft tyres

Lap 16: Pitstop 1 (soft tyres)

Lap 39: Pitstop 2 (medium tyres)

Finished 17th

Heikki Kovalainen, Car 20 - Chassis T128-04: "Another pretty good start and from there the whole race was straightforward. I didn't have any issues for the whole race, the pitstops were good and the strategy worked out exactly was we'd planned, so across the whole weekend this has been another strong event for us. What seems to be happening is that in the first couple of stints, as the race sort of settles down, we are able to keep up with the cars ahead, and that's obviously a sign of how we have progressed, and that's again what happened here. When we went onto the primes for the last stint the pace obviously dropped a bit but we had another strong push to the end, with Senna losing time on his final set of tyres, and that points to us being able to fight much more closely next year. For now we have one race left, so we'll shift the focus now to Brazil and make sure we finish the season as strongly as we have been doing since Singapore."

Jarno Trulli, Car 21 - Chassis T128-03: "I lost a few places at the start with clutch slip, but within a few laps I had got passed the cars we needed to fight and then focused on making sure I got the car to the end of the race. The second stint was pretty strong, but then on the last stint on the hard tyres I was struggling to get them up to temperature so I couldn't really push any more. This has been a bit of a tough weekend. I came here with a bit of a fever and then losing time in FP3 obviously set me back as well, but now I want to make sure I have as good a race as possible in Brazil and help the team secure tenth place."

Thierry Salvi, Renault Sport F1 Support Leader: "I think we managed to get as much as we could hope for today. We have been focusing on giving the drivers the right mix of top-end speed, rear-end stability and good responsiveness in the low to mid-speed corners, and I think Heikki's early pace showed that we keep going in the right direction."

Mike Gascoyne, Chief Technical Officer: "A solid race for us and good to see both cars across the finish line with no problems all afternoon. We opted for the same strategy on both cars, running the first two stints on the soft tyres and switching to the mediums at the end and it worked out how we had planned it would. Jarno lost some time at the start but he pulled some of that back with a strong middle stint but was then hit by the number of blue flags that he had to slow down for. At the end of the race Heikki was once again chasing down the Renault but just was not able to get past him with the laps he had left. Now we move on to the last race of the season in Brazil where we will be focusing on the season's number on goal - securing tenth place and giving ourselves the platform we need to keep building for the future."

Riad Asmat, Group CEO: "We leave Abu Dhabi feeling pretty good about the way the weekend went for the whole team, particularly seeing Heikki having another storming race and mixing it in the midfield for a good part of the afternoon. We keep edging closer to tenth place, and while that is not a step forward for us in championship terms, compared to last year, it is vital for our long-term growth, and when we can carry over the step-up we have made this year in the pitstops, in the factory and in our race pace, we are putting ourselves in the right place for next season and beyond. One more race to go and we will make sure we keep up this level or performance in Brazil before the race team takes a well-earned break."

Total number Team Lotus Facebook fans: 116,812

Number of Caterham racing series worldwide (now.....): 20

Go to www.teamdellracing.com to see how Team Lotus has the power to do more with Dell

Weather

Dry

Min / max air temperature: 27˚ / 30˚

Min / max track temperature: 35˚ / 42˚

Positions / fastest laps

FP3

KOV 18th, 1.43.409 (lap 18) / TRU 24th n/a

QUALIFYING

Q1

KOV 18th, 1.42.979 (lap 8) / TRU 19th, 1.43.884 (lap 10)

Total laps

FP3

KOV: 22 / TRU: 1

QUALIFYING

Q1

KOV: 11 / TRU: 11

Runplan

Driver: Jarno Trulli

Chassis: T128-03

FP3

1400 - 1402: Installation, 1 lap

Gearbox issue ends session

Qualifying

Q1

1659 - 1709: Run 1, 5 laps (medium tyres)

1709 - 1711: Refuel

1711 - 1723: Run 2, 6 laps (soft tyres)

Finished: 19th

Runplan

Driver: Heikki Kovalainen

Chassis: T128-04

FP3

1400 - 1402: Installation, 1 lap (medium tyres)

1402 - 1410: System checks

1410 - 1423: Run 2, 7 laps (medium tyres)

1423 - 1430: Adjustments - front wing flap angle, rear wing gurney flap

1430 - 1444: Run 3, 7 laps (medium tyres)

1444 - 1451: Adjustments - front wing flap angle

1451 - 1503: Run 4, 7 laps (soft tyres)

Qualifying

Q1

1659 - 1709: Run 1, 5 laps (medium tyres)

1709 - 1711: Refuel, front wing flap angle adjusted

1711 - 1723: Run 2, 6 laps (soft tyres)

Finished: 18th

Heikki Kovalainen, Car 20 - Chassis T128-04: "I am really pleased with that performance today. We definitely got as much performance as we could out of the car and to break into the 1.42s is very satisfying. I pretty much nailed the quick lap and I think we know that where we are on race pace gives us another chance of a strong finish tomorrow. I'm also looking forward to Brazil where we have an update to the rear wing coming - that should give us a better chance of using the DRS more effectively around the whole lap in qualifying, helping us get much closer to our race pace on Saturday afternoons, so another quick lap like that in Brazil with the update would be a great way to finish the qualifying sessions this season."

Jarno Trulli, Car 21 - Chassis T128-03: "It's obviously been a tricky Saturday for me, having had to sit out FP3 when we found an issue with the gearbox that couldn't be fixed in time for me to run in that session. Despite that, the team worked well to fix the problem and gave me the chance to get out in qualifying without incurring any penalties, so putting together a lap that comfortably keeps me ahead of the guys behind is, in the circumstances, pretty good."

Thierry Salvi, Renault Sport F1 Support Leader: "We saw from Heikki's fastest time that the work everyone put in last night and today gave us the performance we were looking for. With the change in track temperatures we do have to give the drivers different engine maps to suit the ambient temperatures, as well as maximising performance for the specific characteristics of this track, and the times we put in on both cars, especially considering the lack of running Jarno had earlier, puts this down as a good qualifying session for the team."

Mike Gascoyne, Chief Technical Officer: "A reasonably satisfying qualifying session for us. Obviously Jarno had some ground to make up after losing this morning's session with a gearbox issue that we were able to fix in time for qualifying. Heikki put in another very good Q1 and extracted as much performance as he could out of the car, so they both did well today. We put both cars on two runs in the session, first on the medium compounds and then on the softs, and we finised the session closer to the pack ahead than we have all season, so that points towards another strong Sunday for us. The key now is to maintain the pace we have shown since Singapore and make sure we bring both cars to the chequered flag without any problems."

Riad Asmat, Group CEO: "I think we can be reasonably pleased with today's performance. Heikki put in another incredible lap, getting it just right in all three sectors to finish as close as he did to Michael ahead, and Jarno had to perform in a car that he had barely had track time in today and managed to put in a good lap, pretty close to his team mate. Two more races to go, one tomorrow and then the final race in Brazil in two weeks, and two more races for us to secure that all important tenth place. If the drivers and the team can keep up the level of performance we have seen today and for a good part of the whole season, I think we will be ok."

Number of F1 circuits that run anti-clockwise: Five

Total @myteamlotus Twitter followers: 45,341

Maximum width of an F1 brake disc: 28mm

Weather

Dry, sunny (FP1), twilight (FP2)

Min / max air temperature: 27° / 31°

Min / max track temperature: 30° / 41°

Fastest laps / positions

FP1

KOV: 18th, 1.44.565 (lap 16) / TRU: 19th, 1.44.898 (lap 16)

FP2

KOV: 18th, 1.43.562 (lap 22) / TRU: 19th, 1.44.050 (lap 24)

Total laps

FP1

KOV: 27 / TRU: 25

FP2

KOV: 36 / TRU: 38

Runplan

Jarno Trulli

Chassis: T128-03

FP1

1301 - 1303: Installation, 1 lap (soft tyres)

1303 - 1327: System checks,

1327 - 1342: Run 2, 7 laps (soft tyres)

1342 - 1352: Adjustments - rear brake blanking, front torsion bar, front wing flap

1352 - 1411: Run 3, 10 laps (soft tyres)

1411 - 1421: Adjustments - brake balance

1421 - 1436: Run 4, 7 laps (medium tyres)

FP2

1700 - 1713: Run 1, 7 laps (medium tyres)

1713 - 1719: Adjustments - front wing flap angle, rear ride height

1719 - 1731: Run 2, 6 laps (medium tyres)

1731 - 1738: Adjustments - Refuel

1738 - 1746: Run 3, 4 laps (soft tyres)

1746 - 1748: Adjustments - Refuel

1748 - 1804: Run 4, 8 laps (soft tyres)

1804 - 1810: Adjustments - Refuel (high fuel load)

1810 - 1835: Run 5, 13 laps (soft tyres)

Runplan

Heikki Kovalainen

Chassis: T128-04

FP1

1301 - 1303: Installation, 1 lap (soft tyres)

1303 - 1319: System checks

1319 - 1338: Run 2, 9 laps (soft tyres)

1338 - 1356: Adjustments - brake balance

1356 - 1411: Run 3, 8 laps (soft tyres)

1411 - 1418: Adjustments - brake balance

1418 - 1435: Run 4, 9 laps (medium tyres)

FP2

1700 - 1716: Run 1, 8 laps (medium tyres)

1716 - 1725: Adjustments - front wing flap angle, rear ride height, front anti-roll bar

1725 - 1737: Run 2, 6 laps (medium tyres)

1737 - 1747: Adjustments - front wing flap angle, rear ride height, front anti-roll bar

1747 - 1804: Run 3, 9 laps (soft tyres)

1804 - 1810: Adjustments - Front wing flap angle, high fuel load

1810 - 1835: Run 4, 13 laps (soft tyres)

Heikki Kovalainen, Car 20 - Chassis T128-04: "Not too bad at all. Both sessions were pretty straightforward and we kept making improvements all day. The car felt good on both sets of tyres - the track here has really good grip levels and the degradation on the softs was pretty low, certainly manageable, so that looks good for Sunday. The main thing is that our Fridays are now all solid, giving us the chance to really dial the cars in and that means we can work on maximising our pace on Saturday and Sundays, and you can see the evidence of that from our recent races."

Jarno Trulli, Car 21 - Chassis T128-03: "That was a good Friday for us. The car felt pretty balanced all day and we kept improving on each run, so I think we're looking ok for the rest of the weekend. Both tyre compounds behaved pretty well here - the softs weren't going off too quickly at all so I think that gives us good options for the race, and there's a bit of performance difference between the softs and the mediums so we might be able to do something with that in qualifying - let's see."

Mike Gascoyne, Chief Technical Officer: "A good day for us here in Abu Dhabi - we completed the planned program on both cars with no issues all day, keeping up the much improved reliability record we have had in the latter part of the season. This morning the two drivers ran on the development tyres and Heikki was working on brake comparisons, so we have some useful data to look at from those. In the afternoon we worked on race evaluations on both compounds and I think we look pretty good on both the low and heavy fuel loads on both. All in all a good Friday, setting us up well for the rest of the weekend."

Thierry Salvi, Renault Sport F1 Support Leader: "We completed a very good number of laps today which is always key for Fridays. We now have a lot of data to work on which we will use tonight to fine tune the engine performance for the drivers tomorrow and on Sunday. This track puts the emphasis on the responsiveness of the engines - driveability it not so important here as there are a number of relatively low-speed second and third gear corners and I think we are looking ok in those areas, as well as in top speed which is obviously key for the long straights."

Riad Asmat, Group CEO: "Another solid Friday for us and we look like we have maintained the same sort of pace we have been showing in the last few races. One of the key areas we have been working on is making sure we run reliably all weekend, so to complete another Friday where we have run without any issues all day is good. Now the goal is to carry that through the rest of the weekend and make sure we keep up this level of performance to the end of the season."

Distance from Delhi to Abu Dhabi (approx.): 2,312 kms

Total number of Team Lotus Facebook fans: 116,215

Approx. number of AirAsia crew at work in the air on a typical day across total route network: 550

Weather

Dry, sunny

Min / max air temp: 28˚ / 31˚

Min / max track temp: 35˚ / 37˚

Runplan

Driver: Jarno Trulli

Chassis: T128-03

1432: Car leaves for grid / 2 laps

Start on soft tyres

Lap 1: Pitstop 1 (soft tyres)

Lap 27: Pitstop 2 (soft tyres)

Lap 56: Pitstop 3 (hard tyres)

Finished 19th

Runplan

Driver: Heikki Kovalainen

Chassis: T128-04

1430: Car leaves for grid / 2 laps

Start on soft tyres

Lap 22: Pitstop 1 (soft tyres)

Lap 42: Pitstop 2 (hard tyres)

Finished 14th

Heikki Kovalainen, Car 20 - Chassis T128-01: "I had another good start, maybe not quite up there with the last two races, but avoided the problems in turn 1 and 3 and from there I had a really strong race. At one point I was running 10th and the car felt great all afternoon. I was still in it after the first stops and as the fuel level dropped I was able to keep pace with Senna ahead, and keep a gap to the cars behind, but when I went onto the hards it was much harder to keep up the pace. I was also seriously held up by the HRTs when they had blue flags shown to them. I think they held up Lewis as well and they definitely cost me quite a lot of time. I probably wouldn't have finished any higher, even without them holding me up, but when we're pushing as hard as we are, and fighting with midfield cars, it's a good feeling, for me and the whole team."

Jarno Trulli, Car 21 - Chassis T128-03: "The bad luck struck again. I had a pretty good start but then one of the HRT's hit me from behind as we came out of turn three and that was basically the end of my race. I had a puncture and had to do almost a full lap to get me back to the pit, so from that position there wasn't anything I could do. I think the car suffered some damage to the floor when I was hit as the balance had completely gone for the rest of the race and I just couldn't put any decent times in. Despite that this has been another good weekend for the team. Our reliability has been strong, Heikki's pace in the race was good so I just hope I have better luck in the last two races and help make sure we secure tenth in this year's championship."

Thierry Salvi, Renault Sport F1 Support Leader: "For us that was another strong performance from the whole team on a track that pushed the engines pretty hard. Obviously it was a shame that Jarno's race was compromised so early on but with Heikki he was able to race as high as tenth up to the halfway point which is very encouraging. It looks like we found balance we were working on, with good top speed for the first half of the lap and maximising the driveability and responsiveness of the engines for the second part of the lap, so we leave India feeling pretty satisfied with the job we have done on this new track."

Mike Gascoyne, Chief Technical Officer: "A mixed result today for us. Unfortunately Jarno's race was effectively ended on the first lap when an HRT crashed into the back of him, causing a rear puncture and causing damage to the rear floor, so all he could do today was make sure he brought the car home. Heikki drove a very strong race on a two stop strategy, running the soft tyre for the first two stints and then going on to the hard to the end of the race. He was fighting with the midfield all the way through and brought the car home to record another strong finish. Yet again we showed the progress the team has made throughout the season and we are continuing our strong end to 2011. Now we have two more races to look forward to - two more chances for us possibly to score our first point, but, more importantly, to finish tenth."

Riad Asmat, Group CEO: "First I want to say on behalf of the whole team what a great job the Jaypee Group and everyone here has done to put on a truly spectacular first Indian Grand Prix. From our perspective we leave here reasonably pleased with how the race went - Heikki had another fantastic drive today and made the most of the opportunity to race with the cars around him. Jarno was unlucky to be hit by the HRT after he had made a good start, but the main thing for us this weekend is that we have crossed off another race and are a step closer to finishing tenth. That is the primary goal for us this season and we are nearly there."

Approximate weight of a Renault Sport F1 piston under full acceleration: 2 tonnes

Total number of @myteamlotus Twitter followers: 44,680

Go to www.teamdellracing.com to see how Team Lotus has the power to do more with Dell

Weather

Hazy, sunny

Min / max air temperature: 28˚ / 31˚

Min / max track temperature: 33˚ / 37˚

Positions / fastest laps

FP3

TRU 19th, 1.29.355 (lap 20) / KOV 20th, 1.29.750 (lap 18)

QUALIFYING

Q1

KOV 19th, 1.28.565 (lap 11) / TRU 20th, 1.28.752 (lap 12)

Total laps

FP3

TRU: 21 / KOV: 19

QUALIFYING

Q1

KOV: 13 / TRU: 13

Runplan

Driver: Jarno Trulli

Chassis: T128-03

FP3

1100 - 1103: Installation, 1 lap (hard tyres)

1103 - 1116: System checks

1116 - 1139: Run 2, 13 laps (hard tyres)

1139 - 1150: Adjustments - front wing flap angle

1150 - 1202: Run 3, 7 laps (soft tyres)

Qualifying

Q1

1359 - 1409: Run 1, 6 laps (hard tyres)

1409 - 1411: Refuel

1411 - 1422: Run 2, 7 laps (soft tyres)

Finished: 20th

Runplan

Driver: Heikki Kovalainen

Chassis: T128-01

FP3

1100 - 1103: Installation, 1 lap (hard tyres)

1103 - 1117: System checks

1117 - 1138: Run 2, 12 laps (hard tyres)

1138 - 1150: Adjustments - front wing flap angle, brake balance

1150 - 1202: Run 3, 6 laps (soft tyres)

Qualifying

Q1

1359 - 1409: Run 1, 6 laps (hard tyres)

1409 - 1411: Refuel, front wing flap adjusted

1411 - 1422: Run 2, 7 laps (soft tyres)

Finished: 19th

Heikki Kovalainen, Car 20 - Chassis T128-01: "I think I got as much out of the car as I could in quali and it's good to put in a lap like that right towards the end of the run. Honestly, I've been struggling all weekend to find a balance and put heat into the tyres, so to come out on Saturday and hook up a lap within 0.7 of Kamui feels pretty good. As the weekend's continuing the track's getting better and better and I have to say I'm really enjoying myself out there, so tomorrow will be fun, particularly as we've shown recently that we can fight with the cars in front throughout the race."

Jarno Trulli, Car 21 - Chassis T128-03: "I was a bit unlucky with traffic on my quick laps and I think there were a couple of tenths to find but we were pretty close to pushing as hard as we could today in quali. We've taken a step forward since yesterday as the times show, but we know our qualifying pace doesn't reflect what we can do in the race so I want to make sure I can get back to the great race starts I'd been making a couple of races back and see where we end up tomorrow afternoon."

Thierry Salvi, Renault Sport F1 Support Leader: "We worked a lot last night on improving the balance of the car through the medium and high speed corners and on maximising our straight line speed so both cars have the best shot of competing with the teams ahead tomorrow. I think we will be ok - this is a similar layout to the last race in Korea and we were strong there so I think we can look forward to another good performance on Sunday."

Mike Gascoyne, Chief Technical Officer: "I think we can be reasonably pleased with our qualifying performance here. Our drivers were close to the maximum on their quickest laps and even though they had a couple of issues with traffic and struggled to generate heat in both compounds of tyres, we finished Q1 close to the group ahead. We know we can fight with a number of cars in the race so the aim for Sunday has to be a repeat of our races in Japan and Korea and maintain the strong end to the season we have been enjoying over the last few races."

Riad Asmat, Group CEO: "We did ok here. Both drivers have struggled a little with the tyres here but I think our qualifying performance today shows some of the hard work put in last night and this morning has brought us back to where we know we should be. Now we want to maintain the very good reliability we have seen all weekend and make sure both cars finish well tomorrow. I think the race itself is going to be a momentous occasion for everyone involved in the Indian Grand Prix and I hope the fans have something to cheer for, no matter what team they are following."

Number of passengers flown so far in 2011 on AirAsia: 16 million

Maximum acceleration at the surface of an F1 tyre: 2,500g

Distance jumped by the USA's John Guetter on a BRP Can Am DS 450 X, a

new Guinness World Record: 176ft, 11"

Weather

Dry, hazy (am), sunny (pm)

Min / max air temperature: 20° / 30°

Min / max track temperature: 25° / 40°

Fastest laps / positions

FP1

TRU: 18th, 1.30.818 (lap 15)

CHD: 19th, 1.32.487 (lap 18)

FP2

TRU: 17th, 1.29.332 (lap 31)

KOV: 18th, 1.30.241 (lap 29)

Total laps

FP1

TRU: 22 / CHD: 24

FP2

TRU: 39 / KOV: 41

Runplan

Jarno Trulli

Chassis: T128-03

FP1 (all runs on soft tyres)

1002 - 1005: Installation, 1 lap

1005 - 1039: System checks

1039 - 1054: Run 2, 8 laps

1054 - 1102: Adjustments - rear brake blanking, brake balance, front wing flap

1102 - 1113: Run 3, 7 laps

1113 - 1121: Adjustments - brake blanking

1121 - 1133: Run 4, 6 laps

FP2

1401 - 1413: Run 1, 7 laps (hard tyres)

1413 - 1426: Adjustments - front brake blanking

1426 - 1451: Run 2, 15 laps (soft tyres)

1451 - 1458: Adjustments - front wing flap angle

1458 - 1515: Run 3, 10 laps (soft tyres)

1515 - 1521: Adjustments - brake balance

1521 - 1532: Run 4, 7 laps (soft tyres)

Runplan

FP1: Karun Chandhok

FP2: Heikki Kovalainen

Chassis: T128-01

FP1 - Karun Chandhok (all runs on soft tyres)

0959 - 1006: Installation, 3 laps (first ever timed lap of BIC)

1006 - 1030: System checks / brake material change

1030 - 1044: Run 2, 8 laps

1044 - 1101: Adjustments - brake blanking, brake balance

1101 - 1114: Run 3, 8 laps

1114 - 1120: Adjustments - front wing flap, rear brake blanking

1120 - 1123: Run 4, 1 lap (run aborted due to yellow flags)

1123 - 1125: Refuel

1125 - 1133: Run 5, 4 laps

FP2 - Heikki Kovalainen

1401 - 1414: Run 1, 8 laps (soft tyres)

1414 - 1423: Adjustments - brake balance

1423 - 1438: Run 2, 9 laps (soft tyres)

1438 - 1441: Refuel

1441 - 1451: Run 3, 6 laps (hard tyres)

1451 - 1457: Adjustments - front wing flap angle

1457 - 1508: Run 4, 7 laps (soft tyres)

1508 - 1514: Adjustments - brake balance

1514 - 1532: Run 5, 9 laps (soft tyres)

Karun Chandhok, Car 20 - Chassis T128-01: "It felt great to finally be able to drive an F1 car here at the Buddh International Circuit, and it was a real honour to be the first car to set a timed lap in front of the fans. I want to thank the team for giving me that chance, and everyone at the Jaypee Group and all the people involved in helping create the first ever Indian Grand Prix for doing such a great job on the whole event. In the car I was pretty pleased with how it went today. We completed most of the morning programme and without the yellow flags at the end of the session I'm pretty sure there was another second in hand on my final lap time. The track itself is really enjoyable to drive, particularly the middle section which is very quick, and as it evolves and the times keep coming down I think we'll see some very good racing here all weekend."

Heikki Kovalainen, Car 20 - Chassis T128-01: "I'm reasonably pleased with how it went this afternoon but think I suffered a bit from not running this morning. Still, you have to deal with what you have in front of you so we worked hard in the afternoon session to get used to the track and find a balance that gave me the confidence to push. There's definitely quite a lot more to come from the car and as the track evolves I think we'll see that the fact we're pretty kind to the soft tyres should help us, probably more on Sunday than tomorrow, but we'll see."

Jarno Trulli, Car 21 - Chassis T128-03: "That was a very smooth Friday and we made good progress in both sessions, both on learning the track and on the best setup here in India. The track is not too hard to learn but it's interesting - there are a few different lines you can take and I think that will encourage overtaking, so Sunday's definitely going to be fun. The track surface developed quickly today and I hope it continues to do so - off line it's still very dusty and that could catch out a few people, so let's see how it evolves over the weekend. On the tyre side I think we've seen some interesting results today. The softs seem to hang on very well over the long runs but the hard tyres have almost no grip and it seems pretty tough to get them up to temperature. We'll have to see if that's the same tomorrow as it could change as the track keeps developing."

Thierry Salvi, Renault Sport F1 Support Leader: "This was obviously our first time running here in India so the first task was to take a look at how the gear ratios we had run on the dyno worked when we were actually on track. It looks like we have made the right choices as we hit our targets around the whole track, particularly on the full throttle ratio which plays an important role around this type of circuit, which is pretty similar to Korea."

Mike Gascoyne, Chief Technical Officer: "An excellent first day here in India for us. We were able to complete a very decent number of laps on both cars and completed the whole program we had set for all three drivers today. This morning Karun was the first car out to set a timed lap here and that was obviously a special moment for him, but he focused on the job he had to do and worked through the aero program we had set him. This afternoon we worked on tyre evaluation and we made good progress on a track that looks to be very exciting for the drivers and fans, and a good challenge for the engineers, so from our perspective this has been a very good day."

Tony Fernandes, Team Principal: "I am delighted to see the Indian Grand Prix get under way in such a good style, both for the Indian fans and the team that put the race together, and for our team who have had a very good Friday on track. It started with an historic moment for Karun as he became the first driver ever to record a timed lap in an F1 car at the Indian Grand Prix, and I am very pleased for him that he finished the session as the fastest Indian driver out there, having completed his program and putting in another strong performance. This afternoon both Jarno and Heikki were also very strong, Jarno finishing FP1 a couple of tenths away from the cars ahead and in the afternoon session both drivers looking strong on heavy fuel on both tyre compounds, which bodes well for the race. We are finishing the season extremely well, both in terms of reliability and performance, and I think that gives us good cause for optimism for the last three races this year, and looking ahead to 2012."

Karun Chandhok "I am very excited about driving at the new Buddh International Circuit in FP1 in front of my home crowd and while I am obviously disappointed that I won't have the chance to race on Sunday, I accept the team's decision to opt for the experience and talent they have at their disposal with Jarno and Heikki. This is a team that is still young, still growing, and I know that they have to do their best to secure their future in the sport - sometimes the hard decisions have to be made, and in this case it must have been a very difficult choice, but I understand that this isn't about me.

It's about the team and everything the 254 people on track and back at the factory are doing to build for the future. For me, I believe that I have grown as a driver in and out of the car this year with my role in the Friday practice sessions and I'm looking forward to playing my part in helping the team have another strong weekend on track."

Heikki Kovalainen, Car 20 - Chassis T128-04: "I think India is going to be a fascinating race, for us and F1 in general. I suspect we are going to be given an incredible welcome, and to be able to race on a brand new circuit is always an interesting challenge, so whatever happens in the race I think it will be a great week for the whole sport.

"After Singapore I went back to Europe to do a day in the simulator to get used to the track, and it looks cool. There's the obvious overtaking zone at the end of the long straight and then a few pretty standard medium speed corners but I think the main challenge for us is going to be finding a balance that suits the demands of T10 to T13, which is quick, and the haripins at T3, T4 and T16. We won't know anything about tyre degradation until we get out there, but whatever happens it's going to be hot, probably a bit mad, but seriously good. I can't wait!"

Jarno Trulli, Car 21 - Chassis T128-03: "I've obviously been to a lot of new circuits throughout my F1 career but I'm looking forward to India more than most. I'll do my usual cycle around the track on Thursday and have a close look at the circuit, and when I get in the car I'm usually up to speed within four or five laps. We'll run similar downforce levels to the Korea / Suzuka spec and as we were genuinely competitive in the races at both those tracks I think we'll be ok in India. I'm sure it will be another good race for us, and I think the whole weekend will be fascinating, for us and for the fans."

Mike Gascoyne, Chief Technical Officer: "From a technical perspective the track looks like quite a few of the modern era F1 circuits, with a mix of high and medium speed corners and a long straight with a tight turn at the end at T4, which I am sure will create decent overtaking opportunities. It looks like there will be multiple lines for the drivers to take into that corner, as well as into T3 leading onto the straight, so I think we will see a lot of action onto and out of that section. Turns 10, 11 and 12 also look like they present the drivers with a bit of a challenge - they combine to make a long right that will be hard on the front left tyre and in layout it is akin to T8 in Turkey, but instead of being flat throughout it will need the drivers to go in hard on the throttle, come off the power into the first apex and then get back on through the middle section and out onto the run to T13. The next couple of turns are a little fiddly, but we might also see some overtaking into the final corner, T16, as it is a tight right leading onto the start finish straight after a pretty quick T15 which leads straight into T16.

"The tyres have probably been the single most important factor in upping the entertainment factor this season, but we will not know until Friday practice is completed just how they will perform in India. New tracks obviously lack basic grip until any meaningful running has been completed on them, and I am sure the Buddh circuit will be the same. Everyone up and down the pitlane will be in the same situation, so we will all be working hard on Friday to gather as much data as we can and give ourselves as good a shot at qualifying as we can, and at maintaining the race pace we showed in the last two Grands Prix. Whatever happens I am sure it will be a great weekend and one that will show the world just how well India can put on a global sporting spectacle."

Tony Fernandes, Team Principal: "I am very excited about the Indian Grand Prix and I would like to congratulate The Jaypee Group and everyone involved at the circuit for their hard work in creating what I am sure will be an incredible event.

"From the team perspective the key goal for us this weekend is to maintain the performance levels we saw in the last two races and while I am sure there will be fans in India who want to see Karun race for us on Sunday we had to make the best decision for the future of the team. While all the emotional reasons for him driving were right we were conscious that the limited running he has had in the car this season, largely due to the weather conditions that have hit most of his FP1 sessions, has not given him the best preparation for this race, so we have taken the very difficult decision not to run him in the race this weekend. It is absolutely vital that we secure tenth place in 2011 to give us the platform to keep growing and despite the fact that Karun's performance levels have continued to improve every time he has driven for us in 2011, it was considered too much pressure to put on Karun to drive in his first home race, deal with all the attention he would have had and be able to perform at the same level as either of our regular race drivers over the whole weekend. For that reason we had to take the pragmatic decision to put our faith in the experience and pace we have in Jarno and Heikki, and are confident they will continue to perform at the level they have over the last two years with us. While this is obviously not the decision Karun wanted us to take he understands that we have to take the long-term view and do so in the best interests of the team. He also understands that his relationship with our team is not about just one race, it is about growing together and while this is an historic event, there will be many opportunities to race in India in the future, and he is in the best possible place with us to take advantage of those chances in seasons to come."

Distance from South Korea to Delhi (approx.): 4,700 kms

Length of the main straight at Korea International Circuit: 1050 mtrs

Average time to pack up whole garage and hospitality at flyaway races: 5.75 hours

Weather

Mixed: sunshine / overcast

Min / max air temp: 20˚ / 22˚

Min / max track temp: 26˚ / 28˚

Runplan

Driver: Jarno Trulli

Chassis: T128-03

1430: Car leaves for grid / 1 lap

Start on supersoft tyres

Lap 13: Pitstop 1 (soft tyres)

Lap 37: Pitstop 2 (soft tyres)

Finished 17th

Runplan

Driver: Heikki Kovalainen

Chassis: T128-04

1431: Car leaves for grid / 2 laps (1 through the pitlane)

Start on supersoft tyres

Lap 14: Pitstop 1 (soft tyres)

Lap 39: Pitstop 2 (soft tyres)

Finished 14th

Heikki Kovalainen, Car 20 - Chassis T128-04: "After the fantastic performance last weekend in Japan this is another big step forward for us - finishing 14th today, ahead of both Saubers and within touching distance of Senna on the final lap is for sure our strongest ever race and it's a great feeling for me and the whole team to see us fighting with a big group of cars right from the very first lap. I had another amazing start, passing a bunch of cars into turn 1 and making it look like they were all in reverse. From there I had a good first stint on the options, managing to look after them well enough to stay out for an extra couple of laps that really helped in the first stop. We went onto the primes, and my pace on them was just fantastic, good enough to help me match the times of the cars ahead right up to about tenth. The second set of primes we put on were exactly the same - the wear rates were totally manageable and I could really push on every lap. We knew there were a few cars ahead who would struggle to get to the end, and if I'd had another half a lap I would have passed Senna for sure. As it was we finished ahead of both Saubers on pace and strategy and that's a very good feeling. We've been strong all weekend and it's great for the whole team that we're heading towards the end of the season with a car that is giving us a chance to really show what we can do. Honestly, I'd like to get straight back in now and do it all over again - now I can't wait for India!"

Jarno Trulli, Car 21 - Chassis T128-03: "That was a really strong race for us, definitely the best of the season, and I want to congratulate the whole team for the work they've done here and back at the factory for giving me and Heikki a car that we can really race with. For me, the start wasn't so good - I lost a few places into the first corner but I made them back up again quickly on the first set of tyres, and when we changed to the primes my times were great. Heikki and I were keeping pace with the midfield and easily pulling away from the cars behind, but then in my second stop I had a bit of an issue with traffic in the pitlane which lost me a bit of time and brought me out just behind where we wanted to be. As soon as the blue flags started coming out late in the race I had to slow up, and if I hadn't had those problems I'm sure I could have finished with Heikki ahead of Kamui and Sergio. Despite that it's been a good weekend, and now we have another three races to build on today's performance and finish the season as well as possible."

Thierry Salvi, Renault Sport F1 Support Leader: "We can all be delighted with where we finished today. From the engine perspective we definitely got as much performance out of the car as we could, and seeing both drivers matching the times of the cars ahead shows we keep making improvements right across the car. The drivers have given their all today, and it is good that we can help provide them with the right package to extract as much performance as possible, particularly around a track like this that demands high top speed and good traction - we were not losing any time to our nearest rivals in either the high or the low speed sectors, so I think we leave here feeling very pleased with how we have performed."

Mike Gascoyne, Chief Technical Officer: "A really excellent race and a great performance from the whole team. I know we said that last week in Japan was our strongest ever race but we have managed to improve once again and to beat both Saubers and match the pace of a group of teams ahead is very satisfying indeed. We started both cars on options and then switched onto the primes for the second stint and it was immediately obvious that they were going to degrade much less than we had thought which made the two stop strategy work. Jarno had a very strong middle stint but was unlucky to be held up, dropping him back into the traffic that ultimately meant he finished further back than he could have done. Heikki had a very good start and then drove well throughout the whole race. Towards the end we could see that the Renault's tyres had given up and we kept telling Heikki to push. He was making up about six seconds a lap over the last two laps and with one lap more I am sure he would have passed him as well, but that does not take anything away from the job we have done today. We are having a very strong end to the season and now we need to make sure we continue this run in the last three races."

Riad Asmat, Group CEO: "What a race! We are all thrilled with how we have performed today, right across the team. Our strategy was good, our pace was strong and the pitstops were excellent. We keep on improving, and to do so as we near the end of the season shows how serious we are about building on the foundations we have laid for future success. We could have settled for where we were - well ahead of the two teams behind us and just about keeping contact with the teams ahead, but today we showed that we can really race. It feels good, right across the whole team, to know that we can mix it with teams whose combined experience and budgets far exceeds what we can work with, and it shows enormous promise for next year and beyond. We want to do this again in India, and in the last two races, and show that we have really joined the fight. After today, I am sure we can."

Amount of rubber lost in an F1 race: up to 8 kgs

Number of laps completed under safety car in 2010 Korean GP: 26    

Go to www.teamdellracing.com to see how Team Lotus has the power to do more with Dell                

Weather   

Dry, overcast

Min / max air temperature: 21˚ / 24˚

Min / max track temperature: 25˚ / 28˚

Positions / fastest laps

FP3

KOV 19th, 1.41.909 (lap 10) / TRU 20th, 1.41.945 (lap 7)

QUALIFYING

Q1

KOV 19th, 1.40.522 (lap 5) / TRU 20th, 1.41.101 (lap 5)

Total laps

FP3

KOV: 18 / TRU: 13

QUALIFYING

Q1

KOV: 6 / TRU: 6

Runplan

Driver: Jarno Trulli

Chassis: T128-03    

FP3

1100 - 1102: Installation, 1 lap

1102 - 1108: System checks

1108 - 1121: Run 2, 7 laps

1121 - 1150: Adjustments - front wing flap, brake blanking

1150 - 1201: Run 3, 5 laps

Qualifying

Q1

1409 - 1413: Run 1, 3 laps

1413 - 1418: Refuel

1418 - 1423: Run 2, 3 laps

Finished: 20th

Runplan

Driver: Heikki Kovalainen

Chassis: T128-04     

FP3

1100 - 1102: Installation, 1 lap

1102 - 1113: System checks

1113 - 1122: Run 2, 6 laps

1122 - 1132: Adjustments - brake balance

1132 - 1141: Run 3, 6 laps

1141 - 1152: Adjustments - front brake blanking

1152 - 1159: Run 4, 5 laps

Qualifying

Q1

1410 - 1414: Run 1, 3 laps

1413 - 1418: Refuel

1418 - 1423 Run 2, 3 laps

Finished: 19th

Heikki Kovalainen, Car 20 - Chassis T128-04: "For me that was probably my best qualifying lap of the season. Next to Hungary, I think I got as much as I possibly could out of the car and nailed every sector, so it's a good feeling to know when you've wrung as much as you can from a single lap. We worked hard last night and today to find a balance that would suit the dry conditions today and tomorrow, and I think we've done that, so I'm feeling pretty good about the race. It'll be very interesting to see how the tyre strategies play out, and if we can keep up the pace from Suzuka we'll be there or thereabouts." 

Jarno Trulli, Car 21 - Chassis T128-03: "I think we did ok today, but there was definitely a bit more in the car. This morning I had a really good setup and found a lot of grip, but this afternoon it just didn't feel quite the same so I wasn't able to get as much out of the car as I could. Still, I'm reasonably happy with where we are - we're well ahead of the cars behind and close enough on race pace to a couple of the teams just ahead, so another good start tomorrow and we'll be ok." 

Thierry Salvi, Renault Sport F1 Support Leader: "As yesterday's weather limited most of the meaningful running we could do to prepare for qualifying and the race it was important we had a solid FP3 and could fine tune the engine maps to give the drivers the top speed, traction and driveability they need around this track. I think we have achieved what we set out to, and the feedback from both drivers has been good, especially on Heikki's car, so I think we can look forward to the race where we know our pace gives us a chance to fight with some of the teams just in front." 

Mike Gascoyne, Chief Technical Officer: "Today was a reasonably satisfying qualifying session for us. Jarno was struggling this afternoon with the grip levels on his car, but I still think he found as much as he could from his car, and Heikki put in a couple of decent laps on both runs to finish just ahead. Tomorrow's race will be dominated by tyre degradation levels and in similar situations this season our speed in the race has given us the chance to race with a pack of cars ahead, so I think we will be able to fight in the race tomorrow and repeat our performance in Suzuka." 

Riad Asmat, Group CEO: "That was pretty good, considering how little time we have had on track in the dry. The team worked very well last night and in FP3 to find a couple of setup options to give the drivers something they could really push with, and I think Heikki's lap in particular showed that we made the right choices. Now we look forward to tomorrow where the objective is the same as it has been all season - make sure both cars run without any issues and edge ever closer to securing tenth place this season."

Team Lotus Information

Number of F1 circuits that run anti-clockwise: Five

Total Team Lotus Facebook fans: 115,111

Minimimum operating temperature of F1 brakes: 500°                

Weather   

Rain (am) / Overcast (pm)

Min / max air temperature: 17˚ / 18˚

Min / max track temperature: 17˚ / 20˚

Fastest laps / positions

FP1

CHD: 11th, 2.06.350 (lap 10)

KOV: n/a

FP2

KOV: 19th, 1.56.669 (lap 10)

TRU: 20th, 1.57.173 (lap 10)

Total laps

FP1

CHD: 11 / KOV: 1

FP2

KOV: 20 / TRU: 19

Runplan

FP1: Karun Chandhok

FP2: Jarno Trulli

Chassis: T128-03    

FP1- Karun Chandhok: all runs on wet tyres

1003 - 1005: Installation, 1 lap

1005 - 1049: System checks, front / rear brake discs changed

1049 - 1052: Installation lap 2, 1 lap

1052 - 1113: Adjustments - front / rear brake blanking

1113 - 1133: Run 3, 9 laps

FP2 - Jarno Trulli

1400 - 1423: Run 1, 11 laps (intermediate tyres)

1423 - 1442: Adjustments - increase front wing flap angle & reduce rear brake blanking

1442 - 1457: Run 2, 7 laps (intermediate tyres)

1457 - 1525: Adjustments - front wing flap angle, brake balance

1525 - 1529: Run 3, 1 lap (supersoft tyres)

Runplan

Heikki Kovalainen

Chassis: T128-04    

FP1: all runs on wet tyres

1006 - 1009: Installation, 1 lap

1009 - 1130: System checks, front / rear brake blanking increased

End of session

FP2

1400 - 1422: Run 1, 11 laps (intermediate tyres)

1422 - 1442: Adjustments - brake balance

1442 - 1457: Run 2, 7 laps (intermediate tyres)

1457 - 1525: Adjustments - front wing flap angle

1525 - 1530: Run 3, 2 laps (supersoft tyres)

Karun Chandhok, Car 21 - Chassis T128-03: "I do seem to be a little jinxed with the rain… I think Monza and Suzuka were anomalies as every time I get in the car the rain seems to hammer down, but I just have to deal with what's put in front of me, and so it was again today! Despite the limited running in FP1 I still got a sense of how good this circuit is but today it was simply about keeping it on the track and making sure I didn't make any mistakes in pretty treacherous conditions. I think the pace was pretty good for the one run I did and certainly the last two Fridays have given me a lot more confidence in the car than I had a couple of months ago."

Heikki Kovalainen, Car 20 - Chassis T128-04: "This morning was basically a write-off. You could see that the whole pitlane had the same idea - limit the running on full wets as we're not going to learn anything of real value for the rest of the weekend and avoid any issues that create unnecessary work. This afternoon the track at least dried enough for us to put in some laps on the inters, and we managed to complete some of the plan on the engine maps, so it wasn't all bad. The balance felt fine, and I think it'll be a totally different story tomorrow when it'll be a very busy FP3 for everyone and we can see how the two compounds of slick tyres behave in the dry."

Jarno Trulli, Car 21 - Chassis T128-03: "To be honest today was just one of those days that we sometimes have in F1. The conditions meant we didn't really have a chance to try too much as the forecast is for dry running tomorrow and Sunday, and when the track's as wet as it was this morning, and we can only run on inters in the afternoon, there's not a lot we can learn. We did a bit of work on the engine driveability in FP2, and at least we now know how the car's behaving on the inters so if the forecasts are wrong we have banked some data, but I think a dry track tomorrow will suit us and we can pick up where we left off in Japan."

Thierry Salvi, Renault Sport F1 Support Leader: "The weather conditions today basically made our job pretty hard. We wanted to work on the engine driveability and while we managed to do a bit on that we definitely were not able to complete the program. This circuit requires us to have both very good top speed and good traction out of the slow corners.  The long straight from T2 to T3 means we have to have the right top gear to both attack cars ahead under the tow, and defend from those behind and make allowances for the wind which can change quickly here and affect outright pace. We also need to make sure we give the drivers good traction out of the slow corners and good rear stability from the blown floor so I think that will be the main areas for us to work on tonight to prepare for what will be a very busy session tomorrow morning."

Mike Gascoyne, Chief Technical Officer: "Obviously the weather today made it a tricky Friday for everyone, but despite that Karun managed to complete a good run this morning and did another solid job for us around a track that is new to him. In the second session the conditions improved and we ran reasonably competitively on the intermediates. We put both cars onto the supersofts for the last run but it was immediately obvious that the track had not dried out enough to find out anything useful from the final laps, so now we will hope the forecasts for dry running tomorrow and Sunday are right and we can have another successful weekend as we did last time out in Japan."

2010 Timing

Qualify Result 

P1  ALO 1.45.390 Q3  

P2  VET 1.45.457 Q3  

P3  HAM 1.45.571 Q3  

TL best  P19 KOV 1.50.915 Q1 

Race Result 

P1  ALO 1.47.976 L58    

P2  VET 1.48.141 L59    

P3  WEB 1.49.706 L54    

TL best  P16 KOV 1.53.051 L53                

Quick description    

Straight line speed is important

Track is very dusty & low grip in P1 creates Very hard front tyre graining

Pit lane very slippery

Track grip evolution is very high

FR tyre is the most damaged overall

T10 - T17 very hard on rear tyres

Very high rear tyre degradation on option tyre long run

Bumpy through the HS section T7-T8

Riding kerbs is not a priority

Three high power braking points but low cooling demand

Wind direction is effective for the top speed

Very low grip leads drivers to setup cars towards understeer

Typical balance issue

Lack of overall grip is the main problem

Gears ratio (1st gear/others)

1st gear twice per lap, in T3 and T10

Circuit particularity 

Bumpiness: T7 and T8 

Overtaking chance: T3 

Kerbs: Medium  

RH setting particularity: None (quite low at front) 

Sensitivities   

GBX severity: LowLat/Long grip         

Track and base setup 

Track grip evo during WE: Medium 

Aero settings: High   

Brake wear severity: Low   

Brake cooling necessity: Medium / low

Team Lotus Partners   

Pirelli tyre compounds in Korea: Soft / Super Soft   

Heikki Kovalainen, Car 20 - Chassis T128-04: "Last year was obviously the first race in Korea and while we had a pretty interesting race day, it was good to be in another new country and keep taking our sport to new places. This year I'm sure the whole event will step up another level and be even better and I'm looking forward to getting back there to see how the track has progressed, and how we'll do now we have a car that gives us a chance to fight in the race. The circuit itself is interesting - it has the classic long straight with a tight turn at the end that gives a good chance to overtake, and Pirelli's tyre choice of the softs and the supersofts and the high degradation levels we expect to see will make strategy even more important."

Jarno Trulli, Car 21 - Chassis T128-03: "Having Japan and Korea back to back is pretty tough on the whole team, but as a driver we train to deal with this sort of schedule, so physically it's not too hard. Korea is one of the few track that run anti-clockwise and while that doesn't really affect the set-up it can have an effect in the cockpit by pushing muscles that aren't always stressed at other races, but as I say, we just get on with it and you get used to it pretty quickly. The track is a bit stop-start - you don't really get a chance to build up a proper rhythm, not like you do at somewhere like Suzuka, but I still enjoyed myself there last year, even though my race came to a pretty early end, so this year I want to make sure we get to the end and keep pushing towards the end of the season."

Mike Gascoyne, Chief Technical Officer: "This is our second visit to Korea but if it stays dry on Sunday it will be a bit of a leap into the unknown as last year's race was run in such wet conditions. The tyre choice there and the strategies we deploy to manage the degradation levels, particularly on the options, will determine how our qualifying and race will run, but we have already completed a good deal of work back at the factory running simulations so despite what happened in 2010 we still have a good idea of what to expect on Sunday.

"The track itself is one of the typical modern circuits. It is a mix of low and medium speed corners with a long straight out of T2 leading to a very tight right-hander at T3 that presents an obvious overtaking opportunity, so we have to set the cars up with the right balance to suit the differing needs of each sector. The long straight means top speed is important but even though the track evolves over the weekend, it is still relatively low grip, so the cars tend to be set up more for understeer, to help deal the drivers deal with that lack of grip."

Tony Fernandes, Group CEO: "The whole team is looking forward to going back to Korea, and while I will not be at the race itself this year, I will be watching every session from Europe and I am sure the team will keep fighting to secure that all important tenth place in this year's championship.

"I was delighted when I first heard that Korea had been awarded its own race - it is an important location for AirAsia and last year we were given a very warm welcome, despite the weather! I am sure that as Formula 1 keeps breaking new ground, especially in parts of the world like Asia where there is so much passion for our sport, and so much talent for us to unearth, that we will be seeing more new venues following Korea's lead and establishing themselves on the F1 map and the fact that our team is part of that is a source of great pride for me, and the whole team."

Hours between finishing garage pack-up in Japan and garage set-up in Korea: 34

Total weight of freight to go from Japan to Korea: 29,000 kgs

Weather

Dry, sunny

Min / max air temp: 26˚ / 28˚

Min / max track temp: 35˚ / 38˚

Runplan

Driver: Jarno Trulli

Chassis: T128-03

1432: Car leaves for grid / 2 laps (1 through pitlane)

1445: Pitlane closes

1459: Fire up

1501: Lights out - start on soft tyres

Lap 11: Pitstop 1 (soft tyres)

Lap 25: Pitstop 2 (soft tyres)

Lap 39: Pitstop 3 (medium tyres)

Finished 19th

Runplan

Driver: Heikki Kovalainen

Chassis: T128-04

1430: Car leaves for grid / 2 laps (1 through pitlane)

1445: Pitlane closes

1459: Fire up

1501: Lights out - start on soft tyres

Lap 10: Pitstop 1 (soft tyres)

Lap 23: Pitstop 2 (soft tyres)

Lap 38: Pitstop 3 (medium tyres)

Finished 19th

Heikki Kovalainen, Car 20 - Chassis T128-04: "What a great race for the whole team! I made an incredible start, no wheelspin, the perfect clutch slip and was suddenly past a load of cars and up into 14^th. It looked like everyone else went into reverse and I even heard one of the engineers laugh and accidentally telling someone else how brilliant the start was, and I thought 'no! Don't mention it now, I need to get on with the rest of the race!' After that the first couple of stints were great. The car was working really well on the soft tyres and the stops were mega, and then the safety car came out and bunched everyone up so from there it was a race to the flag with Jarno and I stayed ahead until the last lap. The car has felt balanced all weekend so on the harder compound I was still able to push all afternoon, and even though I was held up a bit by the Virgins and the HRTs when they were being shown blue flags, I was still able to keep ahead of Jarno and as he's always been quick here that feels pretty good.

"Also - the fact that this is the first time this season we didn't see any blue flags is very satisfying. Every time you have to let someone pass you are artificially slowing up your own race, and it shows our car keeps improving, as does the whole team. Ok, the safety car helped us, but then you have to be in the right place to take advantage of whatever happens on track, and today we did just that. A great day."

Jarno Trulli, Car 21 - Chassis T128-01: "For me that was a good day. It didn't start too well - for once my start wasn't perfect but once we got under way I was able to put in a few good passes and was making up ground. After a few laps it felt like I had a problem with the gearbox that slowed me down, but it came back and almost immediately the safety car came out and I was able to make up the gap to Heikki and we both had a good run to the end. For the whole team this is a pretty significant result. We completed every lap of the race, and while that might not seem all that important when there are guys winning championships up ahead, it still shows we keep on improving, and I'm really pleased for everyone, here at the track and back at the factory, that we can leave Japan on a high again and head to the next race in Korea."

Thierry Salvi, Renault Sport F1 Support Leader: "We are delighted for the whole team today. For Renault Sport F1 this is an historic day - Sebastian's won his second title, so congratulations to him for that, and for Team Lotus we have been in the very happy position, for the first time this year, where we have had to manage the fuel consumption levels right to the flag. We have been working hard all weekend on giving the drivers the best balance we can with the blown floor, and they are both reporting that they have had well balanced cars all afternoon, so we have definitely done our part in helping the team take another step forward today. Congratulations to everyone!"

Mike Gascoyne, Chief Technical Officer: "That was a really pleasing race weekend for the whole team. For the first time both cars finished on the lead lap and even though we were helped by the safety car our level of performance was still the best we have ever seen relative to cars around us. Both drivers pushed throughout the whole race, right up until the last lap and I think we managed to extract every ounce of performance we could from the cars. Heikki made an amazing start, by some way the best of the year and that made a three stop strategy the obvious choice, running the option for the first three stints, and that worked out pretty well. With Jarno we managed an issue he had in the first stint, and to see him pushing Heikki hard at the end of the race was exactly what we wanted from him and his team mate. They were also both helped by some tremendous pitstops from the guys in the garage so all in all this was a very professional job right across the board and I want to thank the whole team for the work they have put in here, and give my congratulations to everyone."

Tony Fernandes, Team Principal: "Firstly I'd like to wish Sebastian and all our friends at Red Bull Racing huge congratulations for an incredible job this season. They still have a job to do, and I know from firsthand experience that they will not let up in their pursuit of the constructors' title this year, and many more titles in the future. They set the standards that we must aspire to and I am very proud that we are part of their extended family and can keep being inspired by them as we grow to, one day, take the fight to them on track.

"For us, I know I keep saying it at every race but this really was the best race we have ever had. As soon as I came in this morning I had a feeling that everything in the team is beginning to come together as we had planned, and to finish on the same lap as the world champion is a huge step forward for us. The drivers both drove their hearts out today and the pitstops were excellent all afternoon. Our race pace was strong and we were bold with the strategies on both cars and that gave us the reward of not seeing a blue flag throughout the whole race. A great team effort.

"I think that this is a turning point for us. Suzuka is a quick circuit, not an easy place to take steps forward, so to have performed as well as we have done all weekend means I leave here absolutely thrilled, knowing our hard work is starting to pay off. The strategy that we have employed, of being patient and not rushing into the wrong decisions is paying dividends, and this is a clear sign that next year, and especially the year after, we are going to see more big steps forwards from our team."

Dry, sunny

Min / max air temperature: 25˚ / 26˚

Min / max track temperature: 32˚ / 35˚

Positions / fastest laps

FP3

TRU 19th, 1.36.327 (lap 13) / KOV 20th, 1.36.912 (lap 13)

QUALIFYING

Q1

KOV 18th, 1.35.454 (lap 2) / TRU 19th, 1.35.514 (lap 5)

Total laps

FP3

TRU: 16 / KOV: 14

QUALIFYING

Q1

KOV: 3 / TRU: 6

Runplan

Driver: Jarno Trulli

Chassis: T128-03

FP3

1059 - 1102 Installation, 1 lap (medium tyres)

1102 - 1120: System checks

1120 - 1122: Run 2, 1 laps (medium tyres) run aborted / red flag

1122 - 1131: Adjustments - front wing flap angle

1131 - 1144: Run 3, 7 laps (medium tyres)

1144 - 1150: Adjustments - front wing flap angle, front torsion bar

1150 - 1205: Run 4, 7 laps (soft tyres)

Qualifying

Q1

1359 - 1405: Run 1, 3 laps (medium tyres)

1405 - 1410: Refuel / Adjustments - front wing flap angle

1410 - 1416: Run 2, 3 laps (soft tyres)

Finished: 19th

Runplan

Driver: Heikki Kovalainen

Chassis: T128-04

FP3

1100 - 1103: Installation, 1 lap (medium tyres)

1103 - 1121: System checks

1121 - 1123: Run 2, 1 lap - not counted (medium tyres) run aborted / red flag

1123 - 1135: Adjustments - front wing flap angle, brake blanking

1135 - 1149: Run 3, 8 laps (medium tyres)

1149 - 1152: Adjustments - front wing flap angle

1152 - 1204: Run 4, 5 laps (soft tyres)

Qualifying

Q1

1410 - 1415: Run 1, 3 laps (soft tyres)

Finished: 18th

Heikki Kovalainen, Car 20 - Chassis T128-04: "I'm pretty happy with that, particularly as it was one run, one lap to get it right, and I nailed it straight out of the box. We took the riskier strategy with the tyres, went out late in the session and I think I may have even been able to find a bit more in the first sector, but overall I'm pleased. I went through 130R with the rear wing open which was pretty hardcore, but having been bold with the tyres we're in a good position for the race tomorrow. There's been quite a lot of talk about the tyre wear here but I'm not sure the degradation will be as big a problem as people thought. The long run on the soft tyres yesterday was good - I think we can get maybe up to 15 laps out of them, and as we have a few new sets ready to go tomorrow it'll be an interesting afternoon."

Jarno Trulli, Car 21 - Chassis T128-01: "That was a good session. The car felt much better this afternoon as we made the right changes to the setup and even though I made a couple of mistakes on my quickest lap I still don't think I could have got much more out of it. Tomorrow we'll fight as hard as possible in the race and give our Japanese fans something to cheer for. Our pace in the races has been good all season, so I hope I can make as good a start as I have been in a lot of the races this year, play with the tyre strategies and see where we end up."

Thierry Salvi, Renault Sport F1 Support Leader: "We have been working all weekend on giving the drivers the best engine maps for this circuit and I think today's performance in qualifying shows we have done a pretty good job on both cars. We need to make sure the engine has good driveability, particularly through the 'S' curves in the first sector where it is important to have a smooth power delivery that does not upset the balance of the cars, and the feedback we have had from both drivers, especially Jarno, is that we have achieved that, and the times we have seen this afternoon bear that out, so this has been a good weekend for us so far."

Mike Gascoyne, Chief Technical Officer: "A good Saturday for us in both sessions. Jarno and Heikki has issues this morning with understeer but we managed to dial that out for qualifying and their feedback was that they were both happy with their cars this afternoon. Jarno chose to do a run on the medium tyres early in qualifying to see if that could help him get more temperature into the brakes, and then the plan was always to do one run on the softs on both cars. We wanted to make sure we kept well clear of the cars behind and, with tyre degradation likely to play an important role in the race, give ourselves as many sets of tyres as we could for tomorrow, so job done."

Riad Asmat, Group CEO: "We keep edging ever closer to the teams ahead so where we finished up today is very pleasing. We made the right call on the tyre strategy, opting to save sets of the softs, and as we have seen all season we can mix it with some of the cars ahead in the race, so with the excellent way our pitcrew have been performing in the stops I think we are in a good position for the race."

Number of DuPont employees worldwide: 61,000

Max lateral G Force an F1 driver experiences in normal driving: 5g

Number of G20 governments choosing Dell: 20

Weather

Dry, sunny

Min / max air temperature: 25° / 27°

Min / max track temperature: 30° / 34°

Fastest laps / positions

FP1

TRU 19th, 1.39.168 (lap 9) / CHA 20th, 1.39.946 (lap 10)

FP2

KOV 17th, 1.36.225 (lap 17) / TRU 23rd 1.39.800 (lap 6)

Total laps

FP1

TRU: 10 / CHA: 22

FP2

KOV: 35 / TRU: 24

Runplan

Jarno Trulli

Chassis: T128-03

FP1: all runs on medium tyres

1002 - 1004: Installation, 1 lap

1004 - 1029: System checks

1029 - 1041: Run 2, 6 laps

1041 - 1056: Adjustments - baseline exhaust deflectors

1056 - 1102: Run 3, 3 laps

End of session - setup change

FP2

1400 - 1414: Run 1, 7 laps (medium tyres)

1414 - 1420: Adjustments - front brake blanking

1420 - 1447: Run 2, 15 laps (medium tyres)

1447 - 1456: Adjustments - front wing flap angle, front / rear brake blanking

1456 - 1502: Run 3, 2 laps (soft tyres)

Electrical issue - end of session

Runplan

FP1 - Karun Chandhok

FP2 - Heikki Kovalainen

Chassis: T128-04

FP1: Karun Chandhok - all runs on medium tyres

1000 - 1002: Installation, 1 lap

1002 - 1032: System checks

1032 - 1045: Run 2, 7 laps

1045 - 1053: Adjustments - Rear wing flap, front brake blanking

1053 - 1104: Run 3, 6 laps

1104 - 1110: Adjustments - brake blanking

1110 - 1125: Run 4, 8 laps

FP2: Heikki Kovalainen

1359 - 1412: Run 1, 7 laps (medium tyres)

1412 - 1420: Adjustments - Front wing flap angle

1420 - 1434: Run 2, 8 laps (medium tyres)

1434 - 1450: Adjustments - front wing flap, front brake blanking

1450 - 1456: Run 3, 3 laps (soft tyres)

1456 - 1502: Adjustments - front wing flap angle

1502 - 1524: Run 4, 12 laps (soft tyres)

1524 - 1526: Adjustments - refuel

1526 - 1535: Run 5, 5 laps (medium tyres)

Karun Chandhok, Car 20 - Chassis T128-4: "It was good to get back out on track, particularly here in Suzuka as this is a circuit I haven't driven on before and was looking forward to trying out. It took a while to get the right lines, and as the tyre wear started to kick in I wasn't really able to improve the overall time, although I was getting quicker in certain sectors of the track. I got through a decent number of laps and think I did exactly what was required of me this morning. The car definitely feels quicker than it did when I raced it in Germany - the update we brought to Singapore has definitely taken us a small step forward and we finished pretty close to the Williams, so I think we'll be able to fight in the race and hopefully put in as good a performance as we did here last year."

Heikki Kovalainen, Car 20 - Chassis T128-04: "I'm pretty pleased with how my afternoon went. You're always a little bit on the back foot when you miss the morning session at this kind of high speed circuit as you need a bit of time to get your eye in, but the balance was good almost immediately and we were able to complete the whole plan, so it was a good session. The tyres seem to be behaving well here - on the long run on the softs they held up until about the last lap so I think we've already found a good setup. As the track evolves that will improve even more so I think we could be in a good position in the race, bearing in mind our race pace and how well we can manage the degradation on both compounds. We'll see on Sunday!"

Jarno Trulli, Car 21 - Chassis T128-03: "One of those stop start days for me. This morning I was adapting to the power steering system we've put on here and it felt ok but the runs were cut short with a mechanical issue before I could really start pushing. This afternoon the changes we made definitely felt better but when we had the soft tyres on an electrical problem meant I couldn't get any meaningful times in. Despite that the car felt like it was improving and looking at Heikki's times I think we'll be ok tomorrow."

Thierry Salvi, Renault Sport F1 Support Leader: "This is a pretty tough circuit on engines - up there with Monza and Spa in terms of outright pace and we need to work on driveability, responsiveness and ensuring a smooth power curve to give the drivers the right power delivery here. This morning Karun worked through his program, and even though Jarno's was somewhat disrupted, we have been able to complete most of the program with him and Heikki this afternoon, so I think we look ok for the rest of the weekend."

Mike Gascoyne, Chief Technical Officer: "A reasonable Friday for us here in Suzuka. This morning we had Karun in Heikki's car and he did a very solid job for, focusing on aero programs and engine mapping. Jarno was less happy with his car, struggling a bit with the balance and the brakes, but we made a number of changes for this afternoon and they made an immediate improvement for him in FP2. Unfortunately an electrical problem brought his afternoon to an earlier end than we wanted, preventing him from setting any quick times on the soft tyres, but with Heikki we completed his whole plan and his time on the softs looks pretty good. This weekend will be all about managing tyre degradation and when that is the case it seems to benefit us so we are all looking forward to a strong weekend."

Riad Asmat, Group CEO: "I think we can be pretty pleased with today.

Karun performed very well this morning on a track he had never driven on before, and Heikki put in a series of strong runs this afternoon that is just starting to unlock what we think we can do here. Jarno suffered issues in both the morning and afternoon sessions, but we improved the overall balance for him in FP2 and with more work tonight and some clever use of strategy tomorrow I think we can push the cars ahead, particularly bearing in mind the limited running some of the teams just in front had today."

Qualifying Result

P1 VET 1.30.785 Q3

P2 WEB 1.30.853 Q3

P3 HAM 1.31.169 Q3

TL best P19 TRU 1.35.346 Q1

Race Result

P1 VET 1.33.653 L51

P2 WEB 1.33.474 L53

P3 ALO 133.823 L53

TL best P12 KOV 1.37.620 L51

Quick description

Very high percentage of medium & high speed corners

Extremely lateral track

Ability to ride kerbs is not a priority

Multiple altitude changes and very narrow track make overtaking difficult

Very easy on brakes

Low front ride height possible (track very smooth)

Wind often changes between Fri & Sun (changed 180° in '09 & '10)

Typical balance issue

Need good balance for S1 and high speed S2 section

Gear ratios (1st gear/others)

1st gear not used on track

Circuit particularity

Bumpiness: Low

Overtaking chance: Low

Kerbs: Smooth

RH setting particularity: Low RH

Sensitivities

Engine severity: High

GBX severity: Low

Lat/Long grip: Lateral

Aero eff ratio: High

Track and base set-up

Track grip evo during WE: High

Aero settings: Medium / high

Brake wear severity: Very low

Brake cooling necessity: Low

Team Lotus Partners

Pirelli tyre compounds in Japan: Medium / Soft

Heikki Kovalainen, Car 20 - Chassis T128-04: "I headed out of Singapore on Monday and back to Europe to do a bit of work in the simulator before heading back out for the Japanese and Korean races. Singapore worked out really well for us and we all left feeling pretty good about what the new floor and diffuser had given us, and how we'd performed generally all weekend.

"Next up it's Suzuka, somewhere I think all the drivers look forward to and a track that's produced a lot of F1's greatest moments. Most guys will say 130R is the corner that really stands out - it's pretty hardcore heading in there at over 190mph and knowing you have to stay committed to avoid losing any time, but for me the best bit of the track is the whole run in S1 from T1 to T7. You go into T1 and T2 at high speed and you need to be committed to get the best out of the car through that fast, positive camber section, then from T3 right through to T7 is about the best sequence of turns we race in all year."

Jarno Trulli, Car 21 - Chassis T128-03: "I've always loved Japan so I'm really looking forward to getting back again for 2011. I have a lot of really good support out there, and the fans are always generous and happy but without the sort of pressure I get in places like Italy! On track I'd just like to have a race without some of the bad luck that struck again in Singapore. I'd had such a good start and was holding off the Toro Rosso and both Renaults well, even running 11th at one point as we went into the first round of stops, but the puncture I suffered when Alguersuari hit me was just another one of those things. Hopefully in Suzuka I can make up for that and get as much out of the car as I did on Sunday around Marina Bay."

Mike Gascoyne, Chief Technical Officer: "Suzuka is without doubt one of the classic F1 destinations, both for what happens on track, and for its place in the sport's history. The circuit is very quick, it puts a lot of demands on the tyres and the cars need to have very good high-speed stability, particularly when they are closely following a car ahead so they can keep up the pressure into the braking zones.

"130R is all about commitment, guts and the right line, and straight out of that corner and into the chicane at T16 / T17 is about the best overtaking zone on the track, but we also see moves being made into the hairpin at T11 as there are a couple of lines you can take in there and if you have good traction out you can stay ahead of someone you have passed all the way back to the chicane at the end of the lap.

Pirelli are bringing the Medium and Soft compounds to Japan and as the circuit predominantly affects the cars' lateral grip I think we will see degradation playing an even more pronounced role in Japan than it has throughout the rest of the season. With the small step forward we saw from our new aero package in Singapore I think we can use that and a bit of clever tyre strategy to take the fight again to the cars ahead, and if we can get qualifying right we have proved we can mix it in the races in midfield, so that has to be the aim again for the race - make sure both cars see the chequered flag and be there when it counts to take advantage of what happens around us."

Tony Fernandes, Team Principal: "2010 in Japan was our best race of the season - we finished 12th and 13th and essentially wrapped up our little battle for the title of fastest new team in Formula One, so it is a race and a country we hold very dear. I am delighted that we are heading to Japan next, both because it is a country that is very important to me personally, and to help The Japanese people show that their fantastic country is bouncing back from the terrible events there at the start of the year. We go around the world, doing business, racing, playing football and occasionally relaxing for a couple of hours, but we rarely have time to stop and take in what goes on around us, so it is good that we can go back to Japan now and help show that one of the greatest sporting events in our calendar is as successful, well managed and as great a spectacle as it ever has been.

"On the team side, I said after Singapore that that grand prix was just about our strongest ever race performance, and having been through the post-race reports it is very pleasing to see that our pace has definitely improved as a direct result of the upgrade package we brought out there. Jarno suffered again with bad luck, but the reliability issue that ended his race is still something we need to improve on - we may be small and we may not have the facilities of the teams ahead of us, but that does not mean our standards should be any lower than them, so we have to make sure in Japan, and at the remaining races, that we are a two car team that can help us guarantee tenth place this year. That is a reasonable aim and one everyone in the team is working very hard to achieve."

Tony Fernandes, Team Lotus Team Principal: "Having established an incredibly good working partnership since the first days of our agreement we are absolutely delighted that Renault Sport F1 and Red Bull Technology will be playing such an integral role in the ongoing development of our team until at least 2013, and then we are aiming to keep working together when the new rules are introduced. They are both passionate, dedicated teams of people with whom we have a growing relationship that is creating a number of exciting opportunities for us for the future. They share our vision for where we want to take our team, and we are very proud to have their power pushing us forward.

"Not only will we be able to build on everything we have learnt through working with Renault and Red Bull Technology in 2011, but we will now have the added benefit of KERS for next year, which really is a major step forward for our team. We have done the very best job we can this year but without that extra power we are always competing on a different level to the teams ahead, so to give our drivers that boost is a key element of helping us catch the cars ahead, and compete with them when we do so."

Jean-François Caubet, Managing Director of Renault Sport F1: "This year we have established solid foundations with Team Lotus and this latest agreement consolidates the relationship that we look forward to continuing for many seasons to come. Renault is in F1 to display the quality of its product, so we need to be associated with teams that clearly have potential. The steps Team Lotus has made on and off track with its technical structure and facilities have given us a confidence they will achieve their aims. KERS is now an essential part to a competitive performance in F1 today and we hope this supply will help the team continue its evolution. Furthermore a wider experience of using the KERS system at this point in time will help in the development of the powerful energy recovery systems that will be introduced under the future engine regulations." 

Christian Horner, Team Principal of Red Bull Racing: "We're very happy to extend the relationship between Red Bull Technology and Team Lotus, which already utilises our gearboxes, to include KERS for 2012 onwards. This endorses the joint venture between Renault Sport F1 and Red Bull Technology, which will continue to develop in the coming months. Hopefully this will enable Team Lotus to build on the significant progress they have already made this season."

Dry

Min / max air temp: 31˚ / 32˚

Min / max track temperature: 33˚ / 35˚

Runplan

Driver: Jarno Trulli

Chassis: T128-01    

1930: Car leaves for grid / 1 lap

1945: Pitlane closes

1959: Fire up

2001: Lights out

Lap 17: Pitstop 1

Lap 20: Pitstop 2 (puncture)

Lap 45: Pitstop 3

Lap 48: Retired - gearbox issue

Runplan

Driver: Heikki Kovalainen

Chassis: T128-04    

1931: Car leaves for grid / 1 lap

1945: Pitlane closes

1959: Fire up

2001: Lights out

Lap 12: Pitstop 1

Lap 28: Pitstop 2

Lap 48: Pitstop 3

Finished 16th

Heikki Kovalainen, Car 20 - Chassis T128-04: "I'm really pleased with the performance today and we should all be happy as it was a great race from the whole team. The pitstop strategy worked out well for us and the boys worked brilliantly to get me out quickly each time, helping me make sure I could stay ahead of Petrov at each stop. The car felt balanced throughout the whole race and the tyres worked well so I was able to pull away from Petrov and ended up finishing strongly in 16th. It's also good that the upgrade we've brought here has helped us take a small step forward and I think we'll see more from that in Suzuka where it will come more into its own. After a race like today I can't wait to get back in the car, so we leave Singapore feeling pretty good about the last few races of the season."

Jarno Trulli, Car 21 - Chassis T128-01: "I had another really good start and was ahead of both Renaults and the Toro Rosso. They were pushing me but the car felt great and I was able to keep ahead of them pretty comfortably, coming out of the first stop still ahead and feeling good on the second set of tyres. Then Jaime hit my left rear and I had to come which was pretty disappointing - it's just bad luck really, but that meant I had to try and fight back which I did my best to do until the gearbox problem meant I had to pull over. I'm pleased for the team that we were able to fight from the start and I think it's a good sign that we could do so well in the race, but now we move on to Japan and I hope we can keep pushing on there."

Thierry Salvi, Renault Sport F1 Support Leader: "I think we can be pleased with how we Heikki finished but again the luck was not with Jarno. Another good start put him in a very good position early on and even after his first pitstop he was still in good shape. After that the puncture meant he had to give up the positions he had won at the start which is obviously very bad luck but it was fortunate that Heikki was able to push throughout the whole race and finish in front of the Renault. I think that is a good car and it shows that our car is getting better and better. Engine wise it was all ok for us. We managed the temperatures the pressures well and had no issues on either car so I think we can be pretty happy with how it ended."

Mike Gascoyne, Chief Technical Officer: "Mixed reactions from me because that was possibly our strongest race performance, particularly early on, but it obviously did not end for Jarno as we would have wanted. Jarno drove a very good first stint and by switching the strategy and stopping Heikki early we were able to control the cars behind us that we were racing at that point. When we pitted Jarno we got him back out in front of the cars he was racing but unfortunately Alguersuari hit him, causing a left rear puncture and ruining his race. He kept pushing when we got him back out but finally he had to stop with a gearbox problem. Heikki drove a very strong race and it was good to beat one of the Renaults on pace today, both on track and in the pitstops. It is a shame we could not get both cars to the finish, but this was still a very good performance from the whole team."

Tony Fernandes, Team Principal: "For me that is probably the best race we have had in our short life in Formula One so far. Heikki drove an outstanding race and was able to keep pace with a lot of the cars around him, and pull away from the cars behind, and he made the most of the new package we brought here to finish very well. Jarno again suffered from bad luck and maybe the strategy we gave him was not the best, but we called it as we saw it and I am sure we will learn from how his race worked out. I am delighted for everyone back at the factory to see their hard work on the upgrade work out well on track, and I think we can look forward to a strong end to the season, knowing we can fight with established teams around us when the opportunities arise."

Number of CNN global news gathering operations: 47

Amount GE has committed to help clinicians and healthcare deliver high-quality healthcare at lower cost to more people around the world: $6 billion    

Go to www.teamdellracing.com to see how Team Lotus has the power to do more with Dell                

Weather

Dry

Min / max air temperature: 30˚ / 32˚

Min / max track temperature: 32˚ / 35˚

Positions / fastest laps

FP3

KOV 19th, 1.52.510 (lap 14) / TRU 22nd, 1.53.823 (lap 17)

QUALIFYING

Q1

KOV 19th, 1.50.948 (lap 2) / TRU 20th, 1.51.012 (lap 5)

Total laps

FP3

KOV: 17 / TRU: 18

QUALIFYING

Q1

KOV: 6 / TRU: 6

Runplan

Driver: Jarno Trulli

Chassis: T128-01    

FP3

1900 - 1902: Installation, 1 lap (soft tyres)

1902 - 1916: System checks, brake balance adjusted

1916 - 1942: Run 2, 12 laps (soft tyres)

1942 - 1951: Adjustments - front wing flap, brake blanking

1951 - 2002: Run 3, 5 laps (super soft tyres)

Qualifying

Q1

2203 - 2211: Run 1, 3 laps (super soft tyres)

2211 - 2214: Refuel - front wing flap adjusted

2214 - 2222: Run 2, 3 laps (super soft tyres)

Finished 20th

Runplan

Driver: Heikki Kovalainen

Chassis: T128-04    

FP3

1900 - 1902: Installation, 1 lap (soft tyres)

1902 - 1920: System checks

1920 - 1941: Run 2, 10 laps (soft tyres)

1941 - 1950: Adjustments - brake blanking

1950 - 2002: Run 3, 6 laps (super soft tyres)

Qualifying

Q1

2203 - 2211: Run 1, 3 laps (super soft tyres)

2211 - 2213: Refuel

2213 - 2222: Run 2, 3 laps (super soft tyres)

Finished 19th

Heikki Kovalainen, Car 20 - Chassis T128-04: "I'm pretty pleased with that. I got held up on my second run but still managed to get within a second of the car ahead and I think I got close to getting the most out of the car I could. We definitely improved in FP3 and the wear rates weren't too bad so I think we're in good shape for tomorrow. It's a long race, and one where the safety car will probably play a role in how it all ends up, so the aim for Sunday is clear - make sure we get both cars home to the end and put ourselves in a position to take advantage of what happens ahead."

Jarno Trulli, Car 21 - Chassis T128-01: "Honestly I've struggled with the car all day and even though I managed to get much closer to Heikki in qualifying I'm still not all that happy with where we are. The guys in the garage have been working really hard all weekend to fix one or two problems we've had, and I want to thank them for getting the car to the point where I could get that quick laptime out of it, but now it's about getting to the end of the race tomorrow in one piece."

Thierry Salvi, Renault Sport F1 Support Leader: "We worked very hard last night on improving the driveability of the engines and the braking stability and give ourselves the right choice of engine maps for qualifying. The results prove we made the right choices and as this track has such specific demands on the engine, in terms of traction and maximising fuel economy, I think we have put ourselves in the right place to be able to push tomorrow. This is one of the hardest tracks on fuel economy in particular, so even though we are already good in that area, we have a specific map for the race tomorrow that I think will give the drivers a chance to push when they need to, and help to make sure they can both finish the race."

Mike Gascoyne, Chief Technical Officer: "A reasonable effort from us in qualifying today. Jarno was not happy with his car in either session today so we need to look at why that has changed since yesterday. With Heikki his first qualifying lap was good but on his second run he was compromised by the cars ahead when he would have definitely gone quicker, so it is encouraging to know there is still more outright pace in the car than we extracted today. The aim is the same as it always is for us on Sundays - have a strong performance, bring both cars home and do the best we can to push the cars in front."

Tony Fernandes, Team Principal: "I am encouraged to see that the upgrade we have brought here has pulled us a little closer to the cars ahead but qualifying tonight was possibly not our smartest day in the office - we sent Heikki out just behind Liuzzi which definitely compromised his quickest lap, but on the positive side the changes we made overnight helped us to retrieve the couple of seconds we seemed to have lost yesterday. We know that we can mix it with a couple of the established teams on race pace so we need to make sure we have a good start, use whatever chances we can to overtake, something that is particularly difficult here, and get both cars home across the line."

Number of times seventh gear is engaged in a lap of Marina BayCircuit: Three      

Number of conversations Dell has with customers each year: 2 billion

Amount of investment GE has made in clean-tech research and development since launching ecomagination: $5 billion

Weather 

Dry

Min / max air temperature:       31° / 32°

Min / max track temperature:     34° / 34°

Fastest laps / positions

FP1

TRU 19th, 1.54.821 (lap 7) / KOV 20th, 1.56.198 (lap 4)

FP2

KOV 18th, 1.51.950 (lap 17) / TRU 20th 1.52.420 (lap 18)

Total laps

FP1

TRU: 9 / KOV: 8

FP2

KOV: 26 / TRU: 25

Runplan

Jarno Trulli

Chassis: T128-01     FP1: all runs on soft tyres

FP1

1832 - 1834: Installation, 1 lap

1834 - 1900: System checks, rear brakes changed 1900 - 1916: Run 2, 7 laps

1916 - 1921: Adjustments - brake balance

1921 - Run 3 aborted, 1 lap, red flag / end of session

FP2

2138 - 2159: Run 1, 10 laps (soft tyres)

2159 - 2205: Adjustments - front wing, front anti-roll bar

2205 - 2214: Run 2, 4 laps (soft tyres)

2214 - 2221: Adjustments - front anti-roll bar

2221 - 2224: Run 3, 1 lap (super soft tyres)

2225 - 2225: Refuel

2225 - 2236: Run 4, 5 laps (super soft tyres)

2236 - 2244: Adjustments - front wing flap angle

2244 - 2255: Run 5, 5 laps (super soft tyres)

Runplan

Heikki Kovalainen

Chassis: T128-04

FP1: all runs on soft tyres

1831 - 1833 Installation, 1 lap

1833 - 1841: System checks,

1841 - 1854 Run 2, 7 laps

1854 - front brakes running hot caused issue on track / end of session

FP2

2144 - 2203: Run 1, 8 laps (soft tyres)

2203 - 2205: Refuel, rear brake blanking adjusted

2205 - 2215: Run 2, 5 laps (soft tyres)

2215 - 2220: Adjustments - brake balance 2220 - 2230: Run 3, 5 laps (super soft tyres) 2230 - 2235: Refuel

2235 - 2253: Run 4, 8 laps (super soft tyres)

Heikki Kovalainen, Car 20 - Chassis T128-04: "I was pretty pleased with where we ended up, but obviously we wanted more running in P1.The fire this time was much smaller than last year, and with brakes at the temperatures they run it's not uncommon to see them catch like that, but it wasn't a major issue at all and we got where we wanted by the end of the day's running. I think we can keep getting more from the new package here - there's definitely a couple more tenths in there so let's see where we are tomorrow night."

Jarno Trulli, Car 21 - Chassis T128-01: "I didn't have the best runs today, but I'm still relatively happy with where we finished. We were able to get good temperatures into both compounds, but traffic and the red flags ruined both my quick laps so I don't think we really showed what's in the car yet."

Thierry Salvi, Renault Sport F1 Support Leader: "The disruption this morning meant we could not learn as much as we were aiming to in FP1, so the pressure was on in FP2 to complete as much of the programme as we could. The data we accumulated in that session will help us make sure that we can give the drivers the best maps we can to maximise traction and fuel economy at a track which is pretty hard on engines, and I think we will be ok for tomorrow and Sunday."

Mike Gascoyne, Chief Technical Officer: "That was a pretty hard day's work for everyone in the team. The first session was obviously disrupted before it even started and then the red flags affected the whole grid. Jarno's programme suffered from the stoppages and Heikki had a small off on his third run in FP1. Once he came to a halt the high brake temperatures meant he had a small fire in the front right but it was not a big issue and once we had the car back it was sorted out quickly. With Heikki's car and some changes to Jarno's setup the team had a lot of work to do during the break to turn both cars around and worked extremely well to have both cars ready for FP2. The second session was more productive and we were able to evaluate the aero updates we have brought here and it looks like we have made another small step forward. We will know more after going through the data tonight and then look forward to a good qualifying session tomorrow.

Riad Asmat, Group CEO: "I think everyone up and down the pitlane had a disrupted FP1 with the track issues just before the session, and with Heikki stopping out on track we were looking to make sure we completed as much mileage as we could in FP2. I am not too sure what it is about Heikki and fire here in Singapore, perhaps our Finn thinks it is not quite hot enough for him here in Singapore, but the car was pretty much unscathed this time and the guys worked well to clean it up and get him out for FP2. We are reasonably happy with where we ended up - there is more to come on the super softs and both drivers are giving us positive reports on the updates we have brought here, so I am pretty happy with where we ended up."

P1 ALO 1.45.390 Q3

P2 VET 1.45.457 Q3

P3 HAM 1.45.571 Q3

TL best P19 KOV 1.50.915 Q1

2010 Race Result

P1 ALO 1.47.976 L58

P2 VET 1.48.141 L59

P3 WEB 1.49.706 L54

TL best P16 KOV 1.53.051 L53

Quick description

Still very bumpy, even after resurfacing in 2010, especially T13-14

Needs high ride height to avoid bottoming out / excessive plank wear and max. suspension travel

Hard on brakes for temperatures but wear is not usually an issue

High downforce track

Braking stability and traction are the major balance issues

Difficult to overtake

Very hot and humid climate

Very high fuel effect and high start fuel load

Braking stability and traction are the major balance issues

Gears ratio (1st gear/others)

1st gear used in T3 and T13 / Long 1st gear needed for launch Circuit particularity

Bumpiness: Very high

Overtaking chance: Low

Kerbs: Medium / High

Lat/Long grip: Longitudinal

Aero eff ratio: Low

Sensitivities

Engine severity: Low

GBX severity: Highest

RH setting particularity: High RH for bumps

Track and base setup

Track grip evo during WE: Very high

Aero settings: Very high (max)

Brake wear severity: High

Brake cooling necessity: High

Team Lotus Partners

Pirelli tyre compounds in Singapore: Soft / Super Soft

Heikki Kovalainen, Car 20 - Chassis T128-04: "I'm really looking forward to getting back to South East Asia and particularly Singapore. I like the heat and we have a lot of support in Singapore so it's a race the whole team is excited about. Last year was obviously a pretty spectacular end to the race, maybe a little too hot even for me and not quite how I'd like it to have finished, but there were a load of cool photos from the fire and we ended up winning the LG Moment of the Year prize for a shot of me putting it out. This year we go with a similar goal to last year - have a solid weekend, make sure we're there at the end of the race to take advantage of whatever happens around us and do our best to push the guys ahead.

"There are a few obvious talking points around the race weekend - it's a night race so all the drivers and teams stay on European time. In practical terms that means heavy blackout blinds in the hotel rooms, breakfast at lunchtime and our normal race weekend schedule all shifting forwards several hours to replicate the European race schedules. The heat is pretty hardcore for the guys in the garages, but I like it. Physically I have felt good all season and while it's obviously more challenging in the humidity and heat of Singapore, it's a good challenge and it's what F1 should be all about."

Jarno Trulli, Car 21 - Chassis T128-03: "I left Italy after what had been a pretty intense weekend for me and the whole team! On track I enjoyed myself all weekend and if I hadn't got hit by Massa I think I would have finished even better, but it was one of those races where we pretty much gave as much as we could, so I left feeling good about how we'd performed in all the sessions.

"I'll go to Singapore as late as possible, to make sure my body-clock isn't affected by the fact we run at night. I'm excited to get back to somewhere that means so much to Tony, Din and Nasa, and to see the strong fanbase we have out there but once we're on track I treat it just like any another race - the circuit is so well lit you don't suffer from any issues to do with light, and as its layout is similar to Monte Carlo it's somewhere I feel pretty comfortable."

Mike Gascoyne, Chief Technical Officer: "We approach Singapore in much the same way we do Monaco. We will be running with a maximum downforce package with a new floor and diffuser and bigger front brake ducts to cope with the brake cooling demands. The numbers from the wind-tunnel look pretty promising for the update to the floor so we will see what we have found when we get out on track. Because the track surface is very bumpy we have to run the cars at almost the highest ride-height settings of the season whilst also focusing on braking stability and maximising traction to generate the quickest lap times. As Singapore is a street circuit the track surface is very green when we first run on Friday, but it has high evolution throughout the weekend and by Sunday the grip levels have improved dramatically. Pirelli are bringing the soft and super soft compounds to Singapore and it will be interesting to see how teams deal with the degradation rates of both, especially in qualifying and in the race itself."

Tony Fernandes, Team Principal: "I have been looking forward to Singapore for the whole year -there is an incredible atmosphere around the whole place and the fact it is a night race just adds to the spectacle. Alongside Malaysia and Silverstone this is our third home race of the year and the support we have in Singapore is fantastic, both from the Singaporean locals and from the thousands of Malaysians and other visitors from around the world who attend what is always a fantastic race.

"The heat and humidity are obviously challenging for the whole team but we have shown throughout the year that our guys are ready to take on whatever lies ahead of them, deal with it and keep learning and progressing. One of the most pleasing aspects for me over the last couple of races has been to see the improvements in the garage and on the pitwall that have seen us perform quicker pitstops, turn the cars around during and in-between sessions more quickly and efficiently, and make the right strategic calls at the right time. This was particularly true in Italy where Jarno performed particularly well all weekend but was robbed of a higher position by bad luck and Heikki also gave his all, giving us 120% all weekend and helping us show what we can do when the opportunities arise. Drives like those, and every step forward for the team, are all part of the process of our development, and while we are working very hard behind the scenes to put all the pieces in place for the next phase of our growth, the team is working equally hard under intense pressure at the races and back at the factory and it makes me very proud to see how far they have already come. The icing on the cake now would be a point - perhaps we can win the LG Moment of the Year for 2011 by recording our first points finish, that really would be daring to dream!"

Tony Fernandes, Team Lotus Team Principal, gave his thoughts on Jarno's extended relationship with the team: "We are all delighted that we have been able to reach an agreement to keep Jarno on board for at least one more year with our team. He has shown in qualifying in Monza just how much pace he has and how he can wring every last drop of performance out of his car and since day one with us he has brought a level of professionalism, insight and raw speed to our team that has helped accelerate our development on and off track. Today's announcement will give us the benefit of his experience and knowledge into 2012, another very important year in the growth of our team."

Jarno added his comments, saying: "I am very pleased that we have been able to confirm today that my contract with Team Lotus has been extended into 2012. The challenge I first accepted when I joined the team is becoming more exciting every day, and I am very proud that I can keep helping the team take steps forward for at least another year. I would like to thank Tony, Kamarudin and Nasa for the chance to keep working with them, Riad, Mike and the whole team and I am looking forward to the challenges that lay ahead."