At the Miami International Autodrome, Williams Racing was not happy with the red flags during the two F1 training sessions ahead of the Miami Grand Prix
Dave Robson, Head of Vehicle Performance: It was a somewhat frustrating day with several interruptions in each session. As a result, we did not collect as much information as we would have liked. However, we got off to a positive start in FP1 and immediately found some good setup direction with Alex. As the track improved in FP2, the balance of the car shifted a bit and we will have to make some minor adjustments to the setup overnight to stay ahead of the fast evolving track.
Alex’s main performance in FP2 was hampered by some traffic and he couldn’t get as much out of the car and tires as in FP1. However, we don’t expect this to be a problem on Saturday and we look forward to a competitive Q1 session.
Nicholas wasn’t too happy with his car balance today, but with some time to work on it tonight, he may find some good improvement tomorrow. He stopped on the track at the end of FP2 when he lost the drive. We are still investigating the issue but don’t think it’s serious and we don’t expect it to affect the rest of his weekend.
Alex Albon: I think today has been our best Friday of the season so far. It may not look like it, especially as my last runs in FP2 have been a bit messy and we didn’t put in a representative lap, but I’m happy with how the car feels and performs. We’re going to fine-tune a little more tonight now that we have some data from the practice sessions, and hopefully things look positive tomorrow towards FP3 and qualifying.
Nicholas Latifi: It was an interesting first day here in Miami. It was nice to finally get out on track and experience the track in real life. It’s a tricky and technical layout, especially the slower part around turns 13 to 16. We’re definitely going to fine-tune our approach at night to try and find some more lap time in that part in particular. The other challenge we faced today was the heat; It’s very hot here and that will make it difficult for us as drivers and for the tires all weekend. All in all I think it’s been a great event for the sport so far and hopefully over the next two days we’ll have more of the same.