BMW Sauber: Qualifying Speed Let Us Down in Valencia
This year’s European Grand Prix in Valencia was an unusually drama-filled episode that saw Red Bull catalyst Mark Webber involve himself in an extraordinary mishap that subsequently unleashed a sequence of mouth-wateringly controversial events. Yet, quite apart from the series of unusual circumstances ignited by the Red Bull spectacle, there was another performance that set the tongues rolling at Formula One paddocks in Valencia. BMW Sauber’s first-choice driver, rookie Kamui Kobayashi, stunned onlookers with a spectacular run that witnessed the Japanese talent build from a lowly 17th in the qualifying round to a seventh place finish in the ultimate race.
Kobayashi’s astonishing 10 place leap at the European event was the culmination of the BMW Sauber C29 car’s steady race stride and some calculated moves by Kobayashi. The Japanese’ stint saw his team bag valuable points for the second time this season. After the less than optimal qualifying campaign, the squad wagered on initiating Kobayashi’s Valencia run on the sturdier Bridgestone tyres. The strategy paid dividends by enabling the BMW Sauber man to stay on the circuit and mount to the third position when most others were pitting. With the C29 proving reliable enough to ensure Kobayashi’s lead over Jenson Button’s McLaren, the East Asian managed to maintain his superiority for a large portion of the race until a delayed pit stop forced his fall backwards. Kobayashi emerged from the pits ninth, but a switch to the softer tyres enabled the BMW Sauber catalyst to power his machine past Ferrari’s Fernando Alonso and Sebastian Buemi of Toro Rosso all the way to the seventh spot.
The BMW Sauber squad principal, Peter Sauber, was overjoyed with the unexpectedly heartening European Grand Prix campaign. Peter Sauber’s recent sojourn to the squad factory in Hinwil centred around an emphasis on the importance of enhancing qualifying speed significantly if the team were to snatch this season. The Sauber head remarked that the group’s faith in their debutant front-man had been vindicated in a highly gratifying manner considering the uncertainty inherent to such contracts. The Valencia sprint marked the highlight of Kobayashi’s first season as a full-time Formula One driver. The East Asian had previously served as a third driver for the Toyota F1 squad for the 2008 and ’09 seasons, until the Japanese car manufacturer’s exit from the competition in late 2009 carved out his move to BMW Sauber as a full-time racer for this year’s run. Even in his part-time role as a substitute at Toyota, Kobayashi had managed to distinguish himself as a gifted driver after making the most of the opportunities afforded by the spells of Timo Glock’s (Toyota’s first-choice front-man) absence during the 2009 campaign.
Peter Sauber stressed that although the C29 offered massive promise, the vehicle still bore deficiencies that were frustrating an all-encompassing exploitation of its capabilities. The team boss professed to be at a loss to understand why the car was far more reliable on a race day than during a qualifying run. “When I compare our qualifying performance in Valencia with the lap times in the race, I can’t work it out.” The squad’s newly enlisted technical director, James Key, was equally bent on figuring out the source of this curious anomaly that is inhibiting the team’s progress up the competitive ladder. Key asserted that the C29’s recent Grand Prix performances necessitated a thorough inspection of several quantitative details extracted by the technical department. Yet as the team prepares for the upcoming British Grand Prix, both James Key and Peter Sauber are convinced that the Silverstone circuit’s motley of moderate and high-velocity turns will be more amenable to C29’s prowess than the Valencia street grid.
Meanwhile, Kobayashi’s teammate, Spaniard Pedro de la Rosa also appeared to have added to his squad’s score sheet at Valencia until the post-race time reprise from the FIA (Federation Internationale de l’Automobile) sunk him down from the 10th spot to the 12th.
Tags: