Sepang International Circuit, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia
Sunday, 25th of March 2012

Weather: Rainy – Air 26ºC, Track 28ºC
Race: 56 laps
Track distance: 5.543 km

Pedro de la RosaF112-02 #2221st
Narain KarthikeyanF112-01 #2322nd

Mission accomplished for HRT Formula 1 Team today as Pedro de la Rosa and Narain Karthikeyan crossed the finish line in the 56-lap race that took place at the Sepang International Circuit. It was an eventful race from the beginning with De la Rosa’s car having to start from the pit lane, but a correct tyre strategy gave its rewards when it started raining heavily and the HRT’s were two of a few cars who were running on extreme wet tyres. The event came to a halt only 9 laps in with Karthikeyan and De la Rosa in 10th and 17th place respectively .The cars were on the grid for almost an hour before the restart and Pedro was penalized with a drive-through penalty but, despite all of this, both drivers put in a fantastic shift at the wheel of the F112 that needs as much running time as possible to be at the level it should be. The team also did a good job with the strategy and the mechanics completed their first pit stops.

Overall it was a satisfying result for the team who now has two weeks ahead to prepare for the Chinese Grand Prix in better conditions.

Pedro de la Rosa: “I must say I really enjoyed myself in that race. It really was the best race to make my debut with HRT. I don’t think anyone could imagine we would finish after starting from the pit lane due to an issue with the fuel pressure that we were dragging over from yesterday, I was penalized with a drive-through penalty, we completed our first real pitstop… to sum up, a lot of things happened but, in the end, the car held out really well given where we were at the beginning. We have to improve many things but this was a perfect test. My teammate also finished so that’s doubly satisfying. I’m very happy for the team, we accomplished our objective. Now we have to go a little bit further”.

Narain Karthikeyan: “It was a very interesting race in really wet conditions. We were running in 10th at one point, which I think is the best position we’ve ever been in but unfortunately the rain stopped and the track dried out and it was impossible to keep ahead of the rest. I made a mistake, locking up the front, and went off on turn 9 but apart from that it all went pretty well. We finished the race, did some mileage and made up two positions from 23rd so that’s something to smile about. Everyone did a great job and we’re all really happy with the result, now we have to go on from here and try to progress in China”.

Luis Pérez-Sala, Team Principal: “Yesterday after qualifying we were satisfied and today, thankfully, we are again. We met another target which was to finish the race with both cars. There are aspects that need improving, without a doubt, such as reliability and the speed of the car, but by completing the race we have accumulated a lot of data which will be of great use to continue progressing. We also need to improve pit stops and team coordination but it was the first time they did it and from the first stop to the second you could already tell the difference. Today I want to highlight the work everyone did and thank them for their effort these past weeks and today’s result is a small reward for that enormous amount of work that is taking place”.

Malaysia is not yet committing its future to the formula one calendar beyond its 2015 deal.
Sepang was Hermann Tilke’s first full creation that made its grand prix debut in 1999.

But Razlan Razali, the Kuala Lumpur circuit’s chief executive, said on Wednesday he is unable to say if there will be a race in 2016.

“We can recommend all we want, but as (the) prime minister announced last year, the decision will be made by the cabinet,” he told the New Straits Times.

Sepang commissioned consultants PricewaterhouseCoopers (PWC) last year to study the economic impact of the Malaysian grand prix.

“PWC advised us to have another study on this year’s event,” revealed Razali.

He also pointed some criticism at the lack of enthusiasm from some parts of the government, particularly when it comes to promoting the annual race.

“Not all ministries seem interested,” Razlan admitted.

A typically hot, humid and thundery weekend is forecast for the Malaysian grand prix.
New championship leader Jenson Button travels to Kuala Lumpur eyeing a weather forecast of possible rain for all three days of track action.

And as ever in tropical Malaysia, the highest chance of rain is always in the late afternoon.

“Bernie (Ecclestone) loves a late start,” smiled Red Bull’s Mark Webber, “and, once again, the race has a late kick-off.”

Indeed, qualifying and the race are not scheduled until 4pm local in Malaysia, ensuring a more civil early morning wake-up for F1′s bulk live audience in Europe.

“Late afternoon is usually when the rain comes in Malaysia, and when it comes you know about it,” said Australian Webber. “It’s something to be wary of.”

Even more nervous about the rain forecasts will be HRT.

After sitting out almost the entire winter whilst rebuilding the struggling Spanish team following Colin Kolles’ departure, Pedro de la Rosa and Narain Karthikeyan failed to qualify in Melbourne.

“In Australia we were only able to complete seven timed laps so I need to get more track time, get to know the car better and improve the setup,” said de la Rosa.

Team Lotus has decided to ditch its plans for a black and gold livery in 2011.

On Thursday, after Group Lotus announced it is entering F1 with Renault and revealed John Player Special-inspired colours for 2011, fans of the separate Tony Fernandes-headed team urged the Malaysian outfit to stay with its current green and yellow livery next year.

“Having four black cars looking the same I think is silly and one has to relent,” Fernandes told the Reuters news agency.

“We’re not childish and emotional and saying ‘Oh no, we’ve got to be black and gold’. We’re pragmatic,” he added, revealing there had been some “negativity” about the earlier plans for a livery inspired by a cigarette brand.

As for the Lotus name, however, Fernandes vowed to push ahead, meaning the dispute is likely to now be settled in the London High Court sometime next year.

“Having two Lotus brands on the grid I think is no issue,” he said.

Meanwhile, a date has been set for Sir Richard Branson’s day as a skirt-wearing AirAsia stewardess, after losing a bet with Fernandes this year.

“It’s confirmed February 21, 2011,” Fernandes wrote on Twitter, revealing the flight will travel from London to Kuala Lumpur.

Confirmation of Jarno Trulli’s extended stay at Lotus next year is due before the forthcoming Korean grand prix.

That is the claim of the Finnish newspaper Turun Sanomat, insisting that the Italian’s current teammate Heikki Kovalainen has already penned a new deal for 2011.

It was reported from Suzuka that Trulli, 36, was bullish about the future, even though it had been expected that Lotus’ 2011 lineup would have been confirmed by now.

Turun Sanomat said Finn Kovalainen – who is currently staying in Kuala Lumpur at team chief executive Riad Asmat’s house – signed his new deal on the Sunday morning of the Italian grand prix last month, but that Trulli’s salary talks were ongoing.

The report added that Trulli still hasn’t signed a contract, but that news on the driver front is sure to be announced before Korea.

Lotus has been making many announcements recently, including the termination of its Cosworth contract, an altered name for 2011 and the Red Bull technical deal.

Confirmation of the Renault engine deal is still pending.

Lotus joked about the situation after qualifying was rained off at Suzuka last Saturday, revealing that the team “has nothing to announce for the first time in several weeks”.

Lotus team owner Tony Fernandes’ application to launch a GP2 team for 2011 has been successful, the series announced on Tuesday.

The Malaysian millionaire’s team is called Team Air Asia, named after his Kuala Lumpur based low-fare airline, and is “strongly linked to formula one”, GP2 organisers said in a statement.

“The seriousness of their presentation, their ambition and their worldwide project were really appealing and in line with what we expect from all our teams,” said organiser Bruno Michel.

State oil company Petronas has extended its title sponsorship of the Malaysian grand prix.

Media statements said the contract extension is for a further five years.

Kuala Lumpur based Petronas also title sponsors the formula one team Mercedes GP.

“I am pleased that Petronas has again used formula one to let the world follow their success in the oil and gas automotive industry,” said F1 chief executive Bernie Ecclestone.

The first Malaysian grand prix took place in 1999.

Lotus will announce its 2011 driver lineup “pretty soon”, according to Mike Gascoyne.

Although there are rumblings the Malaysian-owned team could be considering its Kuala Lumpur born test driver Fairuz Fauzy for a race seat, the team’s technical boss said he is happy with Heikki Kovalainen and Jarno Trulli.

“I think the intention is to stick with the drivers we’ve got. I think they’re doing a great job,” said Gascoyne.

When asked when official confirmation might come, he answered: “I think we’d like to do that pretty soon.”

There have been questions about Italian veteran Trulli’s form so far this year, but Gascoyne insists he has had appalling luck and reliability.

Asked whether Trulli, who turns 36 on Tuesday, has done enough to keep his drive, Gascoyne answered: “I think he has.

“I think Heikki has gotten better and better, his confidence is back and there’s a spring in his step and he’s pushing him (Trulli) very hard.”

Gascoyne said Trulli has had appalling luck and reliability.

“That’s the thing with experienced guys, if we give them the car, they can perform with it.

“Jarno has shown he can still pull the big laps out when he has a trouble-free weekend,” he added.