In addition, neither Adrian Sutil nor Vitantonio Liuzzi managed to get near the point scoring positions last Sunday, as the German finished the race after only 23 laps and the Italian eventually crossed the finish line in 14th place.
Looking back at what happened in Singapore and, more importantly, what will be the challenges posed by the Suzuka track next weekend, team owner Vijay Mallya seems to have figured out why his drivers underperformed so miserably last week. Their 2009 challenger was not configured for such high levels of downforce, as met in Singapore.
“We do understand the reasons why (we've struggled) - Singapore is an exceptionally high downforce track and we have found this configuration difficult. Singapore is however the only type of track in the second half of the season like this so we had to make a decision to focus on the events where we could be competitive rather than putting resources towards just one event,” said Mallys in a preview for the Japanese Grand Prix.
As for the Suzuka event, Mallya is confident that both drivers will at least make it into Q2 on Saturday and bring home some points in the constructors' standings.
“Suzuka is more low downforce and should suit the car well. Plus both drivers know and enjoy the circuit so their confidence will be high. Tonio is now fully up to speed and has completed perhaps the most physical event of the year in Singapore. Adrian too has driven the circuit extensively so I would say we are feeling positive.”
“I'd hope to see another Q2 and then let's see about points in the race. That's got to be our goal going forward for the rest of the season now,” added Mallya.
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