The opening round of the 2015 GP2 Series sees the Racing Engineering team facing the challenge of the Sakhir International Circuit, Bahrain, the scene of the recent preseason testing days. The Spanish team are starting the season with two new drivers, the Briton Jordan King and from America, Alexander Rossi. Both men have shown considerable promise in pre-season testing and Racing Engineering are looking forward to another successful season in GP2.
Below Alfonso de Orléans-Borbón, President of Racing Engineering, looks forward to the 2015 GP2 Series:
The 2015 GP2 season is about to start this week in Bahrain and Racing Engineering has a new line-up for this season. What can you tell us about the drivers in the Racing Engineering cars this season?
I would say that it is the season where we have the most professional driver pairing to date. Both drivers work extremely hard and are only focused on getting the best out of their cars, it is a pleasure to work with them. As for the individual drivers, both drivers are extremely fast, but Alex is the one with F1 experience, which shows in his methodology in how he goes about his work, his feedback is second to none. Jordan on the other hand is a rookie, but it feels like he has already done a season in GP2, great to work with and a team player, everyone loves to work with him.
The pre-season tests were quite promising and even though it was the first time that Jordan drove at the Bahrain International Circuit and already he topped the time sheets on day 1. Given this what are the expectations for the GP2 opening round for the team?
I think, barring any unforeseen issues, that both drivers are quite strong for Bahrain. They are comfortable with the cars and everyone knows what needs to be done. So podium finishes for both is quite possible.
What are the peculiarities of the Bahrain round? What are the factors to consider for the team and drivers?
Bahrain is possibly one of the toughest tracks on the cars because of the heat, sand, hard braking, etc. A good driver will be able to work with all these variables and bring the car home. Remember, to win, you first have to finish and you also have to bear in mind that it is the first race of the season, so many drivers will be nervous, while others will want to prove they are championship material. All this added to the tough conditions are a recipe for some hard racing, a lot of overtaking and some accidents. So I don't think anyone knows what the outcome will be.
Before we spoke about the expectations for the opening round, but what are Racing Engineering’s expectations for the 2015 season?
We are here to win the championship, especially the drivers’ title. So that is our goal and anything else is not even being considered at the moment. Don't forget, we have one rookie and one driver, who has never done an entire season in GP2. They might have a lot of racing experience, but neither has raced a GP2 season. So we have our work cut out for us, which makes it all the more exciting! |
|
