F.RENAULT 3.5 – I.S.R. QUICK IN BOTH DRY AND WET CONDITIONS

I.S.R Racing couldn’t have hoped for a better start of their F.Renault 3.5 2013 campaign. In Monza for the Series’ opening round, the Czech team enjoyed two perfect days of testing and practice ahead of the Qualifying session for Race 1, that will take place tomorrow at 9 AM. Both the team’s drivers had the chance to make the most of the technical package and showed great pace: Sergey Sirotkin emerged as the quickest overall on Thursday, closing the 3-hour testing session with a 1’33″817 that gave him the edge over the rest of the field. So quick was the Russian that the third placed driver, Will Stevens, was already 0.7 adrift. Christopher Zanella had a positive day too, closing the session in P11  after being hampered by a loose engine cover that forced him into the pits for a brief stop. Unluckily a red flag ended the test soon after his stop and prevented him from improving his laptime, so hiding his true potential on the dry track.Anyway, the Swiss driver had the chance to give his driving skills the deserved publicity today: on a soaking wet track Christopher ended the day as third quickest, posting a 1’49″965 that was impressive, especially considering the amount of water on track. Sirotkin ended his Friday in 9th place, after trying a more aggressive setup in the second  Practice session. Despite the heavy rain the Russian driver and the team opted for a low downforce setup that was more extreme to master but could prove a winning move in a mixed weather situation.
Sergey Sirotkin: FP1 – P8; FP2 – P9
“It’s been a very good start, no doubt about it. In dry conditions the car felt really good and balanced, I was quick and could push hard very easily, something that bodes well for tomorrow if, as forecasts say, the weather will be good. I’m also happy of my pace in the wet: I was P9 but at the end of the session the red flag came out right while I was improving, I could have been much quicker than that. We were among the few who lapped the whole afternoon with low downforce settings, and it felt quite ok. I think that if the track will be wet again I’ll keep using that setup solution”.
Christopher Zanella: FP1 – P4; FP2 – P3
“I’m quite happy with the two days. Yesterday I could have been as quick as my team-mate if it wasn’t for that engine cover issue. We had some oversteer at the beginning of the session but when the team solved that the car felt really good and if it wasn’t for the red flag my final lap time would have been much better. The feeling was great in the wet also, and considering that I first drove the car in Barcelona two weeks ago I’m really happy, as I’m improving lap after lap”.