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Peter Sauber, team principal of the Swiss Sauber F1 Team, said he was very happy to see that this year's Ferrari-powered C31 F1 car was performant on any type of circuit.
The Sauber team collected their second podium this season in Montreal last Sunday when Mexican driver Sergio Pérez took third place behind race winner Lewis Hamilton of McLaren and Romain Grosjean of Lotus.
Pérez did a very long stint on his first set of tires - 41 laps - and then ran the second stint on relatively fresh tires.
“Sergio had started from 15th on the grid, so you wouldn't normally be contemplating a podium place - you'd be happy just to get into the points,” said Peter Sauber in an interview published by the team.
“But once the front-runners began to develop problems with their tires towards the end of the race, it became clear that something very special could be unfolding. Unlike the other drivers, Sergio was not affected by these tire problems and was able to continue his all-out offensive right to the end. He drove an extraordinary race,” Sauber added.
“It was a surprise that Sergio managed to move from 15th on the grid to a third-placed finish in a perfectly normal race, without rain and without any safety car periods. But basically we knew the Sauber C31 was far better than the results of the last few GPs might have suggested. Our performance in Barcelona and Monaco fell well short of our capability. We had the potential in both races to be right up in front, but things just didn't fall into place,” Sauber added.
The Swiss said that he expects his team to achieve great things in future races. “If we manage to exploit our full potential as a team, in other words get everything right from Friday morning to Sunday evening, a great deal is possible. After seven races it is patently clear that the C31 can be fast on virtually any kind of track,” he said.
However, some people say that the new types of Pirelli tires make racing a bit artificial because no one knows so sure what's going to happen during the races.
“As far as I can see it's just a handful of people in the paddock who can't get used to not knowing by Friday who's going to win on Sunday,” Sauber explained.
'I think the fans see it in a completely different light. They're delighted with the unpredictability, the sheer variety and the unbelievably close competition. I've been in Formula 1 for 20 years now and for me it's never been better or more exciting. That's partly down to Pirelli, who are supplying the tires for this show,” said Sauber.
The Sauber team collected their second podium this season in Montreal last Sunday when Mexican driver Sergio Pérez took third place behind race winner Lewis Hamilton of McLaren and Romain Grosjean of Lotus.
Pérez did a very long stint on his first set of tires - 41 laps - and then ran the second stint on relatively fresh tires.
“Sergio had started from 15th on the grid, so you wouldn't normally be contemplating a podium place - you'd be happy just to get into the points,” said Peter Sauber in an interview published by the team.
“But once the front-runners began to develop problems with their tires towards the end of the race, it became clear that something very special could be unfolding. Unlike the other drivers, Sergio was not affected by these tire problems and was able to continue his all-out offensive right to the end. He drove an extraordinary race,” Sauber added.
“It was a surprise that Sergio managed to move from 15th on the grid to a third-placed finish in a perfectly normal race, without rain and without any safety car periods. But basically we knew the Sauber C31 was far better than the results of the last few GPs might have suggested. Our performance in Barcelona and Monaco fell well short of our capability. We had the potential in both races to be right up in front, but things just didn't fall into place,” Sauber added.
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| Peter Sauber with Sergio Perez in Montreal. (Photo: Sauber F1 Team) |
The Swiss said that he expects his team to achieve great things in future races. “If we manage to exploit our full potential as a team, in other words get everything right from Friday morning to Sunday evening, a great deal is possible. After seven races it is patently clear that the C31 can be fast on virtually any kind of track,” he said.
However, some people say that the new types of Pirelli tires make racing a bit artificial because no one knows so sure what's going to happen during the races.
“As far as I can see it's just a handful of people in the paddock who can't get used to not knowing by Friday who's going to win on Sunday,” Sauber explained.
'I think the fans see it in a completely different light. They're delighted with the unpredictability, the sheer variety and the unbelievably close competition. I've been in Formula 1 for 20 years now and for me it's never been better or more exciting. That's partly down to Pirelli, who are supplying the tires for this show,” said Sauber.