Race report
Formula 1
Monza: 2013 best result so far for Sauber
Nico Hülkenberg: "I am very happy and fifth was the ideal result. Despite starting third, it was always clear keeping the Ferrari and Red Bulls behind was not realistic."
Published: Sep 8, 2013, 4:06 PM
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The Sauber F1 Team was able to transform the good performance during practice and qualifying for the Italian GP into the best result of the 2013 season so far. Nico Hülkenberg finished fifth, gaining ten championship points in the process.
He managed a faultless performance while under pressure from Nico Rosberg for quite a few laps. Esteban Gutiérrez, who started 16th, was held back several times and finished 13th. During the race, the improvements on the car translated into a result for the first time, which is positive looking ahead to the up coming Grands Prix.
Nico Hulkenberg, Sauber C32
Photo by: XPB Images
Nico Hülkenberg (Finished 5th - Start on medium tyres, after 24 laps change to hard tyres): “It’s a great result and, after yesterday, another great performance by the team today. I am very happy and fifth was the ideal result. Despite starting third, it was always clear keeping the Ferrari and Red Bulls behind was not realistic.
I lost two places right at the start, but then the pace was good and, especially towards the end, I was able to catch up quite a bit again. I kept the Mercedes behind with Nico leaving no room for me making any mistakes. It’s a very nice result for the team, and finally we have some points again. I hope this will give us some momentum, so we can carry this form on to the next couple of races.”
Esteban Gutiérrez (Finished 13th - Start on hard tyres, after 27 laps change to medium): “The start of the race was quite reasonable. I gained one place, but the first corner was tricky. It was important to keep the car together. I was able to settle down well during the first few laps.
I was trying to manage the tyres as best I could, but, of course, you can’t compromise too much. Overall, it was a good race. Obviously, we cannot be happy, because it’s not a great result. However, the race was positive. Now we have to improve in qualifying, so we can start in a better position. I’m confident we will get there.”
Monisha Kaltenborn, Team Principal: “We are happy about such a great result. Nico fought hard and drove a fantastic race. The crew did a great job as well today. Esteban was held up several times and thus lost the chance to score points. Overall, however, he drove yet again a very strong race and showed he is constantly improving.
We are pleased to see that, for the first time, the result reflects us making a step forward with the development of the car. A big thank you to the race team here in Monza and the team back in Hinwil.”
Tom McCullough, Head of Track Engineering: “After the rain during the lap to the grid, the race settled in to being dry. It’s a fantastic result for Nico, who withstood pressure from Nico Rosberg throughout, and didn’t put a foot wrong. Finally he was rewarded for the fantastic job he did yesterday.
Esteban was unlucky with traffic, but again showed strong race pace. It was clear that it would be difficult from P16. On this track our car’s race pace was stronger than in recent races and that should put a smile on a lot of faces here and in Hinwil.”
Sauber F1 Team
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