Thoughts from Haryanto, Vandoorne and Matsushita
GP2 Series: Rio, a second win for you today. You were under race-long pressure first from Artem Markelov and then from Stoffel Vandoorne. How was it from the car?
Rio Haryanto: It was a really tough one especially since we’ve seen in qualifying that the difference in performance between the cars is small. During the race, the difference is still small and I think that with the DRS the guy behind me was easily catching me down the straight. That was the hardest part of the race because I tried to pull a gap in sector 2 and in the end they caught me back in sectors 1 and 3. It was tough, but I’ve done everything I could: I tried to push really hard and make no mistake. At one point Markelov tried to overtake me down turn 3. I was able to avoid him because he dove at the last minute. I opened the door and I tried to cut back him but we had a contact and it damaged my front wing. After that, the car was struggling with under steer. I didn’t give up. I tried to do the best I could. To get my second victory is amazing.
GP2 Series: you’ve bounced back well this week after a pointless round in Monaco…
Rio: Yes Monaco was tricky. We had a last minute race situation. I was going out on the slicks in quali and the rain started just as I went out of the pitlane. It was getting heavier and I had to pit for wet tyres. I think I lost 2 or 3 laps there. I struggled to get the temperature into the tyres. For the feature race I started at the back of the grid and I could not do much during the race because it’s Monaco. It’s really hard to overtake. So to be back on the podium today is really nice.
GP2 Series: What are your objectives for next round in Silverstone?
Rio: Silverstone is one of the hardest tracks for the tyres. I came second two years ago in the sprint race so I’m looking forward to it. I think we have a good chance to score some good points there…
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GP2 Series: Stoffel, P2 today and another podium finish for you this season. You’ve been fighting hard for another win though. What was missing?
Stoffel Vandoorne: I think the overall result of the weekend was really good. We’re equalling our results in Bahrain and Barcelona. In terms of points, it’s been a really good weekend for me. The race today was good: I had a really good start. Immediately after the first corner I was in third place. I was in a position to fight for the victory. At the beginning, I was waiting a little bit to see what was going to happen. I didn’t want to kill the tyres although degradation is very low here. I saw Markelov pushing really hard on Haryanto in the beginning. I was watching the fight from behind because I know it could get very close between them and it did at some point. Markelov tried to launch on the inside at turn 3 and went into the gravel bed putting me into P2. I tried to push on Rio for a couple of laps but there was never a way past him. I was never in a position to get close enough to put a move on him. I felt the pace of the car was really good today again. I felt I could do a bit more maybe… It’s almost like this second place feels a little bit disappointing. Of course it’s a really good weekend result for me and also for the team. I mean, it’s great for the championship so far: first and second. We just have to keep focused on what is next and try and do the same in Silverstone.
GP2 Series: Silverstone is a completely different track. What are your expectations?
Stoffel: Silverstone is definitely one the most difficult tracks on the calendar. It’s a very high speed track. We know who was quicker last year. I’ve been on the podium last year as well but our pace was not ideal then. I think we know what happened then and we learned from that. We should be back there stronger this year. I expect another great race. It’s a track I really like as well. We’ll see where we’ll end up.
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GP2 Series: Nobu, P3 today. You’re first podium finish this season. How was your race today?
Nobuharu Matsushita: My start was not so bad but Stoffel and Rossi had a better one. Then Rossi spun and I had to avoid him. I lost a bit of time there. The race was quite tough after that. The cars in front of me and I were really close together but I couldn’t overtake. I thought I could maybe pass Stoffel at the end. Markelov went off and I moved up to third. I think the tyre degradation was really good so that’s why I thought I could maybe pass Stoffel at the end but I couldn’t. It’s difficult to overtake on this track. That’s why I remained third, but it’s not a bad result!
GP2 Series: Like you say, it’s not bad at all especially after having started P2 yesterday but finished P4. What happened then?
Nobuharu: Yesterday was also not so bad, but I made a small mistake at the start and that’s how I was passed. But that’s racing. It wasn’t a big mistake, but that allowed Rossi to overtake me. Then I lost a lot of time because he was not so quick. Then, Lynn could overtake me because he was on supersoft tyres at the end of the race. But again, fourth place was a good result for me. Next up is Silverstone which is going to be a little bit difficult for me. I don’t know the track and I don’t have the experience. I know it’s a more difficult track than this one. But I will try my best and keep pushing like that. Hopefully I will score many podiums this season.
