Sergio Perez will be looking to break back into the top-ten and score points this weekend in Spain.
Perez has had a good start to the 2012 F1 season and after finishing eighth in Australia, put in that headline performance in Malaysia, when he challenged
Fernando Alonso for the win, before eventually bringing his Sauber home in second.
The subsequent flyaway races in China and Bahrain, however, were less kind to the Mexican and after two elevenths, he is eager to add to his current 22-point tally at the Circuit de Catalunya, something that should be aided by aero updates to the C31 [see separate story -
HERE].
“I am looking forward to the Spanish Grand Prix very much and also to the other forthcoming races in Europe,” said Perez.
“To me the race at the Circuit de Catalunya is one of the most special ones on the calendar.
“I obviously know the circuit very well from GP2, from last year's
Formula One race and, of course, from testing. It was there where I scored my first ever F1 points last year when I finished ninth. I hope to get some points again this year.
“Our recent race in Bahrain was very disappointing, so I really hope our new aero package will work well in Barcelona.”
Giampaolo Dall'Ara, Sauber's head of track engineering, meanwhile added getting a good set-up will be crucial, especially given the two tyre compounds that will be provided for the weekend.
“Pirelli will provide us with the soft and the hard tyre. It's the first time this year that there are two steps between the tyre compounds, which makes it interesting. We expect the soft one to be good in qualifying, while the hard compound should be strong in the race. The limiting factor is the wear on the front axle.
“However, at the same time the track characteristics stress the rear tyres, therefore the challenge will be to find the best compromise for the set-up of the car,” he explained.