Sauber missed out on points in the first race of the 2024 F1 season.
But you wouldn’t know it from their thoughts heading into the second game of the season.
Zhou Guanyu missed Q2 in qualifying and started 17th, but finished outside of the points and finished 11th. His teammate Valtteri Bottas also missed out on qualifying for Q2 and started 16th, but a long pit stop meant Bottas finished in 19th place, last.
Still, given what the team saw from its race pace in Bahrain, its confidence is growing as the grid heads to Jeddah for this weekend’s Saudi Arabian Grand Prix.
“We go into the next race in Jeddah with confidence. A convincing sixth place in the race in Bahrain showed us what we can achieve in the race conditions. We can take another step forward,” said team principal Alessandro Arunni.braviin Sauber race preview.
“We know where we need to improve, both in terms of the car and in terms of performance. “If we move higher up the grid, we can be in the thick of the final battle, so our single-lap performance will be even better. Now that we are in a good position to score points right from the start of the race, we need to keep working to improve the set-up of the car to maximize its potential. ”
Chou said the performance in Bahrain “gave us a lot of confidence” for the team.
“Last week’s performance was a huge confidence booster for the whole team. We know the fundamentals of our car are solid and we can fight at the front of the group of teams, but we want to unlock its potential and We also know that we must continue to work hard to understand how to set it up in the most effective way,” said Zhou. “There is a lot in the pipeline and we will strive to make the most of every opportunity.
“From a personal point of view, I’m very happy with what we achieved with Sakhir. It was a strong start to the season that left me wanting more.”
The team believes it could be a strong weekend for them if they can come out on top in the conditions in Saudi Arabia.
“The Corniche circuit in Saudi Arabia is very different from the one in Sakhir and we need to understand the conditions such as the track surface, layout and temperature from the first practice session,” said Alunni Brabi. “We know how close this battle is and every little thing has the potential to make a difference. We look forward to the challenges ahead.”
“The Saudi circuit is a fun track to drive. It’s fast, with some very challenging corners and sectors with incredible flow. It’s a street circuit and there are some unique challenges that come with that. “The evolution of the track will play a big role as the weekend progresses and the team needs to be able to adapt to that,” said Bottas. “I’m looking forward to it and I’m looking forward to seeing how well I do on a completely different course than last time.”
