Bouncin' in the club where the heat is on

How exciting is it for Formula 1 to race in Miami for the first time?

“It’s absolutely fantastic that Formula 1 is going to Miami. It’s an excellent place to showcase Formula 1 for the first time, so we’re all looking forward to putting the cars on track there and driving the circuit. Having a race in Miami underlines the sheer popularity of Formula 1 at the moment, especially knowing the fact that the Miami race sold out of tickets within days of being announced! It’s great and we’re all looking forward to the race weekend.”

As an American, how proud are you that Formula 1 is growing in North America?

“Formula 1 has always been popular in America. I remember watching my first race in Detroit in the 1980s, which inspired me to pursue a career in motorsport. It’s fantastic that now Formula 1 is expanding in America and inspiring new fans, discovering new cities and introducing a fresh audience to an established global sport. This year we have two races in America, next year it’s three and beyond that, who knows. There are many opportunities and that’s exciting for our sport.”

What do we know about the Miami track?

“Like all teams, we’re heading to a completely new circuit, which we do not have too much information about. We’ve run simulations to help us with a base set-up, so hopefully we can be as close to that as possible to allow us some stability early in the weekend. New circuits, especially temporary or street tracks, are usually quite low grip, so we will have to ease ourselves into our programme. I’m sure we’ll do the usual running and experiments to optimise our set-up for qualifying and race. It’s an exciting challenge for drivers and engineers alike, so we’ll be doing our best with what we have in our hands.”

The team brought an upgrade to Imola. How did that part fare and will it return for Miami?

“The upgrades we brought to the A522 worked as expected in Imola, which is a great sign that the hard work behind the scenes at the factory is paying off, especially in developing and validating these aerodynamic updates. As a result of those efforts, the new spec floor we had on Fernando’s car will be on both cars this weekend. Although Fernando’s floor suffered significant damage in the race because of the first lap incident with Mick [Schumacher], we were able to recover the part and make the necessary repairs. It’s great that both cars have the upgrade, which performed to expectations. There’s more to come in the coming races in this very important and intense development race.”

Where are the team’s current strengths and also its areas to improve?

“As we’ve seen at the first four races, our low fuel, qualifying pace looks very competitive. That said, points are scored on Sundays, so while we qualify well, we need to capitalise on these promising starting positions. The team has been working hard to identify these areas and work through different set-up changes to help improve our race pace while also managing our tyres a bit differently. It’s a fine balance between improving race pace without impacting our qualifying speed.”

First time in Miami

Esteban Ocon heads to Miami for his and the team’s first experience of a Grand Prix in Florida. The Frenchman is keen to start a new points streak, after his run of seven points finishes in a row came to an end in Imola two weeks ago.

The points scoring streak came to a bit of a disappointing end in Imola. How motivated are you to come back and add to what in general has been a positive start to the year for you?

“Imola was a frustrating weekend for the team. It is clear that there are areas we must improve on. The first three races were good for me and not being in the points in Italy will serve as further motivation for everyone to bounce back in Miami. The whole team is looking forward to it and we know if we do things right, we will be able to extract the potential we know this car has, and deliver the results we are capable of.”

The anticipation for the Miami Grand Prix has been significant. How to you approach an unknown track and what are you looking forward to the most?

“It seems we have been talking about Miami for years! And it is finally here, which is very exciting for everyone involved in the sport. Formula 1 has grown so much in the United States in the last few years and Miami is such an iconic city, so it should be a fun weekend and I can’t wait to get going. I have only seen Miami in the movies and I have seen a bit of how the track and facilities will look like and it all looks very impressive. But from my side, I have prepared well in the simulator and have discussed with the team how to best approach this new track. Driving a new circuit is always exhilarating because you don’t really know what to expect until you’re driving there. But the approach and preparation remain the same as for all other race weekends.”

What can we expect from the team from this upcoming race?

“As mentioned, we’ll look to bounce back in Miami after a disappointing race in Imola. We’ll be bringing a few upgrades to the car which hopefully work in our favour and can address the lack of pace I had in Italy. I’m sure Fernando will be fast again so we hope to be in a position to be competitive in the midfield and leave Florida with a haul of points. We will aim for a smooth weekend and enjoy what promises to be a thrilling weekend for Formula 1.”