The Caterham are optimistic that the updates they are bringing to the up-coming race in Valencia this weekend, as well as some for the British Grand Prix, can move them up the ladder and finish in the mid-field.
In their first year, as Lotus Racing, the team was optimistic that they could beat the other new teams, Virgin and HRT. And they did. Then last year team principal Tony Fernandes said that the team were targeting points, but the results failed to materialize. And with the announcement that they are hoping for finishes in the mid-field, one could suggest that the Caterham team is overly optimistic.
To do that, the team not only have to overtake Toro Rosso on the standing, they have 6 points now, but also Force India with 28 points and the Williams team with 44, which scored their first victory in eight years, when Pastor Maldonado took the chequered flag in Spain. So, it looks like a tall order, but technical director Mark Smith believes that they now understand enough of the car´s performance and race of development is enough to give their drivers the push they need.
“We expect to be much closer to the cars ahead than we were last year, giving us a chance perhaps to put one of our cars into Q2 and giving the drivers a real chance to race on Sunday,” explained Smith.
“We have a couple of quite significant updates coming in Valencia and Silverstone – we will take a look at a number of new aerodynamic elements in Valencia as well as some minor modifications to the floor, and even though we will not know exactly what they will give us until we get out on track, we are cautiously optimistic they will help us keep edging ever closer to the midfield.”
The updates include revisions of the floor and several other aerodynamic changes, and while Mark Smith might be a tad to optimistic, Tony Fernandes is a little more careful.
“While we are honest enough with ourselves to know that these upgrades alone will not be enough to force our way into the midfield pack, we do know it is a statement of our intent to join the group just ahead that we are updating the car at the same rate or even more quickly than our rivals,” Fernandes said.
“We have the people and resources in place to achieve our goal of scoring a point this year, and we are edging ever closer to a group of cars that is now tantalisingly close.”
