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Esteban ends successfully his participation in Barcelona after climbing 13 places

May 22, 2011

Esteban ends successfully his participation in Barcelona after climbing 13 places

 

It was a fine performance from Mexican driver Esteban Gutierrez who started last on the grid and climbed back 13 places to eventually finish 12th in the fourth race of the GP2 Series that took place on the circuit of Catalunya in Barcelona, Spain.
 
After being penalized for a collision he could not avoid in yesterday´s race, Esteban had to start from the back of the grid, and for that reason what he did today leaves him and team Lotus ART with a nice feeling.
 
“It was a positive day because we found a good pace during the race. Since the beginning we were very conservative. There was a heavy crash at the start and it was important to avoid any contacts and flying pieces of the cars, which I found rather dangerous.
 
“The race was good, we gained several positions at the end. I overtook three cars in the last lap and that was great because being conservative with the tires payed off in the end”, explained Esteban.
 
Gutierrez finished the race in 46 minutes 29.104 seconds, with a best lap time of 1´35.694. Team Rapax’s Fabio Leimer was the winner, followed by Spanish driver Dani Clos and Marcus Ericsson, from Air Asia.
 
“We have to improve the best part of the weekends to get better results, because the speed is there. This is a difficult circuit for overtaking with its fast speed curves, and we were conservative, not damaging the tires to be faster in the last part of the race.
 
“Since there is no pit stop in this race the only thing you can do is take care of your tires and use whatever you saved for almost 85% of the race to try and gain positions, which is what we did and it is great to finish 12th if you think were we started”, he added.
 
As a conclusion to the weekend in Barcelona, Esteban said that the psychological factor was very important because, after having abandoned the Feature race, it was necessary to keep a good attitude for the remainder of the event.
 
“It was a difficult weekend. It’s not easy when you have moments like this; we have to stay motivated and with the same mindset we have had all the season. We won´t stop because we had a bad weekend because we know we have what it takes to do better.
 
“On the physical aspect it was very good because we did almost all the weekend and I felt great. Actually, the training sessions are more difficult because we do many laps and it´s very demanding physically, but in general terms it was good”, he remarked.
 
 
He is thinking Monaco already.
Esteban Gutierrez is not taking a rest, as he will be in Montecarlo next weekend for races five and six of the season in Monaco, and he is already working towards that appointment.
 
 
“You have to be very focused. I don’t know the circuit, it is a street course and that is very interesting for me. Monaco is one of the tracks I am eager to know and I think I am going to enjoy it very much.
 
“We still haven’t reviewed the strategy with the team. That is going to be on Tuesday or Wednesday, but basically we will go with something similar. We just have to work in advance and be well informed to get ready for the weekend”, were the closing words of the Mexican.

 

 

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