MAY 24, 2010

Kubica on Turkey: Turn 8 will be interesting on full fuel...

Renault's Robert Kubica, one of the stars of the 2010 F1 season so far, says that Istanbul Park's challenging flat-out Turn 8 right-hander will be 'interesting' on the first lap of the race with a full load of fuel.

Renault's Robert Kubica, one of the stars of the 2010 F1 season so far, says that Istanbul Park's challenging flat-out Turn 8 right-hander will be 'interesting' on the first lap of the race with a full load of fuel.

Kubica says of Istanbul Park, "It's certainly one of the best modern circuits with some nice corners, especially in the first sector of the lap. The final sector is a bit Mickey-mouse, with some slow corners and is the complete opposite to the first sector, which means that set-up is a compromise. But there's also Turn 8, which is challenging and will be very interesting at the start of the race with a full tank of fuel!"

Kubica is expecting Renault to go well in Turkey but cautions against expecting a repeat of his podium performance in Monte Carlo.

"That was our strongest performance so far this season, but it's important that it doesn't make us over-optimistic because it will be difficult to repeat that pace this coming weekend. However, I still think we can be competitive in Turkey because the circuit characteristics are similar to Barcelona, where we had good performance from the car.

"I'm also hoping that the new updates we have for this race will help us close the gap and qualify a little bit higher up than we did in Barcelona (where he started seventh). I'm still a bit surprised to have scored so many points, which shows what a good job we are doing as a team. We've taken the opportunities that have come our way -- especially in unusual races like Australia or the wet qualifying in Malaysia. We've also taken our opportunities when the car has been strong, as we did in Monaco. So we can be pleased with what we have achieved and proud of all the hard work at the factory to bring new parts for the car every weekend. But we know we need to continue pushing hard and improving the car."