Four podium finishes and 126 Formula One World Championship points made the 2012 season a highly successful one for the Sauber F1 Team. It’s a performance the Swiss team is now looking to build on and thus continue on its upward curve. Team Principal Monisha Kaltenborn gives her thoughts on the issues of the moment.
Monisha Kaltenborn during the Sauber C32 launchIn three days the Sauber C32-Ferrari will turn its first wheel out on the track. What are your feelings going into the roll-out?
Monisha Kaltenborn: I’m very excited. The roll-out of a new car is a very special moment every year. It’s something you’ve been working towards for almost a year and [only] then [do] you get your first impressions of how good a job you’ve done. Everyone in the team is excited about this moment, because everyone has played their part in it.
Monisha Kaltenborn: I’m very excited. The roll-out of a new car is a very special moment every year. It’s something you’ve been working towards for almost a year and [only] then [do] you get your first impressions of how good a job you’ve done. Everyone in the team is excited about this moment, because everyone has played their part in it.
What are your expectations?
MK: This is another of those questions one is asked every year, and it’s always a tricky one to answer. What I can say is that we’re well prepared, that we’ve got the new car finished in good time and that we’ve met the performance targets we set ourselves internally. That puts us in a confident frame of mind. But we’ll only really find out what it all amounts to at the first race of the season in Melbourne.
MK: This is another of those questions one is asked every year, and it’s always a tricky one to answer. What I can say is that we’re well prepared, that we’ve got the new car finished in good time and that we’ve met the performance targets we set ourselves internally. That puts us in a confident frame of mind. But we’ll only really find out what it all amounts to at the first race of the season in Melbourne.
This is the first time you’re approaching a new season in the role of Team Principal. Is that a special situation for you?
MK: Yes and no. On the one hand, not that much has changed for me since I took on the role, because I was already involved in a lot of things beforehand – like the Team Principal meetings, which I’ve been attending for some time already. On the other hand, it is still something special because now all the responsibility rests on my shoulders. And that creates a certain extra pressure, of course.
MK: Yes and no. On the one hand, not that much has changed for me since I took on the role, because I was already involved in a lot of things beforehand – like the Team Principal meetings, which I’ve been attending for some time already. On the other hand, it is still something special because now all the responsibility rests on my shoulders. And that creates a certain extra pressure, of course.
Esteban Gutierrez and Nico Hulkenberg during the Sauber C32 launchWhat are your aims for the forthcoming season?
MK: We put some good foundations in place last year. And now we want to build on that base and continue to improve as a team.
MK: We put some good foundations in place last year. And now we want to build on that base and continue to improve as a team.
What does that mean exactly? Are you targeting fifth place in the constructors’ world championship?
MK: We’re not saying we want to finish in this or that position in the standings, as ultimately other factors will also come into play that are outside our control. What we can be clear about, however, is that we want to continue on our upward curve.
MK: We’re not saying we want to finish in this or that position in the standings, as ultimately other factors will also come into play that are outside our control. What we can be clear about, however, is that we want to continue on our upward curve.
What do you expect from your drivers?
Subbed by AJN.
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