Dave Robson says the Canadian Grand Prix is making a welcome return to the FIA Formula 1 World Championship schedule this weekend, and he hopes for a competitive weekend for his Williams Racing team at the Circuit Gilles Villeneuve.
After two years off the schedule, Canada is back on the calendar, and Robson, the Head of Vehicle Performance at Williams, says there is excitement within the team about its return.
“The Canadian Grand Prix makes a very welcome return to the calendar having been missing for the last two years due to the pandemic,” said Robson.
“Both the city of Montreal and the Circuit Gilles-Villeneuve itself are traditional highlights on the Formula 1 calendar and as a team we are looking forward to getting back there.”
Robson says the team will be using the free practice sessions on Friday to fine tune the car to the track, and he hopes that both Alexander Albon and Nicholas Latifi can be fighting in the midfield and for points come Sunday afternoon in Montréal.
“The layout of the circuit lends itself to good racing and overtaking and makes multiple stint strategies attractive,” he said. “Pirelli bring their softest compounds, which are the same as we used in Monaco and Baku.
“However, the combination of the circuit layout and tarmac roughness make this circuit unique in terms of tyre behaviour. Having not seen the circuit for a couple of years, we will need to see how the tarmac has evolved since we were last there.
“Aerodynamic efficiency, PU power and strong braking performance are all key to lap time in Montreal and must be traded against bump and kerb riding, especially with the current generation of F1 cars. As always, we will be using the sessions on Friday to look at these trades as well as understanding the tyre behaviour.”
Robson says the team are looking forward to seeing the support Latifi will have this weekend as he finally gets to chance to race in his homeland after the previous two races in 2020 and 2021 were cancelled due to COVID-19 restrictions in the country.
“For Nicholas, the recent Covid-19 interruptions to the F1 calendar mean that this event marks his first full home F1 weekend,” he said. “The whole team are looking forward to the local support that Nicholas will get.”