Aaron: Every kilometer behind the wheel counts

      During the Friday practice sessions for the British Grand Prix, the Sauber team worked with three drivers – first, Paul Aron took to the track, making his debut in an official Formula 1 session. In the second session, Estonian driver Nikko Hülkenberg replaced him.

      Gabriel Bortoleto completed both sessions and said that he spent most of the day working on the car’s balance.

      Gabriel Bortoleto (13th): "Overall, a positive day. We focused on working with the car’s balance, and I was satisfied with the direction we chose.

      At Silverstone, driving a Formula 1 car is enjoyable because this is a real racetrack. Indeed, conditions were quite challenging due to strong and unpredictable wind. In some sections, the wind was a tailwind, making it difficult to position the car correctly before the turn. In the evening, we will try to adjust the settings to perform better on Saturday."

      Nikko Hülkenberg (17th): "It’s been a pretty unusual Friday for me, as I was able to evaluate the practice both from the cockpit and from outside the car. Today, there was strong gusty wind – not the most pleasant feeling behind the wheel, but we all faced the same conditions.

      I was quite satisfied with the car once I got behind the wheel in the second session. Considering all the circumstances, we had a good session and laid a solid foundation for further progress. We need to maintain maximum concentration and keep working."

      Paul Aron (17th in the first session): "I’m glad I fully completed the planned program and contributed to the team’s work this weekend. In the end, I managed to run some laps on Soft tires, and that was great.

      I’m proud to have provided useful information to the team, and I feel the practice was beneficial for both sides. Every kilometer behind the wheel of a Formula 1 car counts, especially when a young driver is trying to find their place on the starting grid. Of course, there was pressure, but it made the session even more special.

      After seeing the difficult conditions on the track, I kept reminding myself of the main rule for the first practice: don’t crash the car. Before this, I had only one day of simulator work with the Sauber car, so I was focused on sticking to the plan and avoiding trouble."