No Breakthrough for Stake F1 at Baku GP

Stake F1 endures another fruitless race, with Zhou and Bottas unable to score in Baku.

The Stake F1 team struggled from start to finish during a thrilling Azerbaijan Grand Prix, with Guanyu Zhou bringing the C44 home in 14th place, ahead of his teammate, Valtteri Bottas, in 16th.

The track in Baku was the scene of numerous battles, with both drivers engaged in tight contests with their direct rivals as the team continues to work hard to improve their track position. Yet, points remain elusive…

“I think the race went well from my side,” said the Chinese driver.

“The team executed our strategy well, but our pace was not strong enough to bring us closer to the points. However, it is encouraging to see some progress this weekend, particularly in terms of driving. We were able to compete with a few other teams, which is a positive sign. There is still a long way to go and, although we know we are not quite where we want to be, we will continue to fight and work together as a team to close the gap.”

As for the Finn, he noted “a difficult day for us.”

“We tried to split the strategies between the cars, to try to maximize returns, but it didn’t really work out in the end. The main issue was the rapid degradation of the medium tires at the start, forcing us into an early pit stop.”

“The car performed better with the hard tire, but even that began to struggle towards the end. Despite a bit of luck, with some rivals retiring, we were unable to put together a balanced stint and missed out on the points. Now, we must try again in Singapore.”

Alessandro Alunni Bravi, the team representative at Grand Prix events, once again draws the same conclusion for Stake F1, which remains stagnant with zero points in the 2024 standings.

“We finished this race in a position similar to previous ones and we have not managed to change our trend, despite the hard work of all team members,” he remarked.

“Valtteri struggled during his first stint on medium tyres with Tsunoda and the lack of pace caused us to lose ground from our starting position. Right from the start, he suffered from graining which prevented him from maintaining a reasonable pace, so we brought him in on the 12th lap, trying to improve his balance with new tyres and a different compound. However, it wasn’t enough.”

“On a positive note, Guanyu delivered a solid race, managing his tyres well during the first part of the afternoon. We then decided to extend his first stint, pitting him on the 35th lap, and he had a strong final part of the race on medium tyres, overtaking Ocon in the closing moments and finishing in 14th place. He showed considerable improvement throughout the weekend and was more competitive today with our direct rivals.”

“We know this is not enough to score points: therefore, there is nothing else to do but continue to work on optimizing the setup window for the next race in Singapore and, of course, work hard to bring updates that can help us find more pace.”