Audi’s closed shakedown in Barcelona has been anything but smooth. On Wednesday morning Nico Hülkenberg triggered the first red flag of the day after his R26 stopped out on circuit. The car had to be craned off and returned to the garage. The exact cause of the problem is not yet clear. After a technical issue for Gabriel Bortoleto on Monday, this is already Audi’s second failure to complete a session.
This is the second time this week that Audi has come to an early stop. On the opening day Gabriel Bortoleto’s car was already hit by technical problems. The Brazilian couldn’t complete his planned programme and ended up stuck on 27 laps. Bortoleto described his first shakedown in Barcelona as “instructive”, but admitted the day was uneven. “It was, I would say, a pretty short day,” he reflected to the media. “We did quite well in the morning; we ran a few laps and tested some things. We were on the right track.”
Audi’s first F1 engine
That positive start was, however, short-lived. “But it is a shakedown, so we expected to find a few issues with the car here and there,” Bortoleto explained. “Unfortunately that cost us the rest of the day and I didn’t get to drive much. We’re now working through everything in the hope we don’t encounter these problems during the next test or in the first race of the year.” When asked whether he could still pull any lessons from the limited mileage, he was clear. “I think I learned a lot from the laps I did,” he concluded. “I got to know the engine and the car better and was able to give the team feedback on where we need to improve, because there are still many things that can be better.”
Team-mate Nico Hülkenberg experienced the same, coming to a halt on track on Wednesday. Audi’s new R26 still appears to be plagued by technical issues. Team boss Jonathan Wheatley already shed more light on the situation on Monday. “We had a technical fault with the car,” he explained. “When we discovered it, we decided to park the car at the side of the circuit as a precaution. We’ve already done a lot of testing and we really want to understand the problems.”
Audi makes its Formula 1 debut this year after the takeover of Sauber. The Germans also developed their own engine for the R26, which could explain the teething problems. “We are a new team and are building our own engine for the first time,” Bortoleto stressed. “So there are still many areas where we need to make progress, but that’s precisely what makes it so interesting. It’s great to be part of this new journey.”
