Pastor Maldonado remains confident that he can score his first points for the 2015 Formula 1 season at next weekend’s Canadian Grand Prix despite currently sitting at the bottom of the drivers’ championship standings.
With five retirements and one 15th-place finish from the first six races of the season, Maldonado lies behind both Manor drivers and Fernando Alonso, all of whom also have zero points to their name.
That said, of the four drivers currently without points, Maldonado has perhaps looked the most capable of doing so, often running inside the top ten before a problem on his car has forced him to retire.
This was true of the last race in Monaco, when the Venezuelan was forced to retire early on due to a brake-by-wire system failure on his car. He had started the race from eighth place on the grid and looked poised to pick up some points.
“Of course it was frustrating, but that’s the way that racing goes sometimes,” Maldonado said, reflecting on last weekend’s race. “There were lots of positives; we qualified well and the car felt good on the track.
“Unfortunately there was an issue with a part and the only alternative was to retire the car. That’s racing sometimes.”
Lotus has made a far better start to the 2015 season thanks to the all-new E23 Hybrid car, which is powered by a Mercedes engine. Maldonado is sure that no matter what the circuit is, the car is capable of taking him into the top ten, filling him with hope ahead of the race in Montreal next weekend.
“I’ve approaching every race wanting to finish in the points,” he said. “The circuit in Canada has its own challenges but there’s nothing to say we shouldn’t be fast there. This year’s car has felt good so I’ll be pushing for points in the race.
“At most of the races this year we’ve looked strong all through the weekend and it’s been the final piece of crossing the finish line in the points which has been out of reach. That’s what we want this weekend.”
