- Williams
Massa refusing to dwell on Bahrain struggles
Felipe Massa is refusing to let one bad day dampen his spirits after Williams struggled to get the car out on track in Bahrain.
Massa ran well in his Williams debut at Jerez but only managed to complete five laps in Sakhir, as the team struggled to remedy a fuel system problem. Other Mercedes-powered cars had contrasting fortunes to Williams, which Massa is using as proof the team can get back on course once they put their early gremlins behind them.
"It was a difficult day," Massa said. "It's difficult for us to say exactly what the problem is but there is one. We had a very good start in Jerez. I expected to be running all day long here but unfortunately we couldn't do it. It's important to keep calm and find the problem and get back on track and get where we want to be.
"The mileage is very important for this time, we have so many things we need to understand and learn that it's crucial we get back on track. Hopefully we can drive over the next few days, hopefully it won't be a big problem to fix. There were no problems in Jerez, where we drove many laps, so specific parts of the car were not causing an issue. I don't think it will be a very difficult thing to understand."
Massa believes at this stage of the season the teams are all a lot closer than the timing sheets would suggest, and that there is plenty of work for everyone to still do before the season opener.
"At the moment it is similar for everyone I think. We have some little changes, but really little. We should have some new parts next week, maybe at the end of the week it will be more or less where it will be in Australia. Most of the teams are not 100% ready yet.
"Mercedes have the best mileage but there may be other surprises for them. I think the team with the most all-round understanding will be the best in Australia, not necessarily the quickest."
© ESPN Sports Media Ltd.
