SINGAPORE — Audi have identified extreme heat as their biggest power unit limitation heading into the Singapore Grand Prix, with Nico Hulkenberg and Gabriel Bortoleto warning the Marina Bay Street Circuit will not mask the issue despite being less power-sensitive on paper. The FIA has issued a heat hazard declaration for the weekend, forecasting temperatures of 31 degrees Celsius or higher, mirroring the conditions that exposed struggles in Malaysia for the team led by Allan McNish.
Hulkenberg said the team must be cautious, explaining: “I think Malaysia brought some new things to light and these climatic conditions are not so favourable for our PU at the moment. We definitely had some struggles on that side and obviously here it's more of the same.” He added: “It is a less power-sensitive circuit on paper, for sure, but my personal expectations are not too high for the moment,” and clarified the deficit is outright engine power in extreme heat, not a consequence of opening bodywork for cooling and losing aerodynamic performance. Bortoleto echoed the assessment, saying: “Yes, I would say that right now, especially in the last races, it’s our biggest limitation.”
Bortoleto said what Audi already have for their first season is decent but needs further steps on drivability and climatisation, and he backed the Neuburg factory to deliver. “If I trust them? Absolutely. I think they can fix it. These people in Neuburg have built the best engines in other series that they have taken part in in the past, and I have no doubts they're going to do the same in Formula 1,” he said. “We just need to give them time. We cannot believe that we would arrive in Formula 1 in the first year and build the best thing ever made... So we need to have patience. I believe in the people that are there in Neuburg, and I believe they're going to make something great.”
On the chassis side, Audi have now concluded their major upgrade package introduced in Baku is working as expected. The Baku City Circuit, dominated by 90-degree corners, had not provided a representative picture and left doubts after a tough weekend, but back-to-back running in Malaysia confirmed the step forward. “Entry, mid, exit of all the corners, I think we made a good step everywhere,” Bortoleto said. Hulkenberg added: “Yes, we are for sure closer [to understanding it]. The understanding obviously grows and builds with every session you do. You do different setup variations, you scan the delta to map, and in general you build your correlation between the track, the wind tunnel and CFD, so it's good,” while cautioning: “I think there's probably still some bits and bobs to explore and to discover, but it's not like we're going to get another second out of it or something.”