Wiliams back into 6th place in championship

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F1 Grand Prix, GP Brazil, Autódromo José Carlos Pace, Interlagosbr

Williams conclude the Brazilian Grand Prix weekend having manoeuvred into sixth place in the constructors’ championship courtesy of Nico’s four points from his eighth place finish. A difficult race for Rubens Barrichello ended in P14, who slipped down the order following a lengthy first pitstop and an unscheduled second after a collision on lap 34 caused a puncture.

Nico Hulkenberg:
"I am happy with that result because I gave it everything today; there wasn’t anything left in me to give! I was struggling quite a lot with the car, it really wasn’t easy to drive, but I kept Kubica behind me all the way. The team did a great pitstop and chose the right strategy; we just needed some more car pace. Even though we started on pole, my expectations for the race were to finish between fifth and tenth, so P8 is fine and it means we are now sixth in the constructors’ championship."

Rubens Barrichello:
"We had a faulty pitstop today which we need to investigate. I was happy with my pace though. Unfortunately, after one of my overtaking attempts on Alguersuari, he ran over me which destroyed my front tyre so I had to come in again. I just came in too many times to score points. I’m sorry for all the Brazilians who came here wanting a different result. All I can say is that I gave it my all until the very end."

Patrick Head, Director of Engineering:
"From our grid positions, the results obviously aren’t great, but Nico drove well despite struggling with vibrations, and he was driving to the pace of the car. We were unfortunate with the timing of the safety car because it pulled us too far back in the order and prevented us from possibly challenging Mercedes. Rubens’ drive was destroyed by a problem pitstop in which we had an issue with the nut on the right rear. He then had a bump with Alguersuari which caused a puncture and required another stop. That effectively put him out of contention for points. Many congratulations to Red Bull for winning the constructors’ championship."