Feb.26 (GMM) Lucas di Grassi's crash on Thursday raised fears that Virgin had experienced another wing failure.
After the new British team suffered a front wing failure recently at Jerez, it was feared Brazilian rookie di Grassi's crash at Barcelona was caused by a broken rear wing.The Speedweek publication said technical director Nick Wirth studied video footage of the incident to ensure that a wing had not fallen off prior to the incident at turn 9.But investigations showed that the VR-01, already delayed recently with a chronic hydraulic problem, had crashed because of "experimental control settings".It meant di Grassi did not return to the track on Thursday, but the 25-year-old insists he is not frustrated by Virgin's teething problems."It's not what I want, but it's what I expected," he is quoted as saying by Germany's Auto Motor und Sport."Frustration now would be out of place. On the contrary, I have to motivate the guys in the team."If I was with an established team, I would have set myself a goal," di Grassi explained. "In my situation I have to grow with the team; to develop myself and the car at the same time."Virgin hopes the VR-01, faster only than the Lotus on Thursday, is repaired so that Timo Glock can begin testing as scheduled on Friday morning.
