Petrov has no dread of Monaco circuit

Get short URL

Published time: May 24, 2012 12:48
Edited time: May 24, 2012 17:34

Russia’s only representative in Formula 1 Vitaly Petrov says he’s not afraid of driving in Monaco again after last year’s crash, which saw him in hospital.

­“It wasn’t that bad last year, just another racing incident,” Petrov told Sovetsky Sport newspaper. “Besides, not every episode like that ends with the driver hitting the barrier so hard he loses consciousness.”

“I got off easily and felt fine a day after. This is racing and you can’t go to the start, if you're afraid of having an accident. I have no hard feelings about the Monaco circuit. This weekend I will sit behind the wheel and won’t remember what happened last year,” he added.

At the 2011 Monaco Grand Prix, Petrov’s car crashed into the safety barrier after contact with the Torro Rosso of Sebastien Buemi, following a smash-up initiated by Adrian Sutil from Force India.

The Russian was knocked unconscious during the collision and was taken straight to hospital from the track. 

But the driver managed to avoid serious injuries and returned to the cockpit for the next race.

“Monaco is the most difficult race in the championship as the drivers have no room for error,” the 27-year-old stressed. “Plus, if you occasionally find yourself in front, you have a better chance to hold off fast rivals as there’s very little place for overtaking.”

Petrov hasn’t grabbed a single point for Caterham yet and says fans should only expect the team’s cars to be competitive by the end of the season.

“A new man has arrived at Caterham – John Iley, former McLaren aerodynamicist, who will fine-tune the chassis,” he said. “But don’t expect any immediate results. Maybe by the end of the year we will be able to give battle to teams, who are ahead now.”

“But at the moment, it’s still unrealistic to fight for points. Only if our rivals make very many mistakes,” he added.

The Monaco Grand Prix, which is the sixth stage of the Formula 1 championships, is scheduled to take place on May 27.