Badoer promises better showing at Spa
Under-fire Ferrari driver Luca Badoer has promised to emerge stronger from his European Grand Prix tribulations.
The Italian, promoted from his role as the Scuderia's test driver to replace the injured Felipe Massa, struggled throughout what has been a character-building weekend on the hot streets of Valencia.
Friday's practice days saw Badoer hit with fines totalling 5,400 euros and a reprimand for breaking the pit lane speed limit four times, while in qualifying on Saturday the 38-year-old finished dead last, 1.5 seconds off the pace of the next slowest car.
Race day did not get much better. Despite vaulting past six cars off the start thanks to Ferrari's KERS powerboost system, Badoer slipped back into the clutches of his rivals, and finished 17th and last of the drivers on track at the chequered flag.
A drive-through penalty for crossing the pit exit line after one of his stops added further insult to injury, as did the fact that his team-mate Kimi Raikkonen finished third.
"They have been very hard days, but this was the expectation for me," said Badoer, who has not driven an F1 car in anger for over half a year due to the in-season testing ban, and was contesting his first grand prix weekend since 1999.
Badoer promises better showing at Spa - Planet-F1 News - from planet-f1.com
