‘Determined’ Badoer aiming to maximise performance at ‘special’ home race weekend in Monza

Brando Badoer believes making the right choices in Qualifying and the races are the keys to success around Monza – as the Italian previewed Round 8 and his home weekend.

The Rodin Motorsport driver has had a strong campaign up to this point and currently sits fifth in the Drivers’ Championship with 71 points.

Looking ahead to the Monza weekend, Badoer says he is feeling energised after a few weeks off for the summer break.

“I'm feeling good and determined as always,” said Badoer. “Obviously it's a special one being in Italy, but at the same time every race is important and we want to maximise every opportunity.

“It was definitely a good chance to recharge the batteries, I had some good fun with family and friends, trained hard and now we are ready to be back and ready to race. So I'm really happy to be in Monza and to be racing in Italy.”

So what are the keys to success around the Temple of Speed? Badoer says it all starts with qualifying and making sure he has a good grid position for both races.

“I think a lot of adaptability and strategy, especially for quali,” he explained. “A lot of importance always goes to quali and in this case it's a strategic one as you need a good tow for a good lap.

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“So we will try to be smart and make the right choices to get a good lap and have a good starting position for both races.

“But it's important to be competitive. Qualifying in the top 12 is essential and it's better if it's in the top five for Grand Prix Sunday. Obviously, pole doesn't mean you're going to win the race.

“It's a challenging track for racing, a lot of overtaking opportunities with three DRS zones in this year. It doesn't mean you're done if you don’t have an amazing quali, but we are looking forward to maximising every session. That's what we are going for.”

Badoer is still mathematically in with a chance of winning the Drivers’ title but concedes with Freddie Slater and Ugo Ugochukwu 50 points ahead of him, his focus is just on delivering the best results from now till the final whistle in Madrid.

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“I'm aware I'm still mathematically on the championship fight,” said Badoer. “But it's not something I really think about because I'm aware it's a big gap to close from Freddie and Ugo.

“It's possible, but I'd rather focus race by race and see where we end up on Sunday in Madrid. That's going to be a different story. For now it's important to maximise the weekend and not think about the championship. It's more their problem.”