Overambition backfires for Toro Rosso

The Italian squad opted for an aggressive approach to the weekend, and although the team showed improved form, both their drivers were hit by mechanical problems in qualifying.

Scott Speed was unable to set a time after suffering a mechanical problem in his first qualifying run, while teammate Tonio Liuzzi made it to Q2, only to fail to complete a flying lap after a similar issue with his car.

Ascanelli said the team had been too ambitious, and he is hoping to find a solution to their problems ahead of tomorrow's race.

"We have tried to advance our performance as much as we could and part of that meant adopting an aggressive solution on the transmission front. We were a little bit too ambitious," said Ascanelli. "Friday was almost trouble-free, but with a steep learning curve.

"This morning, running a more aggressive gearbox strategy on both cars, we had problems with Tonio's car. This afternoon, both cars suffered the same fault. For tomorrow, we can find a solution to get around this issue."