In one of the least-rousing debut speeches ever, new HRT boss Luis Perez-Sala has suggested that the "huge" task of moving the team's base of operations to Spain for next season will impact on their 2012 performance.
Perez-Sala was confirmed as the new HRT team principal last week, replacing the departed Colin Kolles at the head of the struggling backmarkers.For 2012, the team is planning to move to a new base in Valencia, having worked out of Kolles's factory in Germany for the last two years.
And Perez-Sala has admitted that the job of moving the team will likely impact negatively on their 2012 performance, but believes that the long-term future of the squad will be improved by the move.
"The task ahead of us, with the design of the car and change of headquarters, is huge," he said in a HRT interview, "Formula 1 is very complicated and implies a lot of preparation work, so, in this respect, HRT is a little bit behind other teams."
He went on: "We will feel the effects of this transformation the team is going through and will have to pay for it at the start of the season.
"We're not going to be at the same level as when we finished this past season, where the same team had been running for two years, but we're aware of that.
"We're taking a step back so that we can take two forward. 2012 will be an important year for us to settle and face a more natural and stable situation in 2013."
He insisted that the company was full of the right people and staff, but said that the team would suffer by making the move while their 2012 car was being designed.
"The major weakness is that the team is still going through a process of change and we are in December and Formula 1 doesn't stop," he lamented.
"This is a competition where the deadlines are established and where you're being examined publicly, officially and permanently. That is the main inconvenience for us at this time of restructuring.
"But one thing is for sure and that is that we will work to the fullest and put in all our effort."
The HRT team have missed pre-season testing with their new cars during the last two seasons, turning up at the first race with an untested machine.
But the Spanish squad are believed to be aiming for some pre-season running with their new car.
They currently have only Pedro de la Rosa signed up for the new season, and Perez-Sala said that there was no hurry for the team to firm up the rest of their driver line-up.
"We are in advanced talks with several drivers but we can't anticipate anything yet," he muttered.
"It's a decision we surely won't make until the start of next year because, at this stage, who will be the team's second driver for next season is perhaps the least urgent one right now."
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