Fahrerstimmen – Tag 2

Die Pole fühlt sich richtig gut an. Das gesamte Team hat heute großartige Arbeit abgeliefert. Wir konnten bereits zu Beginn des Qualifyings erkennen, dass Ferrari - wie schon das gesamte Wochenende über - sehr schnell war. Aber bis zum Q3 konnten wir das Maximum aus unserem Auto und den Reifen herausholen. Je mehr sich die Strecke verbesserte und abkühlte, desto besser wurde unser Auto. Es kam also alles zusammen, als es zählte. Es ist schön, von ganz vorne zu starten, aber noch ist es nicht vorbei - erst morgen kommt es darauf an. Wir haben in der Vergangenheit gesehen, dass auf dieser Strecke alles passieren kann. Deshalb ist es besonders wichtig, sich aus Schwierigkeiten herauszuhalten. Auch die Rennpace wird entscheidend sein, da das Überholen auf diesem Kurs relativ einfach ist. Ich rechne morgen mit einem packenden Rennen. Die Top-Teams scheinen auf Long Runs alle sehr eng zusammenzuliegen - es sollte also spannend werden. Nach den Ereignissen aus dem Vorjahr habe ich noch eine offene Rechnung mit Baku. Entsprechend werde ich morgen mein Bestes geben.

Wir hatten im Vorfeld nicht damit gerechnet, dass wir hier schnell genug sein würden, um mit beiden Autos in die erste Reihe zu fahren. Vor allem Charles war das gesamte Wochenende über sehr stark. Wir haben uns verbessert und dachten, dass wir bis auf ein oder zwei Zehntel herankommen könnten, es letztlich aber nicht ganz reichen würde. Umso stolzer bin ich auf das gesamte Team, dass wir es trotzdem geschafft haben. Dieses Qualifying und diese Strecke zählen zu den härtesten und schwierigsten der Saison, aber mir gefällt diese Herausforderung. Ich hatte hier in der Vergangenheit auch mal Schwierigkeiten, entsprechend dankbar bin ich, dass ich nun aus der ersten Reihe ins Rennen gehen werde - und ich war sehr nah an der Pole dran. Meine erste Runde im Q3 war schon ziemlich gut, aber auf meiner zweiten Runde habe ich in den ersten beiden Kurven leider drei Zehntel verloren. Ich konnte zwar einiges davon wieder aufholen, aber das reichte leider nicht mehr für die Pole. Ich bin also einerseits froh und andererseits enttäuscht, weil ich heute auf der Pole hätte stehen können. Jetzt werde ich versuchen, es morgen zu schaffen. Der Start wird dafür entscheidend sein. Unsere Long Run Pace hat bislang gut ausgesehen, aber hier gibt es normalerweise viele Safety-Car-Phasen - es kann also viel passieren.

“It was a tough call in the end. When the track temperature dropped the car balance changed and getting the tyres to work for that one lap, especially after such a long straight before starting the lap, was not easy. With the clock ticking down, everybody was banking on the last run and getting a tow so at some point I had to make the call; do I prioritise my tyres or the tow? Which would have meant compromising the outlap and I didn’t have the feeling that I could afford that and I wanted to have a clean shot. My first Q3 run was ok, but on the second run I didn’t have anybody to tow me along, so I dealt with it just focusing on my lap and obviously I lost quite a lot, about four tenths, compared to the previous lap. But that’s what happens at this track. It was a tricky session. I saw Charles in the barrier and realised qualifying was over for him. It was a shame to lose one of our cars. In the end, we are one team and everybody is working extremely hard no matter which side of the garage you are on. Anyway, we need to turn the page as tomorrow is a new day and it’s a long race where anything can happen. As a team we can recover and put our rivals under pressure. Overall I feel we have a strong car so we can go and race hard and should have some fun.”

“We were positively surprised that we were so competitive in qualifying and the second row of the grid is not bad. Everything was going quite smoothly, but in Q3 we were running a different strategy as I only had one set of tyres so I was on my own. Around this track it is very painful to be on your own and you of course lose lap time to others who have a tow. Even compared to my own lap in Q2 I was losing around two and a half tenths on the main straight. You can also gain a tenth or two on the other straights having a car six or seven seconds ahead as you get sucked in and these cars have so much drag. I pushed everything I could out of my final lap and it was pretty good. I think we could have fought for pole if we were in that train of cars, but at least we know the car is working well. It’s always a crazy one here and for sure the race won’t be won at Turn 1. It’s all pretty close and from fourth we can still fight for the race.”

“It was a great qualifying, the team did a tremendous job in terms of the strategy. We reacted really well and got all the decisions right - when to go out and when not to go out. It was a long session, the track cooled down a lot but I think we did a good job and we were able to get more out of the car. This is a very unique track, it pushes the driver to the maximum. You need to be on the limit every lap without making any mistakes and that takes a lot of commitment and confidence. It will be a long race, we have some very fast cars around us but anything can happen here in Baku. A single mistake can cost you a lot. It is important to stay cool and I think if we are able to finish the race we should be able to score good points.”

“It was a good Qualifying, I had a great lap in Q3 – it gives you great satisfaction to put in a good lap, especially at a track like this as it’s a circuit for brave drivers. Conditions were not ideal for anyone because we missed out on track time yesterday, but I generally don’t need a lot of laps to find good pace. I brushed the wall on one of my laps, but you need to have big balls around this track to get the best time. Tomorrow’s a long race and we’ll try and put everything together – I think we have a chance for a strong result. The race can be very unpredictable, so I’ll keep a cool head and do the best job I can.”

“It was obviously a decent quali – in the end – in terms of the result. I managed to stay out of danger, didn’t make any silly mistakes and capitalised a bit on others who did. It was having that clean qualifying that made it pretty good for us. “It could maybe have gone a little better if I’d nailed the lap but I’m still happy with seventh. I think we maximised today overall and I’m pretty pleased with how it’s gone. It’s going to be a long one tomorrow though. The starting position doesn’t decide the whole race here like it does at some other tracks.”

“I am disappointed with myself. Our pace was good all weekend and we expected to have a positive qualifying result. My first lap in Q2 was very good considering we were on Mediums, but then I made a driving error on the second lap. I just didn’t do the job. The team and all the people supporting us out there deserved much more. Tomorrow is a new day. I will stay positive and push to do the best job possible in the race.”

“A frustrating situation one more time in quali. I don’t have much to say. The session was going well, I was lapping in the 1m41.9s – 1m42.0s in Q1, which would have got us easily from Q2 into Q3. The Haas made a mistake in front of me and that meant yellow flags in Turn Two ruined my last attempt. It’s not the best way to finish qualifying today. “Right now I’m far from happy, but tomorrow I’ll be more positive and 100 per cent focused on the race. I have a free choice of tyre, and I start from P10 instead of P11 – but the fact is I’m not happy at all.”

“Considering how the weekend has gone so far, we probably lowered our expectation for today. Twelfth isn’t ideal. This weekend we’ve been a little bit off the pace and small things make a big difference. We’ve made changes from yesterday and certainly made progress. You never know what will happen here. I’m right in the midfield for the start and it can be crazy at this place. We have to keep it clean, keep chipping away and aim to come through the field.”

“It was a bit of a frustrating end to Qualifying. We had the pace for Q3 the whole weekend, just not when it mattered. I was struggling with the tyre temperatures and trying to get them in the right range, especially after the big temperature drop near the end of the session. Maybe I didn’t get the warm up lap right, because I struggled for confidence when the track was cold and the car started to slide around a bit. Tomorrow’s a new day and anything can happen here, we’ve seen how chaotic it can be so it’s all to play for.”

“Obviously it wasn’t the best qualifying for us – just not really fast enough today. It wasn’t a perfect Q2 either. I was overtaken just before the last corner to start the lap, so I was right behind the Renault and in its dirty air, I locked up unfortunately. I didn’t get a last go at setting a time. I needed a lot of lap time from that lap, but I don’t think it was really there. It’s slightly disappointing, but hopefully, well – the first two races we’ve been good in qualifying, then not so good in the races, hopefully it’s the other way around this weekend.”

“It was a challenging day and it’s a shame to go out in Q1. I did what I could with the limited running we could do yesterday. FP3 was a good session and I kept building my confidence up, but in the end we didn’t have enough laps. I had to abort my first lap due to the yellow flags, so I only had one attempt. In the end, the lap just wasn’t good enough so all we can do is look ahead to tomorrow. The potential of the car is good, as Sergio has shown, and the race can be very unpredictable here. If we come up with a good strategy and make the most of any opportunity we can still come up with a good result, so let’s see what happens.”

“It’s been complicated since the beginning of the weekend to be fair. The feeling in the car is not quite there. It got better in qualifying, we did a good job, so I was quite shocked to see the lap time, and what was missing, first to get into Q2, and then against my teammate. We need to analyze everything, as this hasn’t been our best weekend so far. We haven’t generated the grip, so there’s still more work to be done there. The qualifying feeling was okay, so I’m just surprised to be that far off.”

“I’ve been missing the harmony between myself and the car all weekend. We couldn’t find that sweet spot with the car or the tyres. Things didn’t quite go our way in qualifying with a yellow flag hampering my first fast lap and then I locked up and went in too deep on my second. The race, however, is not written off. We know it will be difficult but we know what’s happened here in the past. You have to be in it, and we’ll race hard tomorrow.”

I went into qualifying quite blind after missing all the running yesterday. Baku is a circuit that requires a lot confidence for you to maintain your momentum. From a personal perspective, I felt comfortable during qualifying and got the most out of the package. It’s been a tough weekend and will be a long race tomorrow, but we must stay positive and keep making the most of the situation.

“To be in Q3 for the first time makes me really happy. My pace was already very strong in yesterday's FP2. We got the maximum out of our car today, and even if I've been given a 10-place penalty I hope to score some points here. It's been a chaotic race for the last two years and we can’t predict how it will be tomorrow, so we will do our best to have a good race and fight our way forward.”

At this track you pay a high price for a relatively small mistake. I knew it before I came here and unfortunately that’s just how it is. It was not a huge impact, but the doctors had to do the usual precautions and I am ok. I turned in too soon and clipped the wall at turn eight, which launched me to the outside of the next corner which is the narrowest point on the Formula One calendar. The temperature is not helping us, but this was a driver mistake and we will evaluate the car for damage.

“Quite disappointing as I couldn’t put a decent lap together in the last part of qualifying. For the last try I was to close to the Mercedes so my lap was more or less over before it had even started. My expectations for the race? I don’t have any, as anything can happen here.”

“It was nice to end Q1 in P1 but knowing we’re starting from the pit lane tomorrow, the most important thing was just to get a feel of the car on low fuel. It felt really good and it’s probably the first time this year I’ve felt that good in the car, so I’m really happy. I felt confident and I’m always working and trying to adapt myself, and it’s working step by step. I think we’re going in the right direction and overall it was a positive qualifying session. We didn’t expect that kind of pace because we didn’t turn the power unit up, we went into race mode to save some engine mileage and in the end the performance was good. I think we have a good car here and I was hoping Max would get a good result in Q3. This race track is just insane with all the things that can happen so I will race flat out until the last lap. We have a car good enough to recover and score good points tomorrow, so I will push for it.”