14/09/2024
NEWS STORY
Sergio Perez: "I have mixed emotions after qualifying, I think P2 was possible, but I lost a little bit in sector two and couldn't put my perfect lap together, I also think Ferrari were super strong today.
"We are on a very different strategy when it comes to downforce levels to most of the grid, we will see if that helps us tomorrow, definitely on the first stint I should be strong. From there it will be down to the amount of progress I am able to make and then, it will be head down and hopefully we are able to be strong in the race. As long as we are in the mix for the victory it should be a good weekend. I like this circuit, I have always done well here but I think it's more that we are in a much better window than we have been for most of the season. The Team is pushing in the right direction, we have a clear development direction and hopefully we can make another step for Singapore because we still need more."
Max Verstappen: "We made some final changes going into qualifying, so this might have tipped things over the edge unfortunately. As soon as I went out into Q1, I felt that the car became a bit more difficult to drive, which was a shame as you want to always have the perfect set up. On a street circuit you need to be comfortable and confident to be able to attack corners and it is harder to do this when the car is a bit more unpredictable. We tried to find solutions throughout qualifying and my lap in Q2 was good but my Q3 could definitely have been better. I hit the kerb and it was the worst time it could have happened, which was a shame. There was a balance disconnect and we are working and fine tuning that so we can optimise the car ahead of tomorrow. From last week, we have improved the car and it would have been nice to have been on the front row. We will see what happens tomorrow: it is not ideal starting from P6 and the Ferraris are always quick around here, but the cars looked quite close today."
Christian Horner: "I don't think we could have achieved Charles' time today but it was a scrappy Q3. The balance of the car in Q2 seemed to be pretty good and Max was happy with this. Unfortunately, it was just not there on those last few sets of tyres so we need to look at why this was. With Checo, he had a bit of a lock up just after the first sector, which cost him 0.2 seconds, so could have been a better lap in there for him as well. However, this is a track that you can overtake at so those grid positions aren't a disaster for us. I don't think we have ever had a pole position here: unfortunately today we haven't broken that record but it means we are still optimistic for tomorrow."
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