09/06/2018
NEWS STORY
Renault Sport Formula One Team bounced back from a difficult weekend so far at the Circuit Gilles Villeneuve to qualify both cars in the top ten ahead of tomorrow's Formula 1 Heineken Grand Prix du Canada.
Nico Hulkenberg set the seventh fastest time of the 4.4km track. Carlos was two tenths adrift of Nico with the ninth-fastest time after his car's turbo was replaced between FP3 and qualifying as a precautionary measure as a result of debris in the intake.
Nico Hulkenberg: "I'm satisfied with that today. I felt a little on the back foot heading into qualifying due to the lack of running yesterday, but I've been confident in the car all weekend. I think we did the best we could in terms of position. There was probably more in me and a couple more tenths out there to extract in Q3. We have the top speed and a generally good package with the high fuel runs yesterday, so we'll be there to fight and pick up positions tomorrow."
Carlos Sainz: "I'm quite happy with how things have gone today. This Q3 is definitely thanks to all our mechanics for sorting the car out and completing an amazing change on my turbo to help me get out in qualifying. It was a great job by the whole team. For tomorrow we have good pace but it'll be a tough race, especially starting on the Hypersoft tyre, but we'll be pushing flat out to have both cars in the top ten."
How was qualifying for the team?
Alan Permane, Sporting Director: Qualifying was good for us. We were able to go through Q1 on one set of tyres and that gave us two sets for each of the other sessions. Both drivers felt they could have got more out of the car. Nico felt there was another couple of tenths out there and he didn't quite get the perfect lap, but still, seventh is very good. Carlos was just pipped in the end for eighth.
What are the considerations for tomorrow's race?
AP: It's going to be a challenging race tomorrow but both cars are well-placed to score points. We know this circuit well and the weather looks like it should be similar to that we've seen today. We're hoping for a clean and straightforward race.