31/08/2024
NEWS STORY
Max Verstappen: "It was a bit of a mixed Qualifying session, Q1 and Q2 actually felt pretty good and we set some more competitive lap times during those sessions.
In Q3, we struggled with balance and I picked up a lot of understeer compared to the runs before so couldn't attack the corners properly. This hasn't happened before so I don't understand at the moment, we will need to dig in to that and really analyse ahead of tomorrow. Our biggest challenge was finding a stable balance from rear to front, we've been working hard and chasing this all weekend. Tomorrow is going to be tricky for everyone, we of course hope it will be more positive than today and we can make some moves, but it is a bit of an unknown at the moment."
Sergio Perez: "I think this track exploits more of our issues, I think we have a disconnection with the balance and at this downforce level it is even harder. I had a great run on my scrub tyre in Q3 but then I put the new tyre on and everything gets really peaky and difficult - we need to understand why that is. I lost my final lap in Q3 and went off a little, I knew Max was behind me so I tried to give him a bit of a tow but it didn't make much impact. It is a really poor performance, something I am really disappointed with, as the whole Team is. Everything is a little too sensible with the car at the moment and that is the main issue we are currently facing. Generally speaking, we are struggling a little too much with the balance and how on the edge things are, the car is tricky to play around with. But tomorrow is what matters and we have to keep the motivation high across the whole Team because we need to have a strong race. I believe that is where our strength will lie, the long run pace looks positive so let's look to minimise the damage with both cars and score some good points."
Christian Horner: "Today was very strange in terms of performance, we did a 19.6 lap in Q2 and went second on a scrub tyre and then couldn't beat a 20.0 on two sets of new tyres in Q3. So, there is something going on which is affecting that and it's something we need to understand quickly and get on top of. Checo made a mistake on his second quick lap in Q3, so he gave his teammate a tow at the end of the lap to try to help him, but it wasn't the difference. There is an imbalance in the car, that when you sort one problem you get another, you sort the front and you cause a problem with the rear, you sort the rear and get a problem with the front, it is not connected. Of course, as a Team we are concerned by our form but more than that it is confusing. We will work hard overnight to try and understand it, but it gives us a tough race tomorrow."