Sauber Spanish GP - Catalunya qualifying report

Spanish GP – Qualifying – Saturday
Weather: sunny and dry, 26-28°C air, 30-42°C track

For the second time this year both the Sauber F1 Team drivers have made it into the final qualifying session. While Sergio Pérez was able to secure his best qualifying result in Formula One so far with sixth in Q3, his team mate Kamui Kobayashi only could witness what was going on from the sidelines. The Japanese finished ninth in Q2, but then was forced to stop on track because of an hydraulic leak.

Sergio Perez, Sauber

Photo by: xpb.cc

Sergio Pérez:
Sauber C31-Ferrari (Chassis 04/Ferrari 056)
Qualifying: 6th (1:22.533 min in Q3 / new soft tyres)
3rd Practice: 5th (1.23.742 min / new soft tyres / 22 laps)

“After the free practice sessions hadn’t been so easy for me, in qualifying the car really felt good. I think the result is what we were hoping for and perhaps a little bit better than expected. The competition is so close that a tenth of a second can really make a big difference, and you always think you could go a bit faster. In this regard it is almost frustrating having finished sixth, because a slightly better position was within reach. However, I think we can have a strong race performance. A lot will be down to tyre degradation tomorrow, which is quite high here. I want to do a perfect race and get the maximum possible points, or even come home with a nice surprise.”

Kamui Kobayashi:
Sauber C31-Ferrari (Chassis 03/Ferrari 056)
Qualifying: 10th (no time in Q3, hydraulic leak)
3rd Practice: 3rd (1.23.350 min / new soft tyres / 19 laps)

“We really had a good performance in qualifying, and I could feel I had not extracted the maximum potential out of the car yet. In Q1 I had a bit of traffic and also on my fastest lap in Q2 there was still room for improvement from me. I believe I could have been fighting for a top five position, and this was what I was looking forward to. But then, after the chequered flag at the end of Q2, I was told on the radio that I had to stop the car because of an hydraulic problem. Nevertheless the team did a great job here to get both of us in Q3, and I am very positive for tomorrow’s race.“

Monisha Kaltenborn, CEO: “We are very happy with this result. After the Mugello test, which was quite encouraging, we hoped we would be able to get both cars into Q3, and it’s good to see that this worked out. P6 is a great result for Sergio. We are sorry for Kamui who had to stop after Q2 due to an hydraulic leak, but I’m very optimistic for the race.”

Giampaolo Dall’Ara, Head of Track Engineering: “We are quite pleased with the outcome of qualifying. From an engineering point of view it was very positive that the good results from the Mugello test were confirmed on this track. Both drivers did a very good job, driving fast and consistent. It’s a shame we had an hydraulic leak on Kamui’s car. We decided that he should stop the car immediately in order not to do more damage. Now the important part comes tomorrow, and I’m confident we can achieve a very good result in the race.”