A disappointing qualifying result for Sauber in Spain

Qualifying for the Spanish Grand Prix did not produce the results the Sauber F1 Team had hoped for. Felipe Nasr made it into Q2, but was not able to finish further up than 15th after having issues with the rear tyres caused by overheating. His team-mate Marcus Ericsson will start the race from P16.

Marcus Ericsson (Qualifying: 16th in Q1 - 1:28.112 min): “Overall it is a bit disappointing. We are starting further down the grid than we had hoped for. The first run in Q1 was ok. We were able to find some improvements when we went out on the second set of tyres, but it was not enough to make it into Q2. We need to analyse and understand the reasons for it. Tomorrow we have to make the best out of our positions.”

Felipe Nasr (Qualifying: 15th in Q2  - 1:28.005 min): “After FP3 I felt good with the changes we made for qualifying. On my last run in Q2 I was a bit too aggressive with the result that I had a lot of oversteer. The rear tyres were overheating when driving the car on the limit. It is not going to be an easy race for us, but we will do our best to fight for points.”

Monisha Kaltenborn, Team Principal: “A disappointing result. We knew it was going to be very tough. However, we did expect to be a few more positions further up the grid. Nevertheless we are not going to give up and will try to make the most of the race tomorrow.”

Giampaolo Dall’Ara, Head of Track Engineering: “We can obviously not be satisfied with this result, although we do not seem to have any specific issues on the car. The day itself went quite reasonably as we were able to collect more data about tyre management. The drivers felt quite comfortable with the balance of the car. We have to accept this result for the moment and make the best out of it for the race.”

Sauber F1 Team