McLaren – Page 3 – Syndication Server

McLaren right of review request over Norris U.S. GP penalty rejected

McLaren has officially failed to gain a review of the penalty handed out to Lando Norris in the United States Grand Prix. Norris was given a 5s time penalty for leaving the track and gaining an advantage when overtaking Max Verstappen late in the …

McLaren has officially failed to gain a review of the penalty handed out to Lando Norris in the United States Grand Prix.

Norris was given a 5s time penalty for leaving the track and gaining an advantage when overtaking Max Verstappen late in the race, with the penalty dropping him back behind his title rival in the final classification. McLaren lodged a petition for a right of review into the penalty on Thursday, with a hearing on Friday determining whether a significant and relevant new element existed that wasn’t available at the time of the decision.

McLaren claimed that its new element was the stewards’ document describing the penalty itself from Austin, that stated, “Car No. 4 was overtaking Car No. 1 on the outside but was not level with Car No. 1 at the apex,” McLaren argued this was an error because it had evidence that Norris had already overtaken and was ahead of Verstappen “at the braking zone,” and that therefore this error in the decision was the significant and relevant new element.

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Following the hearing on Friday afternoon — that took place with representatives from McLaren and Red Bull — the original stewards decided that the petition was not sustainable, because it claims the new element is the document itself.

“A petition for review is made in order to correct an error (of fact or law) in a decision,” the stewards’ decision read. “Any new element must demonstrate that error.

“In this case, the concept that the written Decision (document number 69) was the significant and relevant new element, or that an error in the decision was a new element, is not sustainable and is, therefore, rejected.”

The result of the race at Circuit of The Americas therefore stands, with Verstappen retaining a 57-point lead over Norris heading into this weekend’s Mexico City Grand Prix.

O’Ward has a taste for more F1 after ‘chaotic and crazy’ Mexico FP1

Pato O’Ward describes his FP1 outing at the Mexico City Grand Prix as “a dream come true” after completing a clean and competitive session on Friday. McLaren ran O’Ward as part of its rookie practice requirements, with the IndyCar star taking over …

Pato O’Ward describes his FP1 outing at the Mexico City Grand Prix as “a dream come true” after completing a clean and competitive session on Friday.

McLaren ran O’Ward as part of its rookie practice requirements, with the IndyCar star taking over Lando Norris’ car for the opening session of the race weekend. With the FP1 appearance being the first time O’Ward has driven at his home race, he says his final tally of 21 laps and a best time just over 0.3s off teammate Oscar Piastri was a strong return after a lengthy red flag.

“I thought it was a great FP1,” O’Ward said. “We got through a very intense running plan, especially with such a chaotic and crazy practice session.

“I would have loved to have some more chance perhaps on the hard [tire] to prepare for the soft, but with having what we did, I can feel pretty pleased with what I got out for myself and with all the information that I was able to gather for the team, because they’re obviously in a pretty important title fight and I’m obviously here … to help that they stay where they are.

“A dream come true, I saw the Mexican flags, I saw floating Pato faces in certain areas; it was really cool.”

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O’Ward admits he was under very strict instructions from McLaren due to the data the team needed to gather, but focused on being consistent over trying to display his raw pace potential.

“‘Pato, don’t shunt the car!’ Pato if you try and go too fast I’m going to scream at you!’ and, ‘We need information,’ [were the messages], and this information is extremely important to what the weekend is going to look like,” O’Ward said.

“It was very clear that I had to prioritize everything that was needed from me in terms of gathering information, being consistent, but it’s quite difficult. When you don’t know this car, you don’t know this track much, you’re trying to learn for yourself, but you’re also trying to stay as consistent as possible for the team, for all the data that they’re gathering, but I’m very pleased with it.

“I think we gathered everything that we needed to in a pretty chaotic session, and I think they’re pretty happy with the job that I did. I certainly am, so I can’t wait to drive this car again. Hopefully I get to drive it sometime before the year ends. That would be cool.”

McLaren lodges petition for review of Norris penalty

McLaren has lodged a petition for a right of review of the penalty handed out to Lando Norris for his overtaking move on Max Verstappen in the United States Grand Prix. Norris was given a five-second time penalty for leaving the track and gaining an …

McLaren has lodged a petition for a right of review of the penalty handed out to Lando Norris for his overtaking move on Max Verstappen in the United States Grand Prix.

Norris was given a five-second time penalty for leaving the track and gaining an advantage while fighting with Verstappen late in the race at COTA; Norris trying to overtake at Turn 12 and rejoining ahead of the Red Bull after Verstappen also left the track while defending the inside line. The penalty dropped Norris to fourth in the final results, one place behind Verstappen, who was promoted back to third.

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The only way for such a stewards’ decision to be appealed is through the identification of new evidence, and McLaren now must prove that “a significant and relevant new element which was unavailable to the party seeking the review at the time of the decision” exists.

The first hearing will take place on Friday at 2:30pm Mexico City time via video conference, and will also involve Red Bull representatives as well as any other concerned party the stewards permit. If McLaren is successful in arguing there is a significant and relevant new element, then the review into the penalty will be held during a second hearing. If not, then the process ends at the first stage.

Norris is 57 points adrift of Verstappen in the drivers’ championship heading into this weekend’s Mexico City Grand Prix, a gap that would be reduced to 51 points if McLaren is able to overturn the penalty.

O’Ward primed to aid McLaren’s title tilt — and enjoy the moment — in Mexico FP1

Pato O’Ward is looking forward to a special opportunity for him to run in FP1 on home ground at the Mexico City Grand Prix in the midst of McLaren’s Formula 1 championship battles. McLaren leads the constructors’ championship by 40 points from Red …

Pato O’Ward is looking forward to a special opportunity for him to run in FP1 on home ground at the Mexico City Grand Prix in the midst of McLaren’s Formula 1 championship battles.

McLaren leads the constructors’ championship by 40 points from Red Bull and 48 from Ferrari, while Lando Norris is 57 points adrift of Max Verstappen in the drivers’ standings. Against that backdrop, O’Ward — an Arrow McLaren racer in IndyCar — will drive during the F1 weekend in Mexico City for the first time when he takes part in the opening practice session, and he says the competitive picture only adds to his anticipation.

“I’m just so excited to be there,” O’Ward told RACER. “I’m excited to enjoy the experience of that grand prix weekend without just being there to walk around — I will actually get to drive the car at least once! So that’s pretty special.

“I haven’t really had the chance to do that in a professional manner in so many years. The stage doesn’t get any bigger than Formula 1 and it’s really a great opportunity for me to be there with the team and obviously help them any way I can to get everything sorted out for Lando and make that as smooth as possible, but also get what I need out of it and really get to enjoy it. That’s my main goal — I want to enjoy that as much as possible.

“I feel like naturally you would expect it to, but I don’t feel the extra pressure really. I think it’s cool. I actually think it’s the other way round — I think it’s fantastic that I’m going to get to drive the constructors’ championship- leading car. That’s awesome. I’ve never had the chance to do that, so that’s a first!”

O’Ward has been in the UK preparing for his FP1 outing and says he feels more at home in F1 machinery due to the amount of running he now has completed with McLaren.

“I was there for three weeks, I had four sim days, I had TPC testing in Silverstone — that was really enjoyable but I only got a couple of hours in the dry, then it was extremely wet. So still enjoyable but not the same –you can’t lean on the car the same, obviously,” O’Ward said. “But I’m excited for Mexico. I’m excited for what it can bring to me as a professional, and really seeing what it’s going to be all about. The car’s a missile right now, so I’m looking forward to driving that.

“I feel very comfortable. I would say after the Abu Dhabi test last year I got to really lean on the car and it just feels a lot more like home. Mexico is slightly different just because of the altitude and the grip levels and all that stuff, but in a way I think it’s going to be less of a step than what it usually is because of the altitude and the grip. So I think I’m in for some really good fun, and I’m looking forward to showing up well for myself and the team.”

The Mexico City Grand Prix is renowned for its party atmosphere and incredible support for Sergio Perez. O’Ward is not expecting a similar reaction but keen to see the interest he receives.

“I don’t know what to expect, really,” he admitted. “Every year has obviously gotten bigger, I don’t know here that has gotten to. I don’t know where that level is right now. I always gauge it when I go to Mexico. It’s felt like after the Indy 500 this year there’s been a shift in that regard, like there’s been a big step in recognition in a sense.

“More just concentrated in Mexico rather than everywhere else — I’m still kind of a nobody in the F1 paddock, to be honest! People that know about motorsports obviously know when I’m walking around, but all the Netflix growth for sure has no idea who anybody is besides the 20 [F1] drivers. So it will be interesting.

“I’m curious to see the stadium section because every time Checo goes through there I hear everybody just screams, and I can hear it from the box. Obviously I don’t think it will be the same for me when I go through there, but maybe some people will be like ‘Hey!’ I think that will be really cool.”

McLaren complains about a lot lately – Verstappen

Max Verstappen says he doesn’t sympathize with McLaren’s arguments over Lando Norris’ penalty in the United States Grand Prix amid multiple complaints this season. Norris was handed a 5s time penalty for leaving the track and gaining an advantage …

Max Verstappen says he doesn’t sympathize with McLaren’s arguments over Lando Norris’ penalty in the United States Grand Prix amid multiple complaints this season.

Norris was handed a 5s time penalty for leaving the track and gaining an advantage when overtaking Verstappen around the outside at Turn 12, despite the Red Bull driver also going off track in the incident. With McLaren also vocal about Red Bull’s car design this weekend following an FIA request to remove a device that can change ride heights, Verstappen was dismissive of the Norris penalty.

“No, I don’t [sympathize],” Verstappen said. “I mean, they complain about a lot lately anyway, but it’s very clear in the rules. Outside the white line, you cannot pass. I’ve been done for it as well in the past.

“I think it’s quite clear: you can’t overtake outside of the white line. I mean, I got done for it also here in, I think, 2017 or whatever it was. I lost my podium like that. I just remained calm, tried to do the best I could after that to bring the car to the end because it was not easy with the tires and the situation that I was in. But overall, I still really enjoyed that battle that we had.”

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Verstappen overtook Norris at the start into Turn 1 with a move down the inside that also saw both drivers run wide, but he says losing a position to race-winner Charles Leclerc was not overly damaging to his final race result.

“There was a gap on the inside, so I went for it. That corner is very wide, so it gives you a lot of opportunity of going very wide or try to go really tight. I chose for that option, and I still came out second! Started second, came out second out of Turn 1.

“This time, of course, it was Charles in front. I think it worked out quite well for me because Charles was faster, so he just pulled away. From there, I just tried to do my own race.

“I just tried to do the best I could, to be honest. My balance wasn’t great. I was just not really… I was not able to attack the corners. [Norris] was putting [on] a lot of pressure, but around here, it’s quite a cool track to defend. There are a lot of possibilities. It makes it good for racing.”

Despite not having the pace to fight for victory as Ferrari secured a one-two, Verstappen leaves Austin having extended his championship lead over Norris to 57 points.

“That is definitely the positive,” he said. “I did hope for a little bit more performance today, so that’s what we have to analyze why today we were just not that good. I think everyone was a little bit better or at least the same as yesterday, and it felt like we were definitely worse. I need to understand why that was, because I don’t know at the moment.”

Norris hurt by penalty inconsistency amid battle with Verstappen at U.S. GP

Lando Norris says the inconsistency of stewarding decisions is frustrating after losing third place over overtaking Max Verstappen off the track in the United States Grand Prix. Verstappen overtook Norris at the start of the race with a move up the …

Lando Norris says the inconsistency of stewarding decisions is frustrating after losing third place over overtaking Max Verstappen off the track in the United States Grand Prix.

Verstappen overtook Norris at the start of the race with a move up the inside into Turn 1 but it forced both drivers off track at the corner exit as the Red Bull completed the move. That incident wasn’t noted by the stewards, but Norris was then handed a five-second time penalty later in the race when he overtook Verstappen around the outside at Turn 12 and the championship leader’s defense again saw both drivers leave the track.

“It’s tough,” Norris said. “There’s different alterations of things. It’s a tough job to steward these kinds of things. For me, whatever I did, I did. For me the point that is incorrect is what Max did, which is defend his position by going off the track, and would effectively be keeping his position, which is not correct.

“He went off the track by defending, and has overdefended and made a mistake, and therefore has gained from that. At the same time, because of that, I’ve had to go off the track. It’s impossible for people to know if I could have made it [stick] on the track or I couldn’t. You can’t steward that kind of thing.

“But those are the rules. They seem to change, because it seems like it’s quite inconsistent from say what happened in Austria, where Max didn’t get a penalty and went off the track, gained an advantage. There’s again inconsistency, but it’s tough.

“For me, it’s just a rushed decision. They don’t hear or understand our points, which they should do after the race. They just want to make a decision at the time, so you don’t alter points and podiums and things like that. Therefore it’s a rushed decision, and they don’t hear my point of discussion or my team’s point or Max’s point, which I don’t think is maybe the most correct thing.

“Today it was a penalty. Not a lot I can do apart from just accept that. I tried, we both tried, it was a great battle, I really enjoyed it, it was tough. Max drove very well and defended very well, but he ended up on top, so congrats to him.”

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Norris dropped from third ahead of Verstappen to fourth behind him as a result of the penalty, and says it’s particularly tough fighting with the Dutchman because of how hard he races, believing there were multiple occasions when the Red Bull driver’s moves could have been penalized.

“I think both times Max went off the track, he had a lot of commitment to keep me behind,” the McLaren driver said. “The thing is with Max, you’ve got to commit. People don’t understand that kind of thing. With Max, you can’t just go half-hearted.

“Turn 1 is a bit harder to say, whether it’s I didn’t commit enough, but the fact that he committed so much speed … he again went off the track. I mean I can’t just dive up the inside of someone, run off, and then keep the position in normal running. But for some reason, it’s completely OK in lap one on Turn 1. It’s a tough one … It hurts today.”

However, Norris made clear his disappointment was in the uncertainty created by the stewarding, rather than with Verstappen himself for the fight they had.

“I think Max drove very well,” he explained. “It’s very hard to do what we’re doing. It’s hard when you’re side by side, you’re completely on side of the track, to guess where your braking marker is. You’re going quicker than you have before, because you used the battery. The tires are older, there’s different bumps, a lot of dirt…

“We’re battling and fighting hard, so I respect the battle that we had. It was a good one, it was enjoyable. I think it was respectful. I think Turn 1, I didn’t do the correct thing, but I felt like what happened at the end of the race was more my side. Otherwise, it was a good battle, and I enjoyed it. We just didn’t come out on top because I didn’t do a good enough job.

“A bit of clarity [is needed]. But look, if I defended better in Turn 1 and wasn’t driving like a muppet… I should have led after Turn 1, and we shouldn’t have had this conversation in the first place.”

Norris couldn’t repeat best pole lap of career in U.S. GP qualifying

Lando Norris says his pole position lap at the United States Grand Prix was the best of his career, and that he didn’t think he could better it when he went out for his final run. Max Verstappen was fastest in Q1 and Q2 having won the Sprint race, …

Lando Norris says his pole position lap at the United States Grand Prix was the best of his career, and that he didn’t think he could better it when he went out for his final run.

Max Verstappen was fastest in Q1 and Q2 having won the Sprint race, but Norris then set the provisional pole position time on the first attempts in Q3. George Russell’s crash while the final laps were in progress meant the opening times set the grid, and Norris doesn’t believe he could have improved anyway.

“The best probably of my career, I think,” Norris said. “It was just a very nice lap. I kind of set the bar too high, because on my second lap, I was like, ‘Guys, I don’t think I’m going to improve much here.’

“I got everything out of the car. We changed a good amount from the Sprint race into qualifying today now, and definitely took a step forward. But man, I was still struggling a lot. I just knew I had to risk a little bit more and give it that little extra, and it just came together perfectly.

“Definitely not a lap that I could have repeated, so I’m very happy because I really wasn’t expecting to be here today.

“It was a bit everywhere, honestly. Of course the high speed is a little bit where we struggle a touch compared to the Red Bulls especially. Max has been extremely quick in the first sector and the high speed. Trying to limit that a little bit more was a good start.

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“And then just the braking, the final sector, from [Turn]s 12 to 16, as soon as one part goes wrong, it can all fall away quite quickly. Again just hooked everything up the first time all weekend, and probably the last. It just came together perfectly. It was a very, very good lap. I’d probably say quite confidently the best of my career.”

Norris started the Sprint in fourth, but a good first corner led to him running second for the majority of the race before his pace faded and an error on the final lap cost him a place to Carlos Sainz. Although he admits tires are a big concern, the McLaren driver is hopeful he won’t suffer a repeat given the setup work the team did before qualifying, and is expecting a close fight between multiple teams for the win on Sunday.

“I don’t think it was as bad as what it was,” he said. “I think certain events led to such a thing. We improved the car quite a bit. We were definitely not contending anywhere close to pole yesterday, and today, we did.

“We’re still a bit off, but we’re in a good position. Our pace relative to Max over yesterday and today is probably a bit more similar. I probably expected the Ferraris and Mercedes to be a bit quicker today, but maybe they just got a bit more out of the car earlier on in the weekend, and we’ve been able to take a bigger step forward between the Sprint and now.

“Maybe we’ve caught up a bit, but it’s going to be a tough race. Ferrari were very quick in the race today with the degradation. Max is Max, so they’re going to be fast. I’m excited. I think it’s going to be a good battle and a good one to watch.”

Norris pinches U.S. GP pole after Russell crash ends qualifying

Lando Norris took pole position from Max Verstappen after a high-speed crash for George Russell truncated qualifying before the final laps could be completed. Russell’s crash compounded a woeful afternoon for Mercedes, coming after three-time …

Verstappen had topped all three qualifying segments on his way to what looked likely to be a largely straightforward pole before a peach of a lap from title challenger Norris put the McLaren car on provisional pole by 0.031s. It was the most convincing lap the Briton has strung together all weekend, having lamented his modestly upgraded McLaren hasn’t had the pace to match Verstappen or the Ferrari drivers this weekend.

Verstappen was first of the pair to return to the track for the final runs of the hour and blitzed the first split, setting a purple time to put himself 0.172s ahead. Norris, meanwhile, couldn’t improve on his own time at the first interval.

The duel was interrupted by Russell, who lost control of his car high speed at Turn 19 and spun into the barriers. With both Verstappen and Norris behind him on the track, both drivers were forced to abandon their laps, allowing Norris to claim an unexpected pole. It’s the Briton’s fifth pole from the last seven grands prix and keeps his slim title hopes alive, now trailing Verstappen by 54 points after the morning’s Sprint.

“It was a beautiful lap,” he said. “We’ve been on the back foot pretty much all weekend. I had to do something, and today I did that.

“I was not going to go much quicker than what I did — when you just do a lap and think, ‘It’s going to be tough to beat that.’ I put everything out on the line. It’s what we needed to do.”

Verstappen rued a mistake at Turn 19 on his first lap that left him needing his second lap to take pole but was nonetheless pleased by his updated car’s performance.

“Unfortunately, I couldn’t finish the lap, otherwise we had a really good shot,” he said. “We’re on the front row at least, and we had the potential to be first, so that’s very good.

“It seemed that we were competitive, so we made some minor changes on the car, which felt nice. … I hope that will also be positive for tomorrow.”

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Carlos Sainz also had a shot at pole spoiled, having been on a much better second lap after an unconvincing first run, fractionally up on Norris’s time in the first sector and less than 0.1s down in the second before Russell’s crash. The Spaniard qualified fifth for the sprint but finished the short race a punchy second and believes third on the grid would give him the chance to improve that result in the grand prix.

“That was the target, to do a step in qualifying compared to yesterday,” he said. “Yesterday we were P5, today we are P3, so we’ve done a good step in the right direction.

“I think we’ve done some good progress. We should be in the fight tomorrow.”

His teammate, Charles Leclerc, qualified fourth ahead of Oscar Piastri and the crashed-out Russell.

Pierre Gasly had an impressive session to qualify seventh ahead of Fernando Alonso and Kevin Magnussen. Sergio Perez will start 10th after having his first lap deleted for exceeding track limits, though the time would have been good enough for only eighth, having been 0.9s slower than his teammate’s front-row effort.

Yuki Tsunoda will start 11th, missing out on Q1 by just 0.045s.

Nico Hulkenberg, having qualified sixth for the sprint, managed just 12th for the grand prix after locking up into the first corner and spoiling his lap. Esteban Ocon will line up 13th ahead of Lance Stroll in 14th, both drivers shaded by more than 0.3s by their Q3-bound teammates.

Liam Lawson qualified 15th on his first full-time grand prix weekend without a time in Q2, having carried a back-of-grid engine penalty into the session. The Kiwi was impressively quicker than teammate Tsunoda in Q1 and was deployed to give the sister car a slipstream in Q2 before returning to his garage.

Williams teammates Alex Albon and Franco Colapinto, eliminated in Q1, will therefore line up 15th and 16th ahead of Sauber’s Valtteri Bottas in 17th.

Hamilton will start 18th in by far his worst qualifying result at COTA. The Mercedes driver, having never qualified lower than fifth at the Austin circuit, was only 0.121s short of a spot in Q2 but a massive 0.618s slower than teammate Russell and 1.108s off top spot in the opening qualifying stanza. The damage was almost all done in the middle sector, where he lost half a second to the front-runners running wide at Turn 12.

Zhou Guanyu will start 19th for Sauber ahead of the penalized Lawson.

Norris cleared of Sprint penalty, but Ferrari’s COTA pace ‘worrying’

Lando Norris avoided a penalty after the Sprint but says the performance potential that Ferrari has at the United States Grand Prix is “worrying.” The McLaren driver is trying to close the gap to Max Verstappen in the drivers’ championship but had …

Lando Norris avoided a penalty after the Sprint but says the performance potential that Ferrari has at the United States Grand Prix is “worrying.”

The McLaren driver is trying to close the gap to Max Verstappen in the drivers’ championship but had to settle for third place behind race-winner Verstappen and Carlos Sainz on Saturday. Both Ferraris nearly got past Norris and he admits the performance seen on Friday has translated so far into race pace that is likely to be tough to beat.

“It was still a tough race,” Norris said. “The start was obviously good, and it gave me quite a bit of hope at the beginning of achieving something strong, but just not the pace today. The whole weekend actually we’ve been quite a long way off.

“I don’t think we were shocking compared to Max, but the Ferraris were just another level. They were quick yesterday; they both just didn’t get the most out of their quali laps, but their potential was worrying.

“So I was a bit like, ‘Maybe that’s just quali and [in] the race they will be a bit further off,’ but they were just as quick today. Qualifying we have things to work on, and the race we clearly have a lot more to work on. Not bad, but we’re not quickest, and we’re not quick enough.”

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Norris was under investigation for allegedly driving erratically late in the Sprint, both as he lost a position to Sainz and then as he defended from Charles Leclerc, but the stewards opted to take no further action.

“There did not appear to be any significant changes of direction under braking, and the move at Turn 15 was a legitimate defending move by the driver of Car No. 4,” the stewards’ decision read. “In Turn 1, Car No. 4 locked up under braking and went wide, losing a position.”

Leclerc acknowledged both the incident and Ferrari’s performance after the Sprint, believing the team can look to mount a more serious challenge for victory on Sunday.

“I think our race pace was really strong today,” Leclerc said. “We had quite a lot of fighting, which is part of racing in a Sprint race, so it was a very high-adrenaline Sprint race. My approach of trying to save a little bit more in the first five or six laps didn’t pay off, and that was it.

“At the end [I started to push]. We were very fast, but then there was a DRS train in front with Carlos having the DRS of Lando, and a close call on the last lap with Lando, so all-in-all P4 is the way it is. It’s a Sprint race and we’ve learned a lot for tomorrow.”

‘Shocking’ U.S. GP Sprint qualifying lap could have been worse – Norris

Lando Norris believes he could have been even lower than fourth on the grid for the Sprint at the United States Grand Prix due to how difficult his Friday was. Max Verstappen set the fastest time in the Sprint Shootout and will lead the field on …

Lando Norris believes he could have been even lower than fourth on the grid for the Sprint at the United States Grand Prix due to how difficult his Friday was.

Max Verstappen set the fastest time in the Sprint Shootout and will lead the field on Saturday, with his main title rival Norris down in fourth place, 0.25s adrift. The McLaren driver admitted he was not happy with his car at any stage on Friday and felt his lap was so poor that a spot on the fourth row is better than it might have been.

“Not very good,” Norris said. “P4. Not a great day. Been struggling the whole day, honestly, with the balance and the set-up. In a way, happy with P4, because I feel like it could have been a lot worse, but my lap was shocking. Not a terrible day, could have been worse, could have been better, but I’ll take it.”

Norris dismissed any suggestion that the upgrade McLaren introduced at COTA could be the cause of his struggles, and says he expects to be in a similar position over a Sprint race distance too.

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“No, not really [much chance to progress]. I hope to move forward — that’s my plan — but on pace, I think we are where we deserve to be today,” he said. “So my plan is to go forward, but I have no idea how much we can.”

It was an even worse day for teammate Oscar Piastri who dropped out in SQ1 when his best time was deleted for exceeding track limits, but the Australian is grateful it wasn’t in the main qualifying session.

“Most of the lap was good,” Piastri said. “I made a few mistakes in the last sector and, obviously, in the second-last corner I tried to go a bit too fast and that’s the result, so it’s a shame, but if there’s one good thing about sprint weekends [it’s] that we have another shot tomorrow.

“[The car] feels OK, maybe not quite as strong as what it has been in the last few races, but I don’t think that’s because we are weaker. Maybe the others are a little bit strong. Let’s see. We’re still hopefully in the fight … so it’s certainly not a case of [being] miles behind, but maybe it’s a bit more difficult for us than in some of the other weekends.”