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Indian journalist Niharika Ghorpade checks with Hamilton if Red Bull-gap can be closed before 2024
The DRIVERS who attended the post-qualifying FIA press conference were: 1 – Max VERSTAPPEN (Red Bull Racing), 2 – George RUSSELL (Mercedes) and 3 – Lewis HAMILTON (Mercedes)
Question by Indian journalist is given at the top. Press Conference follows:
Q: (Niharika Ghorpade – Sportskeeda) To both Mercedes drivers, Max has had a margin of half a second in the last weekend and this weekend in qualifying. It seems to be a recurring theme. Do you think that kind of gap can be recovered over the winter given the head start Red Bull have with their ‘24 challenger?
GR: Yeah, I believe so. I think when we look at our car we see a number of flaws in it. It’s not like we’re looking at it scratching our head thinking where can we improve it? We think there’s loads of places that we can improve it. We’ve made some really good findings recently with regards to the aero of the car and some of the bits and pieces on the car, which is looking very promising. But we can never promise what we’re going to deliver over the winter in terms of a result, because it’s a relative game. We can only focus on ourselves. But I’m extremely confident in my team. Very confident in the decision-makers and the direction we’re heading, that we’ve made some really great learnings. And we won’t trip up and make a mistake as we have done these past few seasons.Q: Lewis, are you confident that you can close the gap to Red Bull over the winter?
LH: I have 100% faith in the guys, the team back in the factory working away on it. And who knows? I mean, we don’t know where they are or where they’re progressing to. I think we just have to focus on our job and not necessarily so focused on necessarily closing that gap. It’s going to be what it is. By the time we get to the first race, hopefully it is closed.Q: Max, everyone talks about closing the gap to Red Bull over the winter. Are you seeing big gains yourself in Milton Keynes?
MV: Maybe. We’ll find out next year. There’s no point to talk about it now. I’m just enjoying the moment and we keep pushing. We keep working hard.TRACK INTERVIEWS were Conducted by Naomi Schiff
Q: Max, congratulations. It’s another pole position for you on this all important weekend. Is this a step to show what’s possible this weekend?
Max VERSTAPPEN: Yeah, I mean a great start to the weekend. It’s quite tricky out there, you know, with the new tarmac, it still needs to rubber in. Very peaky grip. So as soon as you over-push it a little bit, the rear wants to step out and stuff, but of course very happy to be on pole. It’s been a good day for us
Q: Obviously, tomorrow is a big day for you. You could already be crowned three-time World Champion tomorrow. So if that does happen, what does this race mean on Sunday to you?
MV: Well, I want to win it, of course. I mean, we put it on pole, so naturally you want to, of course, win the race. But first of all let’s make sure that tomorrow we have a good day as well. I think the car is quick. Of course tomorrow, let’s say, well, morning, afternoon, however you like it, I think it’s going to be, again, a bit more difficult for to get the tyres ready to work well, with the sand coming onto the track as well. But yeah, it’s a great start to the weekend. The car is working well. That’s all I could hope for really.
Q: Good luck tomorrow and enjoy it out there. Thank you. George, congratulations, tough weekend, with only one practice session on a track that a lot of the teams don’t have a lot of data on. How tricky was it for you out there today?
George RUSSELL: Yeah, it was a really tricky day for everybody. It was new tarmac, it was really slippery, super windy here, so all the sand is blowing onto the track. And we went out in qualifying and the lap times were just immense compared to what we were doing this morning. So that was good, fun, really happy to be P3 (sic). This is a bit better than we expected.
Q: Tomorrow we’ll have a better idea of what the race pace is going to look like. But, you know, looking forward to Sunday, what do you think is going to be possible from where you’re starting?
GR: Yeah, I mean, Lando and the McLarens are really quick at the moment. We obviously know Red Bull and Max are in a league of their own. But our fight at the moment is with Ferrari to secure P2 in the Constructors’ Championship, we need to be consistent and go from there.
PRESS CONFERENCE
Q: Max, very well done to you. It looked like a tricky session to navigate. But you’ve taken another emphatic pole. How good was the car?
MV: Yeah, I mean, I think it was difficult for everyone out there, you know, with the new tarmac, there was not a lot of grip. And as soon as you, I wouldn’t even say overstep it, but you tried to just carry a little bit more speed into the corner, the rear really wants to step out and that made it very tricky to find the limit in qualifying run after run, to see how much the track was improving, but then not overdo it. We tried to just follow the track as best as we could. And yeah, my first run in Q3 was good. I was happy with the balance of the car, considering the track conditions. Overall, a good day and more than I could have hoped for really, because it’s always a bit hectic, you know, the Sprint format, to after one session optimise the car. And then especially with this new tarmac as well, it’s probably even more difficult, but it was good.
Q: Given your pole advantage at Suzuka last time out. How confident were you going into the session?
MV: I felt good. Well, FP1 was OK. But it was all about just fine-tuning a few things and just seeing what the track was going to do, because I had no clue how much it was going to improve.
Q: You talk about the surface a lot. What about the wind out there today? Did that make it tricky?
MV: Also. I mean, some places, of course, you had a headwind and then a tailwind, and the car was a bit all over the place because of it. But you have to try and drive around it.
Q: And Max, had you completed that second lap of Q3, how much more was there to come?
MV: I have no idea, because I only got to Turn 4. But the lap before was alright. But for sure, there’s always a little bit more to it, because the track I think was improving every time. But it was OK.
Q: Now, Max, if you score just three points in the Sprint race tomorrow, you’ll be a three-time World Champion by the time you line up on pole position for the race on Sunday. That’s a thought. How are you approaching the remainder of the weekend as a result?
MV: Same as always. I mean, it doesn’t really change anything. I just want to have a good weekend. And of course, I know in the back of my mind that’s happening, but it doesn’t add any extra pressure or whatever. I just want to enjoy the weekend and try to do the best I can.
Q: George, coming to you. Many congratulations, a second front-row start in the last three races for you. The pace of the car was good. Has that come as a bit of a surprise this weekend?
GR: Yeah, I think it’s been interesting, the second half of the season. The quali pace has been really quite exceptional compared to the start of this year. And I’m feeling really confident in the car. But this weekend, we definitely weren’t expecting to be lining up P2 and P3 on the grid for Sunday. So that is a real pleasant surprise. Of course, Lando was ahead of us and his marginal off wasn’t the different for his pace advantage. So, we know that we’re half a step behind McLaren. But equally, our fight is with Ferrari at the moment. That’s our aim for the remainder of the season. And we just need to secure as many points as possible to seal that off.
Q: But what about the fight with McLaren here? Oscar Piastri is going to be starting sixth. Lando, back in 10th. Do you think you’ve got the pace to beat them?
GR: Yeah, definitely. I think we see that the pace converges a little bit come Sunday. Lando was exceptionally fast in Suzuka, so he’s really going to be the biggest threat. But there’s no reason why we can’t both fight for a podium. But there’s a lot of unknowns. We don’t know how the tyre degradation is going to be, the tyre wear, if it’s a one-stop or two-stop. And the track is just constantly changing. And you know, the very first lap in qualifying was, I think, two seconds quicker than the quickest lap in FP1, which was probably the biggest jump I think I’ve ever experienced in Formula 1, so we don’t know what tomorrow and Sunday are going to bring.
Q: You were fifth fastest in Q1 this evening. You were fifth fastest in Q2. Did you find something? Did you make a jump in Q3 relative to where you’d been earlier in the session?
GR: I think in Q1 I actually made a mistake on my lap. I lost three tenths, so I think I could have been right up there in the top three. Q2 I ran the used tyre. [Coughs] God, I don’t know what’s going on at the moment . [Coughs] Yeah, stay hydrated! And yeah, in Q2 it was the used tyres, so I think P5 was a strong result. So, it was no big surprise to be sort of fighting for the top three in Q3.
Q: On Sunday, can you do anything about the man in the middle?
GR: Probably waving him goodbye, I think, after Turn 1. Max has done an exceptional job. He deserves to be champion this year. Of course, you know, Formula 1, we love the competition, but we can’t take anything away from what he and Red Bull have done. And we need to look at ourselves in the mirror and raise our game into next year and give them a challenge.
Q: Lewis, many congratulations. Good to see you in P3. As the others have said it was a tricky session. How difficult was it to navigate, from your point of view?
Lewis HAMILTON: No more difficult than any other qualifying session. They’re always difficult. Yeah, it was obviously a bit windy today. But otherwise, pretty straightforward.
Q: You were fastest in Q2. So the inherent pace of the car was there. Same question that I asked George, really. Were you surprised by the pace you had here in Qatar?
LH: Absolutely. I mean, it’s always confusing, because obviously in P1 [sic], you now I was nearly out of Q1, sorry. Which is incredibly frustrating in that moment. But then we get into Q2 and all of a sudden, we’re right up there. So it’s very, very strange. But it’s great for all the team for us to be up there. And George did a great job today. So for us to be so close, it’s pretty awesome. I mean, for me, it was a relatively average qualifying session, Q1 and Q3 particularly. Yeah, if I was able to find that, put together the lap that I did in… That came too early, in Q2. I wish I had that for Q3.
Q: Can you just talk us through Q1? That must have been a nervous moment for you. What was going on?
LH: Yeah, just timing. We left the garage a little bit too late. We didn’t get to finish our lap on the medium. And we came in and I think just a bit out of sync, and then just couldn’t put it put it back together. It was quite tricky out there. And there’s a lot of traffic. So when you come to the end of the lap, you had to back up a lot. But generally, I was really grateful to get through.
Q: And looking ahead to the race on Sunday. Where’s your battle?
LH: With everyone around me.
Q: Not the man in the middle. But I mean, I suppose, specifically…
LH: No, I’m battling the guy to the right of me for sure. I think, yeah, I’ll give it everything to try and fight him. Maybe like George said, maybe he will just disappear like he does in most of the other races, but maybe we’ll be able to fight.
Q: What about this battle with Sergio Pérez for P2 in the championship. He’s starting the race back in 13th. Is that on your mind as you go into the race?
LH: No, I’m trying to win the race. It doesn’t matter who I’m fighting against.
QUESTIONS FROM THE FLOOR
Q: (Alex Kalinauckas – Autosport) Max, can you just talk us through what happened at Turn 4 on your last lap in Q3. Quite a lot of drivers were having oversteer moments on that second go. Was it just trying something different?
MV: I tried to carry a little bit more speed into the corner and it just gave up on me. I knew, of course, I had that lap already. So I was like, I’ll just try to push a little bit more and really, you know, try to give it everything I have. But it’s the track surface. At the moment it doesn’t let you push a tiny bit more. As soon as you stress a little bit too much it really snaps at you and you can’t correct it. So that’s a bit of a bit of a shame. But yeah, it was nothing major.
Q: (Matt Kew – Autosport) To both Mercedes drivers. The trend in 2023, it seems, is for a slower start into the weekend. And then getting faster and faster throughout. Is there any sort of different approach to this weekend that you guys have come out of the block flying?
GR: I think it’s just learning and experience. I think we found ourselves off the pace at the start of this year, a long way behind where we wanted to be. We were trying many different things with the car. And I think now, probably these last five races, the set-up of the car has been relatively, much the same set-up every race we go to. So, we know what the car needs to maximise its performance. And I think that helps the consistency we build upon it. And that’s also given us good direction into next year. So I think that’s a big factor of it.
LH: Nothing more to add to that to be honest.
Q: (Luke Smith – The Athletic) Max a question for you. You’ve spoken about the challenge of Sprint races, to optimise the set-up with only one practice session. How far away are you from where you would normally be after three, four practices going into qualifying. And has this been the hardest Sprint race to get ready for, given the temperature change, track evolution, everything like that?
MV: It’s always difficult to say, you know, where we would have ended up if we would have had a normal weekend, but with the track conditions, for sure it’s a little bit more difficult to anticipate stuff, but I think we did the best we could really. I think it’s never going to be perfect. But clearly it was good enough and I was quite happy with the car in qualifying. But, you know, it can also be that you try sometimes – and we’ve had it in the past – that you know you make a few decisions where you think it’s going to be okay and then it doesn’t work out and then your whole weekend is ruined because you can’t touch the car and I think that is a bit of a shame. And that’s maybe something we have to look into for the future if we want to continue doing these kinds of events, because it sometimes… I mean, I understand, of course, for the show it’s good to mix it up a bit, but at least you should be able to correct your mistake or potential mistake.
Q: (Claire Cottingham – Racefans.net) George, from here and Austria you’ve had no track limits at all. If you could just talk us through what maybe you’re doing differently to make sure you don’t get these infringements. And to the other two, I guess, are the track limit starting to get a bit silly now? We didn’t know who was in third place for the race and Lewis it’s great to see you, but it was a surprise. Could you just talk us through your thoughts on that?
GR: Yeah, not too sure. I can’t really speak for the others, just it’s very challenging out there. You’ve got to be very, very precise. We’re talking sort of millimetres sometimes. I’ve had no track limits but two races ago I crashed into the wall and lost a podium, so you know. Yeah, exactly. That was a small track limits there. So yeah, I’m not too sure, maybe. I don’t know. I don’t know but definitely it’s a bit frustrating when we go to great circuits like this, this is a really great circuit, but then it’s so difficult to know where that limit is, where the edge is, and we need to find a better solution for the future.
MV: Yeah, it’s tough. It’s always tough, honestly. I mean, it’s easy to go just over it. I do think these kerbs are a little bit better. I don’t think people who actually went wide, actually gained time? It’s just a bit annoying, because if you go a little bit wider, like you bottom out and you damage your floor, potentially and you definitely lose time. So I think that has been already a big positive compared to last time that we were here. I think why don’t we really see track limits in, for example, Suzuka, is because it’s old school. If you go off, there’s immediate gravel. Of course, already in some places, Suzuka, you have these like double kerbs. And there might be track limits. But in the older places, which they haven’t touched, you never talk about track limits. So yeah, I would always prefer to see that style of racing. But of course, some places we share with bikes and they like a bit more run-off. And we always have to try and find a compromise. But sometimes it hurts them. Sometimes it hurts us a little bit more, in terms of these kinds of things.
LH: Yeah, I think the new kerbs are great. When I went around the track yesterday on the scooter, I thought the kerbs looked quite big. But I think they’re actually really good. And as Max said, I think when you go beyond the highest point of the kerb, you lose time. I don’t feel like at this track we need to have track limits. It’s something that was brought in… The new stewards brough in a couple of years ago. Lando should be up here. I think we need to maybe take these kerbs as a good learning, we can take these kerbs to a bunch of other tracks because obviously MotoGP are fine with these kerbs and we can have these in, like, Austria, for example. And as I said, when you go beyond them… You should be able to utilise them as much as possible, but when you go beyond them, you lose time. So it shouldn’t be the white line necessarily. But anyways, it’s not for me to decide.
Q: (Alex Kalinauckas – Autosport) Another question to George, please. Ahead of that last run in Q3, we saw you sat in the pit lane for quite a long time as you were talking to the team. I’m just wondering, could you explain what is the thinking there? Are you trying to leave a gap to the car ahead? Is it about tyre prep? What’s the process?
GR: Yeah, I think when you’re in the pit lane, and you’re lined up behind all of these cars, you can’t actually see how many cars there are in front of you. And we’re all looking for a five to seven-second gap. And if you’re lined up behind, obviously 10 cars, that’s 50 seconds at least that you have to wait. And you know, some circuits, you want to get those tyres in the right window and it adds inconsistency. So, I don’t really know what the future holds. Obviously, everybody wants to get out on track and get their lap in. But equally you need to get that gap. I think what the FIA have done recently with the set time limit between the safety guidelines is definitely positive, while allowing us to take that gap in the pit lane. But it is sometimes a bit of a stressful moment. When you are sat there for literally a minute. You don’t know if you can make the flag, what’s going to happen, what’s happening to the tyres. So that’s just the challenge.
Q: (Matt Kew – Autosport) A question for Lewis. I just wondered if you could just please clarify your stance on the difference between Andretti and an 11th team, which one you’re for and against? I think I saw you go on Twitter. Just to sort of fill in some gaps there.
LH: Yeah, well, I mean, firstly, it wasn’t that I support Andretti. I think from a driver’s perspective, it’s exciting to potentially see more cars. And then the idea of an 11th team… You know, we have over 2,000 people in our team. So that’s, that’s a huge amount of jobs. But we have to make sure that the criteria, which is quite strict is really respected. And I feel like we need to amend the criteria actually, and make sure that there’s an opportunity for real impact, really making sure that if there is a new team, they have to be diverse. They have to perhaps create an opportunity for a female driver to come through. And it has to be diverse from the top up. At the moment, it’s all white owners. And there’s a real lack of diversity from the top down. It’s all male, and that needs to change. So yeah, that was just that’s my thought. But I really do have 100% faith in Stefano, who I’ve known for a long, long time. I think what he’s doing at the top, there’s no one that could do a better job than him. And I know that he will make the right decision. Moving forward, he’s a racer, and he’s passionate about the growth of the sport, so happy to leave it in his capable hands. -
Alonso reveals a bit of insights about Aston Martin to Indian reporter Niharika’s query
The following drivers Max VERSTAPPEN (Red Bull Racing – Winner); Sergio PÉREZ (Red Bull Racing – 2nd) and Fernando ALONSO (Aston Martin – 3rd) attended the FIA post-race Press Conference.
The ace Indian reporter Niharika Ghorpade took up the tyres issue with the popular driver Fernando Alonso, who got a historic podium for Aston Martin. Her question (and the answer) is given before the full transcript.
Q: (Niharika Ghorpade – Sportskeeda) Question to Fernando. Yesterday, Checo mentioned that the strong point of your team is tyre management, and that your team banks on that on race day. So how much did that play into effect, compared to other areas in performance, and also, when it comes to your race pace, at some point in this race, you will almost matching the two drivers next to you. If it weren’t for the start, do you think you could have been slightly closer to them within the race?
FA: I think on the tyres, yes. It seems that this is one is strength of our car, some legacy from last year as well, because Aston Martin was very strong on Sundays last year as well. So yeah, let’s try to keep that theme on the car and just improve the Saturdays, which was maybe the weak point of last year for the team. And also yesterday, we were not mega-competitive. So let’s work on that. And yeah, on the race pace, obviously we lost time in the first stint. I just sat behind the Mercedes. In the middle stint I have to pass George and Valtteri. And then on the final stint I had to pass Lewis and Carlos. So, all in all, I’m sure that you lose 10 or 15 seconds on all those battles. So if we are 40 seconds behind the leader, we could have been maybe 20 seconds, or 30 seconds. Yeah, not real fight – yet – to Red Bull.
TRACK INTERVIEWS (Conducted by Nico Rosberg)
Q: Fernando, how awesome was that start to the season. P3 for you there.
Fernando ALONSO: Yeah. Thank you. First of all, I think congrats to Lance, my team-mate, you know, he had the surgery 12 days ago and now he’s fighting right with everybody. So yeah, amazing for the team. It was a great weekend and, yeah, finishing on the podium in the first race of the year, this is just amazing, you know, what Aston Martin did over the winter to have the second best car in race one, this is just unreal.
Q: How did it feel to pass that Ferrari and Sainz, and that Mercedes and Hamilton out on track there? I mean, you were shouting on the radio?
FA: Yeah, obviously, I would love to start in front of them and then use the pace. But yeah, we had not the best start today and we had to pass on track. So yeah, it felt like more exciting, more adrenaline for sure. So people enjoyed it. We did enjoy as well. So let’s go into Jeddah.
Q: Great. And you have more wind tunnel time as well. Do you think that’s going to play into it, your development rate of the car?
FA: I hope so. But we will not get much next year!
Q: Alright, let’s move on to… who’s coming next Sergio or Max. Sergio is coming next. Sergio, that’s a dream start for the team, isn’t it, with a one-two here in Bahrain?
Sergio PÉREZ: Yeah it’s a great start. I mean, when we look back at last year, and how we started here, it’s really nice. It’s a nice comeback. As a team, you know, we worked really hard over the winter. So it’s great to see all the boys enjoying the first race. And yeah, we have a strong package. So yeah, it was important today to get both cars until the end.
Q: But of course you are also fighter and you want to win. Which area is it you still need to like work on most to try and to try and get closer to Max and beat him?
SP: Well, I think today was really that start that really put me out of contention from the race. But it was all about minimising the damage. So finishing second is the maximum I could do today. It’s a long season. I think I’m getting closer every single session.
Q: So you’re confident you’re going to give him a run for his money?
SP: Yeah, certainly. I think I’m feeling comfortable with the car and we have a strong package. So, yeah, I will do my best.
Q: Thank you. We’ll move on to Max now. The race winner. Max, what a dream start and what an awesome drive there.
Max VERSTAPPEN: Yeah, it was a very, very good first stint, where I basically made my gap. And from there onwards it was all about just looking after the tyres, because you never really know what’s going to happen later on in the race. So we just wanted to make sure that we had the right tyres and in good condition as well. So yeah, of course, very happy to finally also win here in Bahrain.
Q: True, your first win here. Were there any issues during the race? I mean, you were complaining a little bit about downshifts and also the car balance not being so great throughout the whole weekend.
MV: Nothing big, just little things you always want to fine tune so I think they’re quite easy to get on top of.
Q: And are you looking forward to Jeddah? Different kind of track.
MV: Very, very different.
Q: But you’re very confident now that you can get on top of the balance issues and everything and be just as strong?
MV: I think we have a good race package. I mean, of course it will depend a bit, race to race, but we can definitely fight with this. And yeah, also a big thank you to the team, you know, over the winter what they’ve done again, to give us such a quick race car again.
PRESS CONFERENCE
Q: Max, your first win in Bahrain, it was the perfect way to kick off 2023. You delivered what you’ve been threatening to do in testing. You must be delighted?
MV: Yeah, I mean, it was a really good race. I do think it was important to have that first stint where I could open up a gap a little bit and after that I could look after my tyres quite well. But also the car was working well – a bit like what we’ve seen in testing and the long runs we’ve done throughout the weekend. But you still of course need to show that in the race. You never know really what can happen to you throughout the race. But yeah, we were on top of things. And it was quite straightforward. But yeah, I think also, with all the calls and pit stops, we did a good job.
Q: You said yesterday that you weren’t that happy with the balance of your car over one lap? Was it much better today in the race?
MV: Yeah, but you know, in the long run, you anyway have quite a different car, and you never really are able to push to the limit. So naturally, that was less of an issue anyway, when I was already not happy in the beginning of the weekend. But I do think that there are still a few things that need to be looked at. But for now, we’re happy. And then tomorrow, once we get back home, we’ll get on top of everything before we get to Jeddah.
Q: Max, were there any issues for you at all? I mean, you came on the radio at one point, talking about some rear locking. How serious was that? Any other issues?
MV: It happens here and there. I mean, this is not something new. This has happened also in the last year or two years. This is something we are consistently working on and trying to make better. But yeah, I think overall, nothing too big of a concern.
Q: OK, and will this stunning pace that we’ve seen today translate elsewhere, to Saudi for example?
Max Verstappen: Well, Saudi is quite a different track to this one. You have a lot more like straights, fast corners, and a lot less deg. And I think here we were particularly good on the deg. So I do expect in terms of race pace that everyone is closer in Jeddah.
Q: How much confidence, Max, do you take from this performance this weekend?
MV: It has been a great start for us, for the for the whole team, you know, so this is not something we were used to! So yeah, we are very happy at the moment. But yeah, we always keep working.
Q: Alright, many congratulations to you. Very well done. Checo, coming to you now. We saw great pace from you in that race. But it seemed it all came on done at the start. Is that is that the case?
SP: Yeah, that was really the case, missing out to Charles on that first stint. It was really difficult to get by him. He had the new tyres. So you could see the difference on that first stint. And as soon as I was getting a bit closer to him, trying to attack him earlier on, I will just deg and destroy my tyres. So I had to be really patient and get my way through it. And once he did, I was able to drive some fast laps and, let’s say, that my tyres and on the second stint were in better shape than his and I was able to get through. But yeah, it was just too late. It was just a few laps too many, too late, and that put us quite behind Max. Once that happened, we basically just maintained the gap throughout the race. So we had no chance to fight for the win. But today was all about minimising the bad start. And we’ve got plenty of things to analyse, to try to improve and get this consistency throughout the season.
Q: It must have been an interesting fact finding mission for you being behind the Ferrari in that first and what did you learn about that car?
SP: Yeah, I actually learned a lot about their car, you know: where they are weak, where they’re strong, or stronger than us. So yeah, I think I need to make sure that it stays fresh for my engineers later in the briefing.
Q: Go on, share it with us now. And are you happy with where you’ve got the car? Do you feel confident in the RB19?
SP: Yeah, I’m comfortable. I’m comfortable with the car. I’m happy. I think we’ve got some work to do. I think we, both drivers are pushing the car in the same direction, which is good. And yeah, I think it’s been an amazing start to the season. Yeah, our best ever start ever, so very different to last year.
Q: Fernando coming to you, podium number 99 of your career. Your first podium here in Bahrain since you won in 2010. Just how sweet is this moment for you?
FA: It is! Obviously, a perfect start for this project. We didn’t expect to be that competitive. I think the aim in 2023 was, you know, getting the mix in the midfield, maybe leading that midfield and get close to the top three teams eventually. But even a podium maybe was not in the radar in 2023. And, and we found ourselves second best car today in Bahrain, or the whole weekend, like just behind Red Bull. So, this is, yeah, a little bit of a surprise. But we are extremely proud, happy with the job done at Silverstone in the factory. So big congratulations to everyone. Let’s enjoy this moment and build from here, hopefully a good 2023 campaign and get closer and closer to the top guys.
Q: So, are you having to reset your expectations for the rest of this season? Given what’s happened today and this weekend?
FA: Let’s see. I think, like, I have the same feeling from testing, like, too good to be true. And you’re always expecting that something will get… you will get a step back and you will get back to reality. But it seems real, the performance. Let’s see in Jeddah. I am curious to go to Jeddah and Australia. Very different circuits. I think Max touched on before, high-speed corners, very little degradation. I think in Bahrain, we were strong in things that maybe we don’t find in Jeddah, and Australia. So, if we are strong in the next two races, I think we will have a very good 2023.
Q: Final one from me. Can you talk us through those overtakes on Hamilton and Sainz? How much did you enjoy them?
FA: I obviously did enjoy them because I ended-up in front. That’s always the same thing in any battle. But yeah, we say it’s always the same, but when you fight at the front, with these great drivers, great champions, it is more intense, more adrenaline when you are wheel to wheel. So yeah, I didn’t want to have any mistake, or any contact because obviously when you are P12, you lose nothing, but today, we were fighting for big things. And yeah, I was happy. And the car was very nice to drive. That was probably our strength, all through testing. And this weekend, even though the race felt very long, the last 10 laps, because I wanted to see the chequered flag and being on the podium, the car was very good to drive and I could have driven for another hour or something, just alone on track.
Q: You mentioned contact there. Was there any contact between you and Lance?
FA: Yeah, apparently into Turn 4. I thought it was George. But I saw the replay on TV later on, and it was Lance. So yeah, he had a very good start because, you know, he was alongside me into Turn 4. We got lucky. Obviously the two cars, they didn’t have any problems and we could continue. It was our lucky day. For many things, you know, for this contact, and also to be both cars with strong points. So, I’m very happy for the team because they deserve it.
QUESTIONS FROM THE FLOOR
Q: (Frédéric Ferret – L’Equipe) Question to Fernando. Is there any weakness in your car that you already can make it better? And we heard you were speaking about something on your car at the end, avoiding the kerb. Did you have any concern about it?
FA: No. But, you know, we had a very comfortable position. So, I slowed down the pace and I informed the team that you know, I could go faster, but I was avoiding the kerbs and just bringing the car home. So yeah, I mean, there are a couple of areas that we have to improve that I will not share. But I think the most important point is that the new Aston Martin is just a new car, a new project. This is just the beginning. You know, this is not the final car, this is just the starting car of this concept that we changed over winter. I think some of the top teams they just kept the philosophy that they had last year. Red Bull or Ferrari they kept more of the same shapes. Just, fine-tuning things and making perfection of that good baseline that they had. For us, it was much more difficult. We have to change 95% of the car. So, I guess there is more to learn from the car, and there is more to come on our side. So full trust in our team, obviously they know what they do. So let’s hopefully improve soon.
Q: (Jesús Balseiro – Diario AS) Question to Fernando, could you elaborate how was your move over Lewis on Turn 10?
FA: Yeah, I think we were not very fast on the straight. So, eventually you normally pass into Turn 1 or into Turn 4. And I think I pass Lewis into Turn 10 and Carlos into Turn 11. So not the normal places, because we could not match their straight-line speed. So, yeah, we had to make some moves in the corners before Turn 10 and Turn 11 and change trajectory, and then get the overtake done, I think to Lewis was more playing a surprise move there, because no one overtakes into Turn 10, let’s say. And then with Carlos, it was close into Turn 10 again, he closed the door, and then I have a better exit into Turn 11. But, yeah, we need to see that because obviously, we will love to pass just on the main straight like everyone does.
Q: (Niharika Ghorpade – Sportskeeda) Question to Fernando. Yesterday, Checo mentioned that the strong point of your team is tyre management, and that your team banks on that on race day. So how much did that play into effect, compared to other areas in performance, and also, when it comes to your race pace, at some point in this race, you will almost matching the two drivers next to you. If it weren’t for the start, do you think you could have been slightly closer to them within the race?
FA: I think on the tyres, yes. It seems that this is one is strength of our car, some legacy from last year as well, because Aston Martin was very strong on Sundays last year as well. So yeah, let’s try to keep that theme on the car and just improve the Saturdays, which was maybe the weak point of last year for the team. And also yesterday, we were not mega-competitive. So let’s work on that. And yeah, on the race pace, obviously we lost time in the first stint. I just sat behind the Mercedes. In the middle stint I have to pass George and Valtteri. And then on the final stint I had to pass Lewis and Carlos. So, all in all, I’m sure that you lose 10 or 15 seconds on all those battles. So if we are 40 seconds behind the leader, we could have been maybe 20 seconds, or 30 seconds. Yeah, not real fight – yet – to Red Bull.
Q: (Alex Kalinauckas – Autosport) Another question to Fernando, please. In both your battles with Lewis Hamilton and Carlos Sainz, you had big moments at Turn 4. It looked like the car suddenly snapped left on you. Can you just talk through the two incidents there and what was causing that? Thanks.
FA: I think we know what is causing that, but I will keep it for me. We’re still working. As I said, the car is very new. We need to learn more from the car, I need to get used to the car. So those moments were more coming from me getting used to the car, getting used to the driving input, feedback from the steering wheel and power assistance. So things that they are not 100% tailormade yet.
Q: (Ronald Vording – motorsport.com) Max, but Checo can add if he wants to. Given the balance issues that we talked about on Friday and Saturday are you surprised to see how big the gap actually is in the first race compared to the first non-Red Bull car? And secondly, you talked about Jeddah a little bit; we can see the data that Ferrari at least made a step in their top speed so what do you expect from Ferrari in Jeddah?
MV: Yeah, I think I already said before that the one lap performance to the race is very different in balance requirements anyway. So even like I said before, on Friday, I was unhappy with the one lap performance, my long runs were still okay, so not really surprised. I’m just, of course, happy that it worked out like this but Jeddah is going to be quite different again. Our car seems quite strong in high speed but you’re right, I think Ferrari is quite quick on the straight which in Jeddah, of course, is very nice to have, let’s say like that. But yeah, time will tell. It’s really hard to know. We’ve only really driven these cars here in Bahrain so we just have to wait and see. We’ll, of course, try and get there in the best shape possible and then we’ll find out throughout practice where we are exactly.
SP: Oh, it’s nice to see three Red Bull cars on the podium!
Q: (Carlos Miguel – Marca) Fernando and the Red Bull drivers: for Alonso…
SP: We are all Red Bull drivers.
Q: (Carlos Miguel – Marca) Fernando, after that podium, do you think of the 33rd victory? And I ask after to the Red Bull drivers.
FA: Yep. I would say yes because when you are P3 in race one, there are 22 opportunities this season. And even last year, I remember in Canada, wet qualifying, we were in the first row of the grid. You know, anything can happen in 22 races with different conditions. And, you know I will try my best to do have the opportunity. Maybe we need some help. Last year, we needed some help from the top teams just to get the podium. Maybe this year, if there is this help or there is some retirements in front of us or some problems maybe it’s more than a podium. So let’s hope for that.
Q: (Carlos Miguel – Marca) Question for Max and Checo, do you read that Fernando could be a contender for the championship this year?
MV: I hope so for Fernando as well because he has had a few years where there was not really a possibility to fight at the front so I’m happy to see him sitting here already in race one. I think also again, I mentioned it before, but at Aston Martin they really have the spirit and drive, they want to win and they’ve hired a lot of good people. So I guess it can only get better for them. And I think for this year, difficult to say if they’re going to challenge for the championship, but race wins are definitely on the table. I’ve been in the same position where some races I’m finishing 20 to 40 seconds behind the winners and you still win two or three races a year because sometimes they are some tracks which really suit your car and everything just comes together and you can win a race with maybe sometimes a bit of help or luck. But for sure they have a really strong package. And now of course it’s all about developing it further.
SP: I’m first of all very happy to see Aston and Fernando up here. I think it’s been a tremendous effort and it’s great to see Fernando in his first race for the team on the podium. I think they certainly have a very good car. They will be a contender for sure in a few tracks. You know that the seasons in Formula 1 are extremely long, so anything can happen. So yeah, it’s just nice to see Fernando and Aston.
Q: Fernando, when did you last feel this positive? This upbeat after race one of a season?
FA: I think 2013. Yeah, we were leading the championship, I think, after Barcelona. So we had a contender package but after that I think I didn’t feel as good as now.
Q: (Aaron Deckers – Racing News 365) Last year, Aston Martin ended up seventh in the constructor championship. Obviously, with the new rules, is this the ultimate proof that now Aston Martin is fighting for the podium, that the rules are working since last year?
FA: I don’t think so. No. I think you need to have the vision and the ambition of Lawrence Stroll, or our leadership and our management because the opportunities are there for everybody but it seems that only one team is willing to do whatever it takes to win. And you know, I’m proud to be part of this organisation.
MV: Yeah, Fernando’s absolutely right. I think you mentioned all of it and I think it doesn’t matter if it was the previous generation or this one. I think if you have the right people in charge, and they really want to win and they hire the right people, anything is possible.
SP: Nothing more to add.
Q: (Luke Smith – The Athletic) Max, this is the first time in 12 years that Red Bull have won the opening race of the F1 season, how different do things feel at the team, compared to say this time last year when there was the double DNF start? And what does that say about the rest of the season, the strength that you can carry through the year ?
FA: A double DNF would be nice.
MV: Well, last year was very disappointing, of course. That normally was a P2. I do think our mentality also has changed a bit compared to a few years ago, in terms of how we are operating and how we are developing a car. And yeah, it’s great to finally have a car which is able to win from the start. And it also helps the car’s not so overweight. It’s perfectly fine now. But yeah, this is a great start but we also know that throughout the season you have to keep on developing. Of course, we are on that, but we hope of course that’s going to be more than the other teams because you have to try and keep that advantage going.
Q: (Alex Kalinauckas – Autosport) Checo, just going back to the very start of the race what happened there? How come you weren’t able to follow Max from second?
SP: Yeah, I basically lost the position to Charles and that very much defined my race. As I say, he was very strong on that first stint and every time I could get close to him, I was just taking off my tyres so it was very important for me to get to lap 15/16 and still having a good tyre which I could push and make a bit of a tyre delta so I could get by him and once that happened, Max was just too far down the line.
Ends
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Indian reporter Niharika raises spotlight on Aston Martin at Bahrain FIA press meet
The following drivers attended the post-qualifying session FIA Press Conference for the Bahrain GP, the first round of the FIA Formula 1 World Championship. 1 – Max VERSTAPPEN (Red Bull Racing), 2. Sergio Perez (Red Bulll Racing), 3. Charles Leclerc (Ferrari).
At the start of the season Aston Martin has been looking good and the experienced Indian F1 reporter in Bahrain asked the three drivers present to give their views on it.
Q: (Niharika Ghorpade – Sportskeeda) From the data in the last two days, where do you think Aston Martin fits in because they were already looking good FP1 to FP3? And do you see the field bunching up more after the first three tracks, which are very different in characteristics?
CL: Oh, they’ve shown a very promising race pace in FP2, but again, FP2, it’s very difficult to judge because you don’t know the fuel level they had in the car. But I think they will be strong in the race, probably quicker than what they’ve shown in qualifying, even though they were pretty close. But yeah, let’s wait and see tomorrow.
MV: Yeah, for sure, they look very competitive. And I think already not only this year but last year. Their car was maybe not that amazing but I think in race pace, they were always quite strong compared to their competitors. So they probably took that also into this year. So for sure, they will be very competitive in the race, but a bit difficult to tell. But again, like I said before, a lot of things can happen throughout the race, with certain safety car moments or whatever, you need to make the right calls at the right time as well. You don’t even need to have the fastest car then of course to win
SP: Well, they’ve been really strong, in the conditions yesterday, today so yeah, definitely expected them to be around us and obviously for tomorrow they will be a threat so it will be very close battle I think with a few cars racing each other throughout the race and you know, if there is a safety car at the right time for you, then it can change the story with this track that is pretty high deg.
Earlier TRACK INTERVIEWS (Conducted by David Coulthard)
Q: Charles, we saw you getting out of the car and we suddenly thought, is there an issue with the Ferrari but it’s strategic?
Charles LECLERC: No, there wasn’t any issue. I think we were in a fight for pole, which was a good surprise, to be honest, because I did not expect that after testing and after the free practices that were a little bit difficult. We managed to find that pace for the quali lap, which was great. However, we need to keep in our mind that in the race run we seem to be a little bit on the back foot compared to Red Bull. And I think we are in a better place starting third with new tyres than starting first with old, or a bit further up [than third]. I don’t know if we will have gotten pole or not. But it would have been close.
Q: Now you were the pole king last year. That session, though, as we were watching the times being traded between yourselves, the Red Bull, the Aston Martin or Fernando, it seems a lot tighter. It’s certainly a lot tighter than what the pre-season testing had predicted.
CL: Yes. I hope it will also be like that on the race runs. But yeah, it was very, very close actually. Aston Martin was really quick. Mercedes, also, was really quick at some points of the qualifying. And we are much closer than what we expected, which is looking good for the future. I think it makes Formula 1 more exciting. So I’m looking forward to the rest of the races.
Q: There’s a glint in your eye. Do you have a feeling about tomorrow?
CL: Well, again, let’s say that in the race run we seem to have a bit of a weakness for now. Having a new tyre will help us tomorrow. But I don’t know how much the picture will change with that. But it’s going in the right direction at least.
Q: Well done. Thank you, a top-three finish. We’re going to hear now from Checo Pérez. Checo, pretty tight there with Max, just a tenth between you. It’s been tight all weekend. How was your lap? Did you leave anything behind?
Sergio PÉREZ: Yeah, I mean, it has been a really tight qualifying. I don’t remember such a tight qualifying battle from Q1 to Q2, you know, the competition it’s really marginal. So you cannot leave anything on the table to maximise your grid position. In the end I wasn’t totally comfortable with the balance. I believe, certainly, that you can always improve a tenth on your lap. But I think to get this start for the team is really special.
Q: You say you’re not comfortable with the balance. This is all about one-lap performance. Of course, the race tomorrow it’s about those long runs. Do you think the balance will be more suited to the race run for you?
SP: Yeah, if anything, we prepared much more to do the race. You know, we have more of a Sunday race car at the moment underneath us. We knew we had to do some compromises for quali, which we ended up doing. They were not ideal, but hopefully tomorrow it pays out and we can have a very strong race car.
Q: Well, that’s ominous for your competition to know that was a compromised qualifying car. And you’ve just put it in P2! Congratulations. Thank you. And now it’s time to hear from our pole position man. Max, congratulations, your 21st pole position on your father’s 51st birthday. So that’s a good father’s present.
Max VERSTAPPEN: Yeah. I hope he was watching. I’m pretty sure he was watching. But yeah, I think it’s been a bit of a tough start to the weekend yesterday and today, not really finding my rhythm. But luckily, in qualifying, I think we managed to put the best pieces together. And, of course, very happy to be on pole, and for the whole team, coming off of last year and again having such a strong car with Checo up there as well. Yeah, it’s amazing. And I’m looking forward to tomorrow.
Q: Put us in the cockpit. There’s been some minor changes to the floor heights, minor changes to the construction of the Pirelli tyre. How does the car feel relative to the first evolution, year one of this regulation?
MV: Well, I think compared to last year everyone knows a bit more what they’re doing with the car. So naturally, I think you already start off better and more competitive. And then, yeah, the changes I think slowed down the car bit, but we are still going faster. So that’s of course a great thing to see. And I think again, you know, throughout the year, you will see that everyone is increasing their performance again, a lot and that’s the beautiful thing about Formula 1.
Q: Did you honestly expect it to be so tight? You know, the gap to Ferrari. Fernando Alonso was not that far away as well.
MV: I was actually positively surprised being on pole after the struggles I had in practice. So that’s positive and normally our race car is better. So let’s see.
PRESS CONFERENCE
Q: Max, this was the moment of truth and you’ve continued where you left off last year. How happy does this make you?
MV: I’m particularly happy because my whole weekend up until qualifying was very difficult. I couldn’t really find the comfortable balance I had in testing and I was just struggling a lot to just get the car together, really. I went into Q1 and everything already felt a bit better, but it was still not, let’s say, perfect. So yeah, I’m very happy then in Q3 that we could put these laps in. I still think it’s not perfect, but in a better direction. So, for sure, for the next race we will have to analyse a bit why from the test to the race weekend it’s so different for us, and also for me driving wise. But nevertheless, we are sitting here with two cars. So coming off last year I think this is again a very strong start for us. So yeah, very happy with that.
Q: How much have you had to change the car this weekend?
MV: A lot. I went left and right and back to the middle and found a bit of a compromise. So that’s a bit unusual that you make such big changes. But, like I said, luckily in qualifying that’s probably the best balance I’ve had throughout the weekend so far.
Q: Given those struggles, how good was that final lap in Q3?
MV: Yeah, the laps were good. Yeah, you come out of qualifying and you always immediately analyse your lap, right? And yeah, overall, pretty pleased.
Q: So what about the race? How confident are you feeling in the long run?
MV: That should normally be our stronger point than the one-lap pace. So hopefully we can show that again tomorrow.
Q: Checo, coming to you now. This is Red Bull’s first front row start, here in Bahrain. So a great result for the team. Anything more to come from you in qualifying on that final lap?
SP: Just like Max said, you know, the balance has been really different from testing. We’ve done plenty of kilometres here but we came to the race weekend and we found a very different balance to testing. So, we’ve been working our way through, we’ve been making massive changes from one side to the other. I think in the end, we knew we had to compromise a bit the quali-pace for tomorrow’s race. So hopefully that will pay out tomorrow. Generally, I wasn’t that comfortable with my balance in Qualifying. But I think, as I progress, I was able to learn my way around the balance I had and get a good Q3 lap in the end, but not enough to beat Max.
Q: Checo, you talk about how the balance has changed from testing to this weekend. Can you just tell us a little bit more about that? What have been the struggles exactly?
SP: Well, I wouldn’t go too much in detail. It’s just that we found quite a different car to what we had in testing and we don’t understand what’s the reason behind it: could be wind; the relative temperature; many variants that I think after the weekend, we will have a bit more of an idea. But for now, we’ve got a focus for tomorrow.
Q: Is this the same car that you had in testing? Or has it got upgrades on it?
SP: As far as I know, it’s the same.
Q: Okay, looking ahead to tomorrow. Where do you see the main challenges coming from? Do you think Charles is going to be quick? Can you challenge Max for the win?
SP: Well, the Ferraris definitely picked up throughout. I think there were sandbagging a bit through the first days of testing and in during the weekend. They’re definitely there. They’re very strong. So, I will expect them to be in the fight for tomorrow’s race. And you can already see, you know, that it is not only Red Bull and Ferrari there are plenty of other teams that have joined the competition. So, I mean, if you don’t get a perfect lap in Q2, Q1, you really have to put more tyres on, so yeah, the competition has increased certain for this season.
Q: Charles, coming to you, Checo says you’ve been sandbagging until now. Is that the case?
CL: I don’t know. Definitely not as much as…
MV: Maybe you found a sandbag in the car?
CL: I didn’t find it myself. And I’m not aware of it. I mean, we found a lot of performance in Qualifying. But I mean, ‘a lot of performance’, we were in the fight, which is something that I probably did not expect. So, it’s a good surprise. To tell you where we found the performance, I’m not really sure, so we need to look into that. Because as much as we need to understand the bad days, I think we also need to understand the good days. That’s how we will improve but good that it’s like that. But we also need to be realistic. I mean, those guys, and also Aston Martin, seems to be really, really quick in the race. Which is why I think, we made that choice in Q3 to be willing to lose one or two positions at the start, but having new tyres to put all the chances on our side, which I’m sure is the right choice. But let’s see tomorrow.
Q: Look, if you had another go in Q3, do you think pole position would have been possible?
CL: I mean, I hate saying yes, it will have been or… I mean, it’s difficult to say but for sure, seeing the margin on the first set, I knew there was a bit of time to find. So, it will have been close.
Q: Just looking ahead to tomorrow, the long run pace of the car versus Red Bull. How do you see it?
CL: They are quick, they are really quick. Hopefully we have another good surprise tomorrow. Of course, for now, we don’t know in which conditions they were running in FP2 when they were doing the race simulations. Looking at FP2, they are very quick.
QUESTIONS FROM THE FLOOR
Q: (Frédéric Ferret – L’Equipe) Question to Charles. We saw that a small part of your car fell down on Q1. Do you think you missed some performance without it?
CL: I don’t think so. I haven’t seen the team but I was told on the radio that it was all fine.
Q: (Alex Kalinauckas – Autosport) Another question to Charles on the same topic, please. What was the part that fell off? And what did they feel like when you braked for Turn One because we saw you locking up? Was it a result of that?
CL: The part I honestly don’t know. Because I haven’t seen any images of it whatsoever.
MV: It was the sandbag.
CL: Yeah, probably! But the lock-up I think was just me being too optimistic in braking for Turn One. I don’t think it’s… I mean, I didn’t feel anything particularly weird.
Q: (Luke Smith – The Athletic) Max, you said in the TV interview before coming here that it was a positive surprise to get pole. What’s your reasoning behind that? Were you surprised because the other teams were so close? And it was a tough fight? Or was it more of a surprise that you got the most out of the car given the balance issues you discussed?
MV: Yeah, I mean, after testing I was very happy and then then I jumped in the car in FP1 and it was a big shock. I just couldn’t get the balance right through all the practice sessions. And that’s why I think what we achieved in qualifying was very good. I mean, qualifying to race is anyway a different car in terms of how it behaves, but you still want to be quick over one lap and that was a big struggle for me. Yeah, we just need to analyse everything what got onto the car for the race weekend, even if it’s the same part but new, just to check everything for next weekend again.
Q: (Christian Menath – Motorsport-Magazin.com) Question first part for you Charles: would you be happy with P3 tomorrow? And for the Red Bull drivers, who do you think is your main competitor in the race?
CL: No, I think we are only happy if we win. But again, realistically, they seem to be very, very quick. So I think in those weekends where we are a little bit underneath, that’s exactly those weekend that we need to maximise and, and try to get what we can in terms of points. So yeah, if a win is possible tomorrow, I will go for it. If not, we’ll try and get the maximum points.
MV: They are all very close to us. Of course, we have shown really good race pace but we still need to show that tomorrow, and a lot of things can happen also during a race, which sometimes is not in your control. So yeah, we just, of course, need to focus on ourselves and try to do the best we can. And hopefully no crazy things will happen.
Q: (Ronald Vording – Motorsport.com) Max but the other two can add if the if they want to. Are you surprised that the field as a whole seems to be much closer this year? The gap between you and Nick in P19 in Q1 was only 1.1s Are you surprised by that? And secondly, is it extra proof that the direction that F1 went in really pays off now?
MV: Not really a surprise. If you look at most of the cars, they all copied each other so everyone is getting smarter over the years anyway, with the same regulations. And if you see that one car, particularly, is doing quite well over a year, you’ll try to copy some things and that’s why of course, naturally everyone is getting closer and in general, of course, understanding the car bit better.
SP: Yeah, certainly the competition is a lot closer now. You can see it straight from Q1. You cannot do a mistake, even if you are in a top car. So yeah, that’s nice in a way. And it will only get closer as the season progresses. So we welcome the competition.
CL: Yeah, for the field closer, I will probably wait and see tomorrow so in the race pace, but in qualifying for sure, it seems that we are all closer, which I think is great. It’s more exciting and qualifying sessions like Q1 and Q2, which for us, for the top teams, whenever we had that big margin we could do a little bit of whatever we want. Now it seems to be a bit more on the limit so it’s nice.
Q: Checo, you know, a lot of a lot of the people in that team very well. You’ve been having a few chats? Got inside information?
SP: Yeah, they’re very good on tyres. I know John is really good guy, and they’re very good. They generally have been really strong. I think that’s one of the strongest points of them. They rely a lot on that. The way they operate when I was there, it was always biased to the race weekend so I think tomorrow we can expect a very strong Aston Martin.
Q: (Jeremy Satis – AutoHebdo) Charles, obviously race pace was a bit of a weakness compared to Ferrari last year for you. Are you optimistic that you made a step forward on this?
CL: Again, the goal is to always try and improve. I think we improved our process of… throughout the race trying to take care more of these tyres but if I look in FP2 we are still quite a bit slower than Red Bull in terms of pace and tyre degradation. So we still need to see tomorrow and see where we are exactly but if we focus on ourselves, yes, I feel like we have done a step forward but I’m not sure it’s enough.
Q: (Alex Kalinauckas – Autosport) First to Charles and then to the two Red Bull drivers: Charles, can you please just explain what do you expect to gain by using that extra set of softs at the start tomorrow? Is it really going to be a big benefit does the team feel and again the Red Bull drivers, do you feel that potentially could be a threat at the start of the race tomorrow?
CL: Well, a bit more grip but yeah, I don’t know if it will be a game changer.
MV: Everyone said we don’t need an out lap so it should be okay.
Q: (Claire Cottingham – Racefans.net) There’s going to be a change to the qualifying format later this year, going to be tested at two races beginning at Imola in which you have to use hard tyres in Q1, medium tyres in Q2 and soft tyres in Q3. What differences if any will this make to how you approach the qualifying sessions? And would it have made much difference if that format had been in place today? Can I just get your thoughts on that?
MV: I hope it’s not going to be cold in Imola, otherwise it’s going to be quite tricky but yeah, it’s the same for everyone but I don’t think we need to actually do these kinds of things in qualifying. I don’t really see the benefit of it. It’s better if we make sure that all the cars are close to each other and more competitive instead of spicing things up in that way, which I think is probably for the show.
SP: Yeah, just think it’s for the show. I think we don’t need that when you see the qualifying we had today, how close everything was. We do not really need to change anything. But we’ll see, we’ll see once we try it but I don’t think there’s a need to change something that is working well.
CL: Yeah, I don’t feel there was a need for change for that but let’s try and see.
Ends
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Max Verstappen defends well a challenging question from Indian F1 journalist Niharika
Zandvoort (The Netherlands), 5 Sept. 2022: Popular Indian F1 journalist Niharika Ghorpade (Sportskeeda) who is not afraid of asking tough questions, threw a challenging query to the reigning world champion Max Verstappen. For asking a follow-up question in the post race Presser, Niharika Ghorpade got trolled. However, the Dutch driver gave a calculated reply and cleverly defended himself before sending back a subtle message to his arch-rival Lewis Hamilton. She was unjustly attacked on Twitter and Instagram by Hamilton fans but the Indian journalist knows her sport and is known for calling a spade, a spade!
Read Niharika Ghorpade’s article in Sportskeeda here!
Verstappen answer is given first before the other transcripts:
Niharika’s Question: Max, Lewis suggested that your dominance this year is credited to Adrian Newey and to Red Bull. Do you think that’s valid, and also do you think anybody else in your car, any other driver, could have been as dominant as you are?
MV: There’s a lot of that is down to the team, of course, as also how Lewis won his championships. That’s how it goes in Formula 1. Your car is super-important, but I think when you’re an exceptional driver like of course Lewis is as well, you make a difference over your team-mate at the time, because in very crucial races as well. For example, for me, I think one that stood out as well for him, was Turkey, when it was very slippery – just staying calm, not making mistakes. You end up winning a race like that and that’s what, at the end of the day, what good drivers do. They do make the difference compared to other fast drivers but not as good. So, yeah, the car is very dominant in Formula 1 but of course between team-mates, only one can win, and that’s where you have to make the difference.
The following top-3 drivers attended the post-race FIA Press Conference at the Dutch Grand Prix on Sunday: 1 – Max VERSTAPPEN (Red Bull Racing), 2 – George RUSSELL (Mercedes) and 3 – Charles LECLERC (Ferrari).
The track interviews were conducted by former F1 driver David Coulthard.
Q: Max, what a way to win your home Grand Prix. What a difference a week makes. You had to fight, fight, fight all the way.
Max VERSTAPPEN: Yeah, it was not a straightforward race. We had to push the whole race. Of course, with the Safety Car, Virtual Safety Car, making the right calls, it was always bit of a question mark, but it worked out really well. Once we got back to the Soft tyres we had great pace again.
Q: At any point during the race did you ever doubt? Because it looked like Lewis Hamilton, with track position, had Mercedes covered him off, then, you know, it could have been a different story.
MV: Yeah, I mean, before that Safety Car I thought it was OK to the end with the Hard tyres, even though we were a bit slower. But then of course, the Safety Car came out and I said ‘I don’t think we’re going to keep it up if we just if we don’t pit’. So we went for the Soft tyres. But then of course I dropped back to third. Then George pitted as well. I had a good run on the restart. We have a bit more top speed, so that helps to attack into Turn 1. And from there onwards we had a really good balance in the car again.
Q: That restart with the Safety Car was crucial. I didn’t expect you to get the pass done at the restart, but that’s what your full focus was.
MV: Yeah, we timed it really well out of that last corner into the banking and then you could see the draft was quite strong and we got ahead, so incredible to win again.
Q: Max on the slowing down lap, there are fireworks, there’s a sea of orange smoke. Can you put into words just what this victory means in comparison to all others?
MV: It’s always special to win your home Grand Prix. It was already last year. This year, I have to say I had to work for it even more. So yeah, an incredible weekend and I’m really happy we got the Dutch Grand Prix.
Q: Quick word for your fans.
MV: Unbelievable support. And I’m really happy that all of you guys came here to support me. So proud to be Dutch.
Q: Congratulations, Max Verstappen, the winner of the Dutch Grand Prix. George Russell, wow! You were a little bit out of place in qualifying but you never lost faith. You said you have a quick race car. Second place. Congratulations.
George RUSSELL: Yeah, firstly a huge thank you to all the crowd here. It’s been an incredible reception. It’s a really special feeling for all of us drivers to come racing in Zandvoort and in Holland. So thank you very much.
Q: Now George, you’re going to be happy with that second place but your team-mate will feel that he was maybe a little bit out of position. When you passed him, there was there was a little… What was going on there? It almost looks like you are going to hit the back of him?
GR: Yeah, we like to keep it close, you know, always. But you know, I think as a team today we showed incredible pace. I know the team result wasn’t quite what we hoped for. But this gives us a lot of confidence and a lot of faith moving forward. So, I think it’s incredible see three different teams on the podium and you know we, as Mercedes, are slowly getting closer to that top step so let’s keep on pushing.
Q: Yeah, it shows just how competitive Formula 1 is. George, congratulations on your second place. Charles, congratulations. Third place, not, of course, the result you would have looked for today but the race just slipped away. Can you can you talk us through the key moments that saw you find yourself dropped from second to third.
Charles LECLERC: To be to be honest I mean much better was difficult to do. We were a little bit unlucky with the VSC. I don’t know if this will have changed anything, Max was too quick today. And then there was the Mercedes that were flying on the Hard tyres. We struggled to find the feeling on those tyres. So we’ll analyse that, but yeah, it’s P3 for us today.
Q: The battle with Lewis? Fairly straightforward towards the ends?
CL: Yeah, I mean, Lewis was struggling a little bit. He was on a used set. I had a bit more grip. We managed to overtake him, but they were still managing to keep those tyres very well on the last lap. So it wasn’t easy, but at the end, we made it stick.
Q: The gap increases in the championship. I know you take one race at a time and you never give up but what is your feeling now in the championship challenge?
CL: Well, as I said in Spa, now the gap is really big. So we’ll take it race by race, try to maximise our potential. And let’s see what’s possible.
PRESS CONFERENCE
Q: A very warm welcome to the top three finishers of the FIA Formula 1 Dutch Grand Prix. In third place, Charles Leclerc. In second place, George Russell. And taking his 10th win of this 2022 campaign and his 30th career win in Formula 1, our winner, Max Verstappen. What a weekend for you Max, another win from pole in front of your Dutch fans, just please sum up what this means to you?
MV: Yeah, it was not a straightforward race, you know. So then I think it’s extra rewarding to win the race. We couldn’t really do our preferred strategy to the end and that I think made it a little bit more difficult for us, up until the last Safety Car, because I think we were just a bit more competitive on the softer compounds. But then, of course, with that late Safety Car, we could switch back to the preferred tyre, the Soft one, and we could get back into lead.
Q: You’ve explained it all beautifully now, but how difficult was it to stay on top of everything during the race itself?
MV: Yeah, it was just difficult. I think I gave my opinions about what I wanted with tyres. Like, I said, don’t use the Hard tyre. But we had to, because of the VSC. It came out a bit unfortunate. And then we went out and we were clearly lacking a little bit of pace on that Hard compared to the Mercedes cars on the Medium. I think the gap was still big enough to manage it to the end. But they would have definitely gotten a lot closer than I think the 11-and-a-half seconds it was at the time. But yeah, then Safety Car came out and then there’s no way that you can stay out on a Hard tyre. So we had to box, but I didn’t request it. You have to trust your team as well to make the right calls and they did. So they boxed me. We put a Soft tyre on. And of course, then we dropped back. But then also, of course, George also pitted for Softs and then we were back into P2. And yeah, surprisingly, we had a really good restart and then with the extra top speed we have over Mercedes, I could get a run into Turn 1.
Q: When you look at the race as a whole, were you surprised that it was Mercedes, ultimately challenging you today and not Ferrari?
MV: I was just surprised that they were that quick on the harder compounds. I have to say these tyres are very stiff, you know, the C1, C2. And they just didn’t seem to really switch on for us as good as they did for them. That’s I think what made it a little bit more complicated for us today. But then, once we were able to switch back to the Soft, we could counter it. But yeah, I expected probably them to be a little bit slower. And I expected Ferrari to be a little bit faster.
Q: Now, Max, this magical season continues for you. And in your seven years at Red Bull. Is this the most at one that you felt with the car and with the team?
MV: Yes, but I think that’s normal because of just spending more time with everyone and of course, being part of the team for an even longer period of time. So, I think that’s what you hope for, right? Like every year you continue, that you feel even more at one with the team. With the car it’s a tricky one. Because, of course, when the regulations change then maybe sometimes you have to start over. And I have to say that in the beginning of the year it was a bit of adaptation, which is not fully to my liking. But also, like I’ve explained before, the car was quite heavy. And I think naturally with reducing the weight it all felt a bit more agile.
Q: George coming to you, great job as well. Your best result of the season so far from P6 on the grid. Do you feel you extracted the absolute maximum from it?
GR: Yeah, I think so. I think if you told me before the race, I’d be finishing P2, I’d have definitely been very happy with that. But I think we, as a team, thought we had a shot at victory today. And we roll the dice going with that one-stop strategy from the off. And, you know, the pace of the Mercedes today was just absolute flying. So really proud of the job we’ve done as a team to keep on improving and show how fast our race car is. But obviously, starting a little bit further down the grid, it’s always going to be challenging, but no, for us, as a team, incredible race. Sorry for Lewis that he obviously wasn’t on the podium with us because he did an excellent job and deserve to be sat here too.
Q: As Max just said, your pace on the hard tyre was phenomenal. Did that surprise you?
GR: Yes and no. I think the car was really feeling good this weekend from lap one. On Friday, I knew it was going to be a much better weekend than we had in Spa. I think Spa played against us. Zandvoort probably towards us. So, I’m not sure how our Monza performance is going to be I think it’ll probably be somewhere between the two. Hopefully closer to what we saw this weekend, but I think it’s really promising we have so much race pace.
Q: Do you feel got the car was back where it was at Hungary?
GR: I think there’s no surprises there because these are two very similar circuits: high downforce; a lot of medium speed corners. And that’s where the car really comes into its own. So, you know, we go into some very different circuits in the upcoming races. But globally, we’re bringing a lot of performance to the car. And, as I said, I think we have a car that’s capable of fighting victory, we just need to be able to start a little bit higher up the order.
Q: Charles, coming to you. Well done to you as well, another podium. Is there anything more you could have done today to challenge Max?
CL: Not really, we just didn’t have the pace. We didn’t… we weren’t quick enough. So this is the main focus at the moment, to try and bring back the speed that we had at the beginning of the season. We seem to have lost it, a little bit of pace in the in the long runs especially.
Q: Have you lost it or have the cars around you gained some pace, long run pace?
CL: No-no, I think everybody is obviously improving but in the last races, we’ve been struggling more a bit more in race pace. Now Mercedes is also in the fight and they are very quick. They were extremely quick today, especially on the Harder compounds. I think our pace on the Soft was really good at the beginning. We had used tyres, Max was on new, so I think the difference was more or less what we expected. But then, on the new Medium, we were slower than expected, for sure.
Q: And were you surprised by the pace of Mercedes today?
CL: Yes, definitely. On the Harder compounds? Yes.
Q: Charles, can you just throw it forward for people who want a preview for Monza next weekend? What can we expect from you and Ferrari there?
CL: On paper, it’s not our best track, unfortunately. But anyway, I’m really looking forward to go there. We always have a massive amount of support. And for that, I’m really looking forward to it. But I think the performance on paper will be a bit more difficult than this weekend, unfortunately.
QUESTIONS FROM THE FLOOR
Q: (Alex Kalinauckas – Autosport) Max, at what point did you realise that Mercedes was going to be a real threat for the win? Was it when Lewis and George were flying on the Hards? At the same time, George, when you had that Hard tyre on, before the Virtual Safety Car, how hard were you guys pushing to make it to the finish? Thanks.
MV: I have to say, when I swapped to the Medium, of course, I was catching them, which is normal because I had a newer tyre, they were still doing good lap times, I have to say. And then yes, as soon as they swapped to the Hard, I was quite interested to see their pace, because I never really wanted to go to a Hard tyre. But yeah, when I heard the lap times, I was like… ‘that’s quite quick’. And I was trying to push up a bit. But they were still a few tenths faster. So yeah, very surprising that they made it work, that tyre around here. But then I knew, of course, it might get close to the end of the race, with the way our strategies were playing out. But then, of course, the gap after the VSC was still getting big enough to manage. But yeah, clearly, they were quick in the race.
GR: Yeah, I think we had nothing to lose; we were pushing absolutely flat out and we knew that was our only opportunity to fight for victory. And, you know, pre-race, in our strategy meetings, we said, we need to be bold in our decisions to be able to fight for victory. And I think, starting on that Medium, it was clear that the others were going to be doing a two-stop. And, as I said, we just absolutely went for it. And when we saw Max in our sights, that was really exciting. It was probably, for me personally, the most enjoyable race I’ve ever had in Formula 1, just being able to push so hard for so long on such an exceptional circuit as well. I think it was really quite fun.
Q: George after the performance of the car today, do you remain even more convinced that this car can win this season?
GR: There’s no doubt we’ve got the race pace to be able to win. Absolutely sure of that. And had we been starting P2/3/4 we probably could have won the race today. And, ultimately it’s going to come down to our qualifying performance on a Saturday. If we continue to qualify P6 and P8 as we have done in the last two race weekends, we’re going to really struggle to win a race. But we need to find a bit more magic in qualifying as we showed in Budapest.
Q: (Ronald Vording – Motorsport.com) Max, when you pitted during the Safety Car it seemed that you had to overtake two Mercedes car on track for the win. Personally, were you surprised by their decision to pit one car and to take the buffer away and did it make things a bit more straightforward at the end of the race for you?
MV: It’s always easy to speak afterwards, but I think the call George made was the right one at the end because I think with the pace we had on the Soft, I would have overtaken both of them because the grip difference was quite big at the end – it turned out to be.
Q: (Niharika Ghorpade – Sportskeeda) Max, Lewis suggested that your dominance this year is credited to Adrian Newey and to Red Bull. Do you think that’s valid, and also do you think anybody else in your car, any other driver, could have been as dominant as you are?
MV: There’s a lot of that is down to the team, of course, as also how Lewis won his championships. That’s how it goes in Formula 1. Your car is super-important, but I think when you’re an exceptional driver like of course Lewis is as well, you make a difference over your team-mate at the time, because in very crucial races as well. For example, for me, I think one that stood out as well for him, was Turkey, when it was very slippery – just staying calm, not making mistakes. You end up winning a race like that and that’s what, at the end of the day, what good drivers do. They do make the difference compared to other fast drivers but not as good. So, yeah, the car is very dominant in Formula 1 but of course between team-mates, only one can win, and that’s where you have to make the difference.
Q: (Jaap de Groot – Masters Magazine) Continuing from the last question, Max, when you won your first world title, you wondered if you ever could produce the same intensity and your will to win. But it seems now instead that you’re bringing winning to a next level.
MV: It’s a whole team effort, you know, and the intensity is different. It’s also a completely different season. But I think I don’t need to tell anyone in the team, the motivation we have, to always try to improve and to win races, even when we win races, we still want to do better. And also, today we will look at a lot of things that we can do better but I think that’s what you always need to have, that kind of approach, always wanting to do more, wanting to do better, because that’s how you stay on top because if you stand still, of course, people at the end will overtake you.
Q: (Marijn Abbenhuijs – AD Sportwereld) Max, Helmut Marko just told us how impressed he is with you, with your ability to stay calm and extremely focused, even in circumstances like this, these chaotic circumstances. Do you have moments of realisation that you think: ‘well, how special is this? What is going on in my world at the moment?’
MV : When you’re on the grid, you’re not thinking about how special everything is. I’m focused on what I have to do in the car. You go through all the procedures so it’s nice, of course, to see all the crowd and the craziness and I appreciate it a lot but I think also, as a sportsman, you focus on your job, right? And that’s what you do throughout the race. And then of course, after the race, you take it all in and of course, this was a very special weekend for me, to see, all of these fans come out and support me. It’s been incredible but of course for those one and a half hours, you are fully focused on the job.
Q: (Alex Kalinauckas – Autosport) George, with what happened to Lewis after the safety car restart, what you feared would happen to you as well, if you’ve been left out on those mediums? And also when you came by him, how close were you to making contact? It like you had to check up a little bit.
GR: I think as a team it was an incredibly difficult decision because had we both pitted, we would have conceded the position to Max. Had we both stayed out, we probably both would have lost out to Max as well so the best chance we as a team had of victory was splitting the cars, one to stay ahead of Max, one to stay behind and see what happened. If you could have just got those tyres restarted, it could have been different but it was always going to be very, very challenging for him, but I’m sure Lewis… he wanted to go for it. As a racing driver and where we are at the moment as a team, we want to win. And we’re obviously really happy with the points, just being consistent, getting them on the board but ultimately no one remembers who finishes second in a championship. So we want to we want to win a race. And yeah, I think obviously with that overtake with Lewis, just a bit of confusion and I came out just as he defended, and yeah, it could a bit nasty, but it’s nothing but respect between the two of us. So yeah, all good.
Q: (Ronald Vording – Motorsport.com) Max, last week you said that Spa-Francorchamps tracks suits your car perfectly well, and that it would be more tricky on a high downforce circuit. Today was more tricky but still you won at the Hungaroring, you’ve won here, so is it fair to say that the Red Bull car does not have any real weakness anymore at this stage of the season?
MV: Not real weaknesses but we know at some places where we are stronger than others, we know on a high downforce track that it’s a bit of a more difficult situation to get the best out of our package. But I think if you look at the whole season, of course, you have more tracks with kind of medium downforce levels and I think our car is very efficient. So that’s why I think we’re all looking forward to Monza.
