FP3

In the final free practice session track conditions were slower than yesterday with less grip due to overnight rain. Lower temperatures and gusty wind, which also changed direction, were a further complication for all drivers.Charles and Lewis focused on preparation for qualifying using two sets of new Softs each.

Q1

Charles and Lewis completed their first run using one of the two new sets of Soft tyres they had available.They both made the cut to Q2 with two more runs, on the same sets.It was an incredibly long 40 minute Q1, as the session was red flagged three times, due to crashes for Alex Albon, Nico Hülkenberg and, right at the end Franco Colapinto.

Q2

Charles aborted his first two laps on new Mediums after twice going long, but still made the cut to Q3 on another set of new Mediums.Conditions changed throughout qualifying and it became even more difficult to put the tyres in the right window. Lewis struggled with grip on his new Softs which prevented him from setting a fast enough time to make it into the final session.

Q3

On a slippery track, where drops of rain had started to fall, Charles went out on new Mediums for his first attempt, also struggling to put the tyres in the right window, made a mistake and went straight on into the barriers at turn 15, to end his qualifying there.

 

Charles Leclerc #16

We bet on Medium as the best compound today, but unfortunately, with the cooler temperatures and drizzle we faced at the start of Q3, it became difficult to get the tyres in the right window. I over-dedicated myself to that corner and just didn’t have the grip, so I made a mistake. We were on the wrong side of things today, just like some others, so we will have to make the best of it tomorrow and fight to make our way back to the front.

Lewis Hamilton #44

I’m disappointed not to have been able to convert our strong start to the weekend into a good qualifying result. We will be looking at the session as a team so we can take the learnings from it. We know it will be a challenge tomorrow, but the car has felt good all weekend and I’m looking forward to seeing what we can do in the race.

Fred Vasseur Team Principal

There’s a feeling of frustration after this qualifying, because yesterday we had very strong pace over a long run and on the single lap. Today, conditions were different with much strong gusts of wind and it was cooler, which made it more difficult to get the tyres in the right window, but it was the same for everybody so that cannot be an excuse. We struggled to put everything together. Charles had decent pace and was doing a good job, but then he touched the wall. I think he was caught out by a gust of wind between the buildings and in this situation it’s easy to make a mistake, especially when conditions change from one lap to the next. He was not the only one today. It is what it is and now we must focus on the race. It’s also true that today it wasn’t clear cut which was best, between the Soft and the Medium; pole was set on the Soft, Carlos (Sainz) was second on Medium.