Formula 1

Qualifying Lives Up to Low Expectations At Toro Rosso

1 Mins read

Sebastien Buemi said that fifteenth place in qualifying for the Canadian Grand Prix was where he thought he would be whilst Jaime Alguersuari had the dubious honour of being eliminated at the end of Q1 and will start P18.

“I have been struggling under braking and, after the morning, we changed something on the set-up to try and improve the car for qualifying,” said Alguersuari. “It looked a bit more positive, but I locked up the brakes and flat-spotted the front left tyre which limited my performance on that lap. That kept me out of Q2 which is a shame as the car had the potential to be fifteenth.

“I still believe we can have a strong race tomorrow, but it's important that we try and learn from this session, to see why we are struggling so that we can improve our qualifying performance in Valencia in two weeks time and give me a better feeling from the car.”

Buemi thinks that the Toro Rosso race pace is better than their qualifying pace, and is hoping to make up positions tomorrow. “I would say we are more or less where I thought we would be, fighting with the Williams and the Saubers,” said the Swiss driver. “My best lap was pretty good, but I'm a bit disappointed that half a tenth of a second cost me two places. It was the right decision to go for a final run in Q2 because without it I would have been further back.

“Now we must wait and see what happens tomorrow, because I think our race pace is a bit better than what we could produce in qualifying today.”

Technical Director Giorgio Ascanelli revealed that, if their is rain during the race, then Toro Rosso will probably be at a disadvantage.

“The result of qualifying is pretty much where I expected us to be, although maybe a little bit better than expected with Sebastien,” he said. “With Jaime, we are still struggling, as we have not found a way of giving him a car in which he can trust. In terms of race pace, free practice has shown we are in reasonably good shape. I am hoping for a dry race tomorrow, because if it rains, I think we will be at a disadvantage.”

1972 posts

About author
David is an occasional contributer to the site on matters related to Formula 1. You can follow him on twitter at @Dr_Bean.
Articles
Related posts
Formula 1

2024 Australian Grand Prix - TCF Driver of the Weekend

2 Mins read
TheCheckeredFlag Driver of the Weekend is revealed for the 2024 Australian Grand Prix.
Formula 1

2024 Australian Grand Prix – What the Team Principals are Saying after the Race

7 Mins read
The ten Team Principals reflect on drivers performances at Albert Park during Sunday’s Australian Grand Prix, a race that saw Ferrari claim their first win of 2024.
Formula 1

2024 Australian Grand Prix – What the Drivers are Saying after the Race – Part 2

7 Mins read
Those who missed out on points in Australia reflect on their races, including Max Verstappen, who retired from a Grand Prix for the first time since the same event in 2022.