Marcus Ericsson felt his Q1 lap to get through to Q2 was good but a lack of new Supersoft tyres compromised him in the second session, with the Sauber F1 Team driver set to start the United States Grand Prix from sixteenth on the grid.
The Swede set a time good enough for fourteenth in the first qualifying segment after overnight changes on his C35-Ferrari helped him compete amongst the midfield runners, and hopes to be able to do the same on Sunday.
“It had been a tricky Friday, as I was not feeling confident in the car,” said Ericsson. “We had quite a lot of work to do overnight to find a better direction for today. We definitely made steps in the right direction for FP3.
“For qualifying I felt even better in the car. That was a good job by everyone. Talking about qualifying, I am satisfied with my performance. My lap in Q1, that at that time was P14, was really good. In Q2 we did not have a fresh set of supersoft tyres to put on.
“Anyway, P16 is a decent position to start the race from, and I hope we can again take up the fight with the midfield in the race tomorrow.”
