Pascal Wehrlein admitted he was unhappy with his result during the Russian Grand Prix after ending the afternoon as the last classified finisher down in eighteenth position.
The Manor Racing driver and Mercedes protégé was embroiled in a fight with the Sauber drivers during the race at the Sochi Autodrom, but bemoaned tyre wear issues and a problematic pit stop that cost him the opportunity to finish higher up the order.
“A disappointing result today,” reflected Wehrlein. “I got a good start and managed to avoid all the problems in the first couple of corners, then the first stint was quite good for me.
“I had a good fight with the Saubers but after the first pit stop they were in front of me. I tried to push hard to overtake one of them again but I couldn’t manage it and I destroyed my tyres behind them so I had to box again.
“At the second stop we had a problem with the left-rear which lost us a lot of time but by then I think 18th was the best we could hope for. Now we have to focus on heading to Europe and what we can do to improve. My thanks to the team so far for a good first few races and their hard work.”
