Pierre Gasly felt he got the maximum out of his STR12 during Qualifying for the season-ending Abu Dhabi Grand Prix, but the Frenchman was downbeat about ending the session seventeenth on the grid.
The Scuderia Toro Rosso team has struggled for outright pace all weekend long, as was seen with team-mate Brendon Hartley qualifying right at the back of the field, but Gasly felt his lap was good but just not quick enough to advance through to Q2.
“My qualifying lap was good and I feel happy about it because I managed to put everything together, it was a decent lap…” said Gasly.
“The only thing I’m not super happy about is the performance, of course – to qualify only seventeenth is not what we want to see and it’s a bit frustrating not to be fighting for higher positions.
“Having said that, I think we made the most out of the potential we had today and that’s important.”
With Toro Rosso involved in a three-way tussle for sixth place in the Constructors’ Championship with the Renault Sport Formula 1 Team and Haas F1 Team, Gasly hopes to move forward on Sunday and aid his team in maintaining their position ahead of their rivals.
“What I really wish for now is that we hold on to sixth position in the Championship tomorrow – it’s going to be a difficult task, but nothing’s impossible!” said Gasly.
“We’ll keep pushing and see where we end up!”
