Otmar Szafnauer was pleased with the recovery drives of both Sergio Pérez and Lance Stroll during Sunday’s Styrian Grand Prix, particularly on the back of their poor performances during the very wet Qualifying session on Saturday.
Pérez finished sixth from seventeenth on the grid, while Stroll finished right on the tail of his team-mate having started outside the top ten himself. For the Mexican, however, it should have been at least a fifth-place finish but for a broken wing late in the day, caused by Pérez hitting Aston Martin Red Bull Racing’s Alexander Albon as the two battled for fourth.
Szafnauer, the Team Principal and CEO of the BWT Racing Point Formula One Team, admits the final few laps were a bit messy as Stroll passed Renault DP World F1 Team’s Daniel Ricciardo before both the Canadian and Pérez were passed by the rapid Lando Norris. However, the American felt the pace of the RP20 was encouraging for everyone heading into next weekend’s Hungarian Grand Prix.
“After a difficult Saturday, we recovered well to score some important points this afternoon with both cars,” said Szafnauer. “The end of the race was a bit messy, but we gave it everything in those final few laps.
“Both drivers performed well with some strong overtakes to move forward from their starting positions. Sergio enjoyed a great battle with Albon over fourth place, while Lance was fighting with Ricciardo and Norris. It’s a shame there was contact with Albon because the resulting front wing damage dropped Sergio to sixth place at the flag.
“Despite the late drama, we still come away with 14 points and take more encouragement from the car pace as we prepare for next week’s race in Hungary.”
