Sebastian Vettel has shared details on how he carefully avoided a similar situation to that of his team-mate, Lance Stroll, when he locked up into one of the tightest corners at Baku City Circuit . The Aston Martin Aramco Cognizant Formula One Team driver was able to recover from this close moment and put his car in ninth place for the third time this season.
Stroll, however, wasn’t as lucky. In Qualifying One, the Canadian locked his front wheels on the entry to Turn Seven and flat-spotted both tyres, but escaped with very minimal damage. He tried to carry on without pitting, but understeered into the wall at Turn Two shortly after, preventing him from securing a spot in Qualifying Two.
Vettel’s mistake was similar – he locked both front wheels on the entry to Turn Fifteen and glided into the barrier, once again taking little-to-no damage on his front wing. Despite the mistake, the four-time world champion is satisfied with his starting position for Sunday’s race.
“I am pretty happy with ninth position – another half-a-tenth and I could have jumped Yuki [Tsunoda], but, overall, I think it was a good session for us,” the number five driver shared.
“In Q2, I locked up into Turn 15 – I was not sure if I could make it, then I thought I could, then I decided the best option was just to go in straight and risk damaging the front wing. That worked and I managed to crash wisely!”
“The race will be all about controlling the tyres, and they will be tricky to manage tomorrow. It will be a lot hotter than qualifying was, but I am looking forward to it. I have been around a while, so I think I can benefit from all the experience I have,” Vettel concluded.
“There is still plenty to fight for tomorrow” – Lance Stroll after qualifying error
Following his incidents in the first qualifying session, Stroll will start Sunday’s Azerbaijan Grand Prix from nineteenth place after setting a time four-tenths quicker than Mick Schumacher before his crash.
Stroll is frustrated with his mistake, but believes the dramatic nature of the Azerbaijan race will provide plenty of opportunity to make progress in the race.
“Obviously I am frustrated with how qualifying finished. After my first lock-up [at Turn Seven], the car still felt okay, and I knew we were running out of time in the session, which is why I decided to stay out and try for another fast lap,” Stroll explained.
“Then I think I braked too late into Turn Two. It is unfortunate, but there are plenty of overtaking opportunities here at Baku, and, as we have seen many times before, anything can happen here. There is still plenty to fight for tomorrow.”
Sunday’s race at Baku will see Aston Martin fighting for more points with Vettel, as the team currently find themselves ninth in the constructors championship, trailing Haas F1 Team by eight points.
