Saturday in analysis
We’re going to close our ticker for now, but there’s a little bit more going on on our portal – and on YouTube too! Kevin Scheuren and Christian Nimmervoll report at 4:00 a.m. with their analysis for qualifying.
Among others, the following topics are planned:
– Verstappen: That cost him the pole
– Result
– Vettel & Schumacher
– Official: Sargeant will be Williams driver in 2023
– FIA-PK: Zoff between Horner & Brown
– Memoirs of Dietrich Mateschitz
The race starts on Sunday at 9:00 p.m. CEST, and then we will of course be at the start again with a new ticker. Sleep tight later, have fun with our analysis and see you then!
Vettel: “Only good memories” of Mateschitz
Our ticker is coming to an end, and in the end we want to let Sebastian Vettel have his say again about his long-time companion Dietrich Mateschitz. He has “only good memories” of him, he says in the ‘ORF’.
He was “still a bit shocked” so shortly after the news, he admits and explains: “It was someone very special who always managed to do what others didn’t think was possible – no matter what the aspect.”
He was “very, very young” when he became world champion for the first time in 2010. “Nevertheless, I think I learned to appreciate the fact that he was always treated at eye level and with a lot of respect,” said Vettel.
“It’s a big shock, I think for everyone who has been part of his journey,” he says.
© LAT
Wolff aggressive: victory not excluded
The Mercedes drivers will start from P3 and P4 tomorrow, which is why Toto Wolff explains that you can possibly fight for victory. “Of course, the favorites start in front of us,” the team boss clarifies.
However, you have “a few more options” with the strategy because you are the only team with both cars in front. In addition, the upgrades would have worked, which also gives hope.
Six tenths were missing on pole today. According to Wolff, that’s still not a bad result. Because this year Mercedes was often stronger in the race than in qualifying…
Gasly has brake problems again
Earlier we spoke briefly about AlphaTauri. Gasly reveals that he actually felt comfortable in the car until qualifying. “There was definitely potential to make it into Q3 today,” said the Frenchman, who was “frustrated.”
“I had problems with the brakes and couldn’t get the temperature in them,” he reports. You had the same problems in Suzuka. Nevertheless, he remains optimistic and explains: “I don’t see why we shouldn’t be fighting for points.”
Teammate Tsunoda is also “frustrated” and admits: “We didn’t have the pace to get into Q3.” Nevertheless, he hasn’t written off a top 10 result in the race either.
Stroll: Best Aston Martin qualifying of the year
Not that long ago, Aston Martin regularly struggled to make it into Q2. With P7, Stroll delivered the best qualifying of the year today. And because of the penalties against Leclerc and Perez, he will even start from P5 tomorrow!
“The car felt really good today,” he reports, explaining: “We found a lot of grip and the car gave me confidence.” He enjoyed qualifying and is now hoping for “a good result on Sunday”.
Teammate Vettel narrowly missed Q3 in twelfth place and admits: “There was more speed in the car today.” He was “not happy” with his Q2 lap because he had no confidence in the rear of the car.
“Little things made the difference today and that’s why I missed Q3,” said Vettel.
Schumacher’s turner…
… is here again in the video. After finishing 16th and 19th, team boss Günther Steiner says for his drivers that they “didn’t show the performance” they had hoped for.
“It looked like we could at least make it into Q2. But we didn’t,” he says angrily and explains: “Both drivers have their second fast lap [in Q1] not brought together.”
“It’s so tight in midfield that you can either end up in Q3 or be eliminated in Q1. And we were eliminated in Q1,” he dismisses.
punishment for Tsunoda
The Japanese was spotted in qualifying at 90.3 km/h in the pit lane. Only 80 are allowed, so the team has to pay 1,000 euros. Apart from that, it wasn’t a good day for AlphaTauri.
In the end, Gasly and Tsunoda ended up only P13 and P15. The Japanese moves up one place because of the Zhou penalty. But that doesn’t really increase the chance of points tomorrow…
Almost in Q3: Albon surprised
The Williams driver was eleventh and will even start the race from P9 tomorrow. “To be honest, today was quite unexpected,” he admits, explaining that it was actually “a difficult weekend”.
The wind in particular is always an issue in Austin, and Williams has traditionally had problems with it. He was therefore “very happy” with his result. The situation is different for his team-mate, who was once again last.
“I didn’t manage a perfect lap in the last lap,” reports the Canadian, who also cites the wind as a reason. Points will probably not be possible for him this time (after P9 in Suzuka last time).
For Albon, on the other hand, it may be.
First real pole for Sainz in the dry
“I managed to put together a good lap without making any mistakes,” says the Spaniard with satisfaction, explaining that pole was in the offing because he was “very close” in a few qualifying sessions.
In fact, it’s Sainz’s first real pole in the dry. He got his first this year in wet conditions at Silverstone, he only “inherited” his second at Spa because Verstappen received a grid penalty there.
So tomorrow Sainz will start from pole for the third time in his career. However, it is the first time that he has driven it out himself in the dry.
Verstappen: It was about “little things” today
P2 on the grid tomorrow is not the end of the world for the Dutchman. “Unfortunately it wasn’t quite enough. But the race is still to come. And the car was okay. It was difficult today with the wind, especially in the first sector,” he reports.
“It wasn’t that easy to get the tires in the right window either. We tried different things. On my first lap in Q3 I lost three tenths on the bumps in turn 3.”
“On my second lap in Q3, I lost a lot through oversteer in the penultimate corner. If you don’t get it right, you’re third. It was about little things, whether you put the tires a little better in the window or not.”
And anyway, sport only plays a subordinate role today. “Without him I wouldn’t be here today, wouldn’t have had this success. We’ll try to make him proud on Sunday,” he says of Dietrich Mateschitz.
What’s going on at Russell?
We’ll just stick with Mercedes. There’s Russell namely already landed behind Hamilton in the sixth qualifying session in a row. He has not been able to beat his teammate on a Saturday since the summer break.
On ‘Sky’ he explains that he doesn’t know exactly what’s going on himself. He just can’t manage to perform at the “level” he had at the beginning of the year. At least today was a little better.
He ended up just 0.041 seconds behind Hamilton. He had only been that close to the record world champion once since the summer break.
Hamilton had calculated more
“I was expecting a bit more,” admits the Mercedes driver after P5. It was a “really, really difficult qualifying session” and he actually expected to be “much closer” to the top.
In qualifying, the car was “suddenly” more difficult to drive than before. Toto Wolff sees it similarly, who explains to ‘Sky’ that maybe three tenths more would have been possible today.
Wouldn’t have changed the result. Then Hamilton would have beaten Perez at most – but would still have started from P3 tomorrow because of the Mexican’s penalty.
The most important thing for Saturday…
… are summarized again today in a separate photo series. And don’t forget: At 4:00 a.m. Kevin Scheuren and Christian Nimmervoll will also be in touch with their big live analysis on the Formel1.de YouTube channel!
Photo gallery: Formula 1 2022 in Austin: The most important thing about Saturday
Red Bull still favorite?
Sainz is on pole, but the Spaniard explains: “I won’t lie. I think Red Bull will still be the favorite tomorrow. They usually have better race pace. Usually they get us in the race.”
But they will try “everything” to stay ahead “and win the race,” said Sainz. Incidentally, Verstappen himself also explains: “Our car is usually a little stronger in the race than in qualifying.”
And Leclerc says his lap was “not the best”. “Carlos did a better job today and deserves to be on pole.” He himself slips out of the top 10 because of his penalty.
Schumacher: Maybe Q3 would have been possible
The German explains his spin in Q1 on ‘Sky’ like this: “It was very windy, but that’s the same for everyone. It’s just fast and then there are the bumps, which then come along…”
“We definitely had a Q2 car, if not a Q3 car,” he says angrily and admits that his early exit was “very frustrating”. However, he does not want to write off the race just yet.
“The car seems to be doing well here,” he emphasizes and explains that tomorrow they want to “hopefully finish in the points.” Of course it won’t be easy from P18 …
Q3: Sainz on pole
In the end, the Spaniard sets another 1:34.356 and thus secures pole! Leclerc is second, but has to go back ten places. Sainz starts tomorrow ahead of Verstappen and Hamilton, who is fifth behind Perez.
As is well known, the Mexican also has to drop five places. Here in the ticker we’ll go a little further with the votes on qualifying. Before the overview:
result
starting grid