What the teams said – Qualifying in Azerbaijan

Mercedes

George Russell looked quick again from the off on Friday, as the Mercedes driver went into Qualifying as one of the heavy favourites for pole. He delivered just that, grabbing his first pole since Austria in what was an incredibly dominant performance – gapping the field by over eight tenths of a second. But while there was jubilation on Russell’s side of the garage, there was shock on Kimi Antonelli’s. He clipped the walls and damaged his car badly enough to park up. That was in Q1, and while his first lap time was enough to make Q2, he took no further part and has to start down the order tomorrow.

Kimi Antonelli, 16th, No time set in Q2

"First of all, congratulations to George. He's done an great job all weekend and fully deserves pole position.

On my side, it's obviously frustrating because the car felt good from FP3 onwards and the pace was there. We had a stronger headwind into Turn One than on the previous lap and the grip level had changed quite a lot, so the car had more grip than I expected. It's a shame because I felt we had enough pace to get through comfortably and fight further up the order. I tried my best to bring the car back to the pits, but unfortunately the damage was too much. The team made the right call to stop the car and protect it.

The positive is that we've shown strong pace all weekend and the car has felt good. Starting further back will make things difficult at a track where overtaking isn't easy, but I've shown before that I can bounce back from setbacks and my focus is already on tomorrow. We'll do everything we can to move forward, score good points and maximise the result for the team."

George Russell, 1st, 1:42.526

"That lap was unbelievable. Given how tight things have been all weekend, I was shocked when I saw the gap. The lap felt incredibly good, but I certainly wasn't expecting that result.

The plan was always to stay on the same set of tyres. The first run was a banker because I knew there was more time to find, and I wanted to push the limits on the second lap. Everything came together. The car felt really hooked up and I was able to get the most out of it.

With Max, both Ferraris and Kimi all looking strong this weekend, it's going to be important to get a good start, maximise every opportunity and execute a clean race. I've felt good in every session and that qualifying lap was one of the most satisfying I've done. The focus now is on tomorrow and making sure we convert today's result into the best possible outcome."

Bradley Lord, Mercedes Deputy Team Principal

"That was an amazing lap from George! He topped every segment of qualifying, honed his approach with each lap, and then delivered a dominant lap when it mattered most. We approached qualifying like a wet session, aiming to be on track throughout and not at the mercy of yellow flags, and that included being first car on track in Q3 - and the first car to complete the session. George executed everything cleanly and thoroughly deserved pole.

Tomorrow won't be straightforward. Around Baku, the tow and energy deployment characteristics of these cars make it difficult to control the race from the front, so there will be plenty to manage across the distance. But his target is absolutely clear.

It was a frustrating session for Kimi, particularly given the pace he and the car have shown all weekend. He clipped the wall in Turn One after the car gripped up more than he expected as he committed to the corner, and Race Control instructed him to park the car shortly after. Incidents like this are part and parcel of a long season and can happen around a street circuit like this where the margins are small; it's another moment of learning.

Kimi has shown several times this season that he is able to put setbacks behind him quickly. The pace has been there throughout the weekend, and the objective tomorrow will be to recover as many positions as possible. The team will repair and prepare the car, and we're confident he can fight his way forward in the race."

Andrew Shovlin, Trackside Engineering Director

"Congratulations to George and the team on a well deserved pole. He has been strong all weekend and looked to take another step into qualifying. By the final session it didn't look like there was anyone to challenge him and his final lap was exceptional.

Kimi had a tough time with a mistake that took him out of the running from early in Q1 when he misjudged the entry to Turn 1. He's clearly disappointed, especially having seen the potential that was in the car today, but we'll look at plans that allow him to mount a strong recovery.

With George we need to see if we've got the pace to control the race, but even if that is strong, it can be a difficult race to manage given the risk of incidents coupled with the fact that we may be having to cover off numerous threats from behind.

The car has been competitive from the first session and that's given us a great opportunity tomorrow. Converting that into a strong result won't be straightforward around Baku, but we've put ourselves in a good position and now need to execute cleanly across the whole race."

Ferrari

Ferrari were once again in the mix in FP3, with Lewis Hamilton just pipping his team mate in the final practice session. But such is Ferrari’s policy of swapping who comes out first, this weekend it was Hamilton’s turn to lead his team mate around. That left him without a tow on the crucial Q3 runs, and as such, he could not challenge for the front two rows. Charles Leclerc could though, grabbing second with a great final lap – but the Monegasque driver could get nowhere near Russell’s pole time.

Charles Leclerc, 2nd, 1 :43.363

"I managed to put together a good lap on my last run, but the gap to George (Russel) was quite big. We expected to be rather far off after a difficult Thursday, but after this morning’s practice we saw there may be something more on the table. We are happy with our position on the grid, let’s see what we can do in the race tomorrow."

Lewis Hamilton, 6th, 1:43.858

"Q1 was fairly solid and there were some positive elements to take from the session. However, getting the tyre temperatures right was a challenge throughout qualifying and that made it difficult to consistently get them into the right operating window. We struggled to extract the grip we were looking for, particularly in Q3, and not having a tow on the final run also made it more difficult to maximise the lap.The car itself is not in a bad place, but there are a few areas for us to understand better. We’ll go through everything tonight and focus on putting ourselves in the best position possible for tomorrow’s race."

Fred Vasseur, Team Principal

"I’m very pleased with the job the team did between yesterday and qualifying, because we struggled quite a lot on Thursday. We made some significant changes to the set-up and to our approach, and they paid off today. George (Russell) has been very strong since the first lap of FP1, but Charles did a good job to put the car on the front row. On Lewis’ side, it was difficult to get a tow because the different run plans made it complicated to synchronise with the other cars. He also brushed the wall on his first lap in Q3, which compromised that attempt, but he recovered well to finish sixth despite not having a tow on his final lap. Tomorrow, tyre degradation is expected to be very low, which could make track position particularly important. We are in a position to score good points with both cars, even if Baku is always unpredictable. We will focus on ourselves, execute the race as well as we can and see what opportunities come our way."

McLaren

McLaren found far more time on Friday than Thursday, the team making some good set-up changes that enabled both drivers to compete. Oscar Piastri wound up with the intra-team honours, as his stronger run of one-lap pace continues following his Qualifying P3 in Monza. The Australian was 0.001s off the front row on a day where there was very little between Ferrari and McLaren. Lando Norris’ last lap did not go to plan, and he starts slightly further back.

Lando Norris, 5th, 1:43.672

"The car felt in a good window throughout Qualifying today, and I was driving well, but we have been dealing with some challenges this weekend, especially with straight-line speed. I locked up at Turn 3 pushing for P2 on my final lap, which cost me today, but the Mercedes were very strong making Pole a very difficult target. Looking ahead to the race tomorrow, it’s going to be a tough afternoon because overtaking will be very complicated around this circuit. The potential is there and we will do everything we can to resolve our issues while fighting hard against Ferrari and Red Bull."

Oscar Piastri, 3rd, 1:43.364

"I am very happy with today’s result. We haven't had the pace throughout practice, so to put it in the top 3, and so close to P2, is a very good feeling. A track like this exposes some of our weaknesses, so you have to push the car to 100%, which we were able to do this afternoon. The car felt much more connected and the upgrades are working as we expected them to, so thank you to the team. Looking ahead to tomorrow, whilst anything is possible here in Baku, I think catching George Russell might be tricky. While we know it may be a challenge, we are still in a good position to fight – we'll manage our strategy carefully, see what opportunities may appear and make the most of it."

Andrea Stella, Team Principal

"It was an interesting and complex Qualifying session. Finishing in P3 and P5 is a result we welcome after a challenging weekend so far, in which the characteristics of the circuit have not particularly suited our car and left us slightly on the back foot through practice. The upgrade package we brought to Baku is performing as expected, so I would like to thank everyone at the factory for their hard work in delivering these new parts.

"We should recognise that the final positions were helped by issues for some of our competitors, including Andrea Kimi Antonelli and Max Verstappen, who looked capable of challenging Pole. Nevertheless, the team, Oscar and Lando did a good job to progressively unlock performance across the weekend. Oscar delivered a strong session to take P3, while Lando was also competitive, although his final Q3 run was compromised and there was lap time left on the table.

"Looking ahead to tomorrow, we expect Red Bull and Mercedes to be very strong. This is a different competitive picture from Madrid, where we felt we had the quickest car and should have won without the Virtual Safety Car. Baku can, however, produce a long and eventful race, with tyre degradation, Safety Cars and other situations creating opportunities.

"Our objective will be to stay in contention, fight for the podium and be ready to exploit every opportunity that comes our way. We will focus on executing our race well and putting ourselves in the best possible position to capitalise."

Red Bull

When Max Verstappen topped FP3, hopes were high that the Dutchman would be in the fight for his first pole of the season despite some complaints about bouncing. He made it to Q3 with ease, but once there his pace started to go away and then his last lap was compromised by yellow flags. It was no matter for Red Bull though, with Isack Hadjar rising to the occasion. In his first Qualifying since July, the Frenchman did a brilliant job to grab fourth on the grid, his highest slot since Australia as he chases a second podium finish of the season.

Max Verstappen, 8th, 1:44.081

“It’s a huge shame as during the whole weekend we were on it and the car was feeling really good. We then went into Qualifying and the engine was down on power, which led to a number of other issues. In Qualifying, the engine was not working as well as it should have and we were lacking top speed: the battery kept draining and then we had to abort the lap and lost temperature in the tyres which affected us. Then, on the final push lap, we got the yellow flag which lost us time too. It was disappointing as we wanted to fight up front and, although I don’t think Pole was possible, P2 could have been on the cards, so all in all not a good Qualifying. We need to sort a few things out and are working as a Team to find the issues. We will try as hard as we can tomorrow, even though there are a few cars ahead." 

Isack Hadjar, 4th, 1:43.500

“The second row is absolutely a result I can be happy with. I came into the week with a smart approach to slowly build from session to session. Baku is not an easy track to come back to, so you need to know where you can and can't take risks. Yesterday, I knew I had to be cautious and then really switch on from Q1 today. The pace was there in the car from the off and I knew I had something to fight with. Mercedes were too far away, but to be in the mix with McLaren and Ferrari was the aim, and we did that. I wish I had been able to have more laps out there and feel like I suffered a little from the lack of mileage to get onto the first row, but it's a good sign that despite that, we were still close. The car has felt very nice all week and we can be competitive tomorrow with the race pace we've shown so far. We're in the picture to fight for a podium, so let's see.” 

Laurent Mekies, Team Principal

"Difficult not to be very disappointed today. Max’s pace has been very strong all weekend and he was getting closer to the top every time he went out on track, so we had high expectations for Qualifying. This was especially encouraging as we came here with our latest upgrade. However, Max’s car developed a power unit issue during Qualifying which got worse as the session went on. Not only did it bring a large straight-line speed deficit, but it also made our life very complicated with energy deployment and tyre preparation. P8 was sort of damage limitation in these conditions. We will change the faulty parts tonight and I know Max will fight very hard with the Team tomorrow to make our way back to the podium. 

"On the positive, Isack’s return to the car after missing three races was exactly as we had all hoped. First, the most important thing is that he is fully recovered and does not have pain while driving. He has built up his rhythm very cleverly throughout the weekend and secured a solid P4 today.  

"We will have two cars fighting for podium positions tomorrow and it does not look like it’s going to be a boring race." 

Alpine

After a steady start to Alpine's weekend, some late laps in FP3 really announced Alpine as the team to watch in the midfield. And that is exactly what happened, with both Pierre Gasly and Franco Colapinto making Q3 to out-qualify all their main rivals. Gasly was the pick of the duo over one lap, beating former team mate Verstappen to boot. As such, Alpine are well placed to score tomorrow and try and close the gap to Racing Bulls in the Teams’ Championship.

Pierre Gasly, 7th, 1:44.047

"I am very happy with Qualifying today, finishing in P7. The team has done a very good job all weekend setting up the car into a place where I feel comfortable and able to commit everywhere throughout the lap. It's probably the best I have felt in Baku for a long time in terms of car balance and being confident to really push the car. Q1 and Q2 were particularly good, we built up our speed lap after lap and we were really in the mix throughout. Q3 was a little messy with yellow flags compromising my laps but that is just a typical characteristic and expectation at this track. I have confidence for tomorrow and we're starting in a good position on the grid. We will remain realistic in our expectations, but we will aim to score as many points as possible and capitalise on our positive position."

Franco Colapinto, 10th, 1:44.963

"It was a positive result for the team today, to have both cars in Q3 once again and starting in the top ten tomorrow sets us up well for the race. Unfortunately, on my side, Q3 was not as good as it could have been. I locked up into Turn 15 and had to complete my final lap with massive vibrations due to a flat spotted tyre. That was a pity, but Q1 and Q2 were very well executed, and we were strong enough to make it through to Q3, even without a tow which really helps at this track. I think we can have a decent race tomorrow and I will work tonight to make sure we are ready. I will try to improve from today and go forwards in the race tomorrow with a target of scoring points again."

Steve Nielsen, Managing Director

"A good Qualifying for us today with both cars in Q3 for the third time this season. It seems we have put the car in a good set-up window here with both drivers able to push and commit to corners lap after lap, which is often a tricky thing to balance in Baku with the conditions and track layout. It is always a bit of a lottery here in terms of yellow flags and traffic management as we saw today. Pierre was hindered a few times by yellow flags in Q3, so he knows more was probably possible. We'll review what we can improve on Franco's side to have him a bit higher up next time but it's a positive Qualifying for the team, nevertheless, especially considering we were P16 and P19 at this track last year which really underlines the progress we have made. We've seen other teams make a step forward, so it remains close and competitive in the midfield. From where we start, inside the top ten, our target, of course, is to have both cars in the points and we'll be doing everything we can tomorrow to make that happen."

Williams

Qualifying was the first real chance to see what difference the new Williams chassis would make, and the answer was a big one. Both cars made it out of Q1, which is not something that has been said often this season. Alex Albon had a messy Q2 and exited, but a great lap from Carlos Sainz secured his first Q3 appearance of the season. He qualified ninth, but his strong day finished on a sour note after the Spaniard picked up a five place grid drop for a yellow flag infringement, dashing his chances of scoring tomorrow.

Carlos Sainz, 9th, 1:44.566

"Q3 for the first time this year makes me very happy, so thank you to everyone back at the factory for their efforts to bring us the new chassis and these upgrades. Each lap through the sessions felt good and we maximised everything we could in qualifying to achieve that P9 result. It’s a clear step forward in the right direction but the weekend is not over yet. Tomorrow, even though it will be tough, I will do everything I can to hold onto the Top 10 and bring home the best result possible!"

Alex Albon, 13th, 1:45.001

"The upgrade is performing as we expected and the positive now is that we’ve got the foundations. Now we're not talking about taking out weight anymore and can focus on aero upgrades, we can take this forwards into next year. We've hit our targets with this upgrade programme which is, in itself, an important thing to do. And now hopefully we have a car that can challenge the midfield at tracks that suit us. Honestly, today's qualifying result is frustrating, mostly because we were slow on the straights and I don't know why. The corners were quite good - Q3 worthy - and Carlos showed that, so there are some positives. Unfortunately, it's going to be a bit of a tough ask to get into the points from P13 tomorrow, but we'll try.”

James Vowles, Team Principal

"I'm so pleased. It's been tireless work from the factory. We didn't get everything right earlier in the year and we paid the consequences of that. But instead of burying our head in the sand, we dug deep and we invented a way of doing something, which was a huge undertaking. It's nice to see the reward is a car that's able to scratch into the top ten. We have to acknowledge that it's one track, and there are some weaknesses in the car that will be exposed at other tracks, but it's a great feeling to see that the hard work has paid off. It won't be enough, but it's a step in the right direction and it demonstrates that we are able to develop the car. Looking ahead to tomorrow, if there were no safety cars and no mistakes, it would be a one stop. But it's Baku, so there's a high chance that's not going to happen. Let's see what we get tomorrow.”

Haas

Esteban Ocon was flirting with the top 10 throughout practice, but couldn’t quite get enough from his Q2 lap when it mattered thanks to an untimely yellow flag. Ollie Bearman got closer, winding up 11th in Q2 for his best Grand Prix Qualifying result since China. That leaves him in the fight for points, having last scored in Shanghai as well. The Haas team’s upgrade package still seems to be helping, but now they need some good strategy calls if they want to fight with the Alpines and Sainz’s Williams ahead.

Oliver Bearman, 11th, 1;44.775

“I wouldn’t have improved on my final lap, I would’ve repeated the lap time, but maybe I would’ve got a better slipstream to finish. It’s annoying and tough because we came from Madrid, which was a really horrible weekend, and then we come here and we’ve been in the fight for Q3 since Thursday, along with Esteban, so it’s a shame – but we can be proud of the hard work. In Q1, it was challenging with track position, but in Q2 it was better and I was able to put together a better lap time. I can see a tenth in my lap for sure, but that’s how it goes sometimes. I missed out on FP2, only doing three laps, so I missed out on a lot of running, but we were incredibly competitive. It will be a better day tomorrow, I know it.”

Esteban Ocon, 14th, 1:45.016

“We were on for a Q3 lap, and the car was working well. We haven’t had many chances this season with this car, and we improved things, and today we had a car for Q3. We had a yellow flag, and that was it. I had a gust of wind the lap before, but I was on for a Q3 lap again, and then I had to back off on the exit of Turn 15 to make sure I wasn’t going to get a penalty, and I lost three or four tenths, so I have no words. At the end of the day, we were competitive, but we can’t seem to get there.”

Ayao Komatsu, Team Principal

“We’re all very disappointed about missing out on Q3 by such a tiny margin, but there are lots of positives today. Ollie didn’t get that much running in FP2, but the way he turned up this morning was good. In qualifying, as everybody’s found, today has been really windy, tricky conditions. You saw how many cars were making mistakes out there in FP3 and in qualifying, and tyres were on the edge as well. It’s been very challenging conditions, but I’m really proud of the team on how we executed both sessions, and got the best out of it. It was very unlucky that we didn’t get into Q3, but it was a huge effort from the team – I’m really happy. We’ve got decent pace, so we’ll really try and put it together for tomorrow.”

Racing Bulls

After looking right in the midfield mix on Thursday, Racing Bulls’ form faded on Friday in Baku. Both drivers were down the order in FP3, Arvid Lindblad unsurprisingly taking time to get his confidence back after yesterday’s crash while Liam Lawson called the session one of the most aggravating of the year. And it was much of the same in Qualifying, neither driver able to make Q3. It is the first time Racing Bulls have not had a car in the top 10 since Miami – but with Baku often throwing up chaotic races, there is still a chance of points for the team.

Arvid Lindblad, 15th, 1 :45.106

"It wasn't a great day for us; it's been a challenging weekend since the beginning. My crash yesterday didn't help, and neither did missing some running during practice, but the whole team has been working incredibly hard to make progress and get me back on track. Our main limitation has been under braking, where we've struggled in a few different corners. It's not easy to make progress when you're dealing with those kinds of challenges, especially at a street circuit like this where braking is so important and there's very little margin for error. I haven't completed any long runs on high fuel this weekend, so looking ahead to tomorrow, there are still some unknowns going into the race. We'll give it everything we have, and hopefully we can make the most of any opportunities that come our way."

Liam Lawson, 12th, 1:44.860

"It’s been a pretty frustrating day, but I think we’ve done a great job with finding an extra step between sessions. My last lap in Qualifying was really good up until the final couple of corners. We struggled with overheating and couldn’t get a tow, which is really powerful around here. With a tow, I think we would have had a good chance of getting through to Q3. It’s going to be a tough race tomorrow and we’ll have to be smart with energy management, the tyres didn’t look too bad yesterday, but we never really know what tomorrow will bring."

Tim Goss, Chief Technical Officer

"It has been a challenging weekend for us through the Practice and Qualifying sessions this weekend, and we have definitely lacked some of our usual competitiveness. Overnight we made some good improvements on both cars for a number of reasons; braking consistency, grip in the low speed sections of the circuit, plus some further refinements to the car configuration and power unit between FP3 and Qualifying. At this circuit, the drivers need a car that they can trust in the heavy braking zones and into the tight 90 degree corners. We are happy we have progressed, but there is clearly more to understand to bring the package back into its usual performance window. Liam will start P12 and Arvid P15 for the race tomorrow, and from there we will look to attack and secure a points finish."

Audi

Audi brought a big upgrade package to this weekend, and yesterday it looked to have left the team in decent shape. But their pace deserted them on Friday, with both Nico Hulkenberg and Gabriel Bortoleto exiting in Q1 and not looking massively likely to do much better. There were lock-ups out there for the team, with both drivers also finding the run off area at times. But from so far down the order, Audi will be one team hoping for a very action-packed race if they want any chance of climbing forward.

Nico Hulkenberg, 18th, 1:45.920

“Today’s result is obviously disappointing, as I feel we were more competitive than the final classification suggests. On the first run, we missed the tow, which makes a big difference around here. Then, on my final lap, I was caught by a yellow flag at Turn 15 and again had no tow down the long straight. We were also lacking some straight-line speed, which makes things particularly difficult at this circuit. There is naturally still more for us to learn about the upgrades as we work to understand and optimise the package. Starting from the back is never easy, but this is Baku and opportunities can arise, so we need to stay sharp and be ready to take them.”

Gabriel Bortoleto, 17th, 1:45.799

“Of course, this is not the Qualifying result we wanted to walk away with today. The first two runs I did seemed pretty decent; on the last run, though, I just couldn't find any grip, and a yellow flag at the end of my final push lap also forced me to lift. We probably left something out there, but I reckon it would have been tough to advance much today anyway. “Overall, it's been a quite challenging weekend for us so far. Some laps feel like the grip is there, and others feel like we're struggling with it. We have been lacking some pace throughout sessions, so we need to analyse everything and understand what hasn't gone right, take that onboard and try again tomorrow.”

Allan McNish, Racing Director

"No disguising a difficult session for us today. Both final runs were compromised with yellow flags towards the end of the session, but we simply did not unlock the pace over a single lap in these windy conditions. We know the underlying package of the R26 is strong, so with a high chance of mid-race incidents we’ll analyse the data overnight and come back with plenty of hope for the race itself."

Aston Martin

Aston Martin are having a tough weekend in Baku. With both drivers facing grid drops after taking on new power unit components, news broke that Fernando Alonso had taken yet more parts. While that did not affect his starting slot, it did show that Aston Martin are up against it still in terms of reliability. Then Lance Stroll clipped the barriers in practice and had to park up with a rear puncture. The Canadian also stopped briefly in Q1 after running wide, as both cars exited early doors.

Fernando Alonso, 19th, 1:46.593

“It was tricky with the windy conditions today, but this is typical here in Baku and it was the same for everyone. I was happy with my performance and with the overall balance of the car today compared to yesterday. We are losing a lot of lap time on the straights and so I think it will make the race difficult for us. We will try to keep on improving and learn as much as we can about the car in the race tomorrow.”

Lance Stroll, 21st, 1:47.337

“We are struggling with power here, but also downforce. It's the car we have; it’s not easy to drive. We are trying to put everything together, but there aren’t a huge number of positives to take from today. We are starting from the back of the grid with the penalties, so we will just have to hope some opportunities come our way.”

Mike Krack, Chief Trackside Officer

“A busy Q1 session with both drivers dealing well with the traffic to get a clean lap on the board. They did two runs each, on the Soft tyres, although Fernando had to abort his final attempt. We ended the session in P19 for Fernando and P21 for Lance, but the grid penalties [for new PU components] will drop us to the back of the grid. It was always going to be a tough circuit for us, but we will do our best to compete with the cars around us tomorrow.”

Cadillac

Sergio Perez likes this place, and he has looked good here from word go. So good that he finished 16th in final practice, with hopes high that he might be able to sneak into Q2. Alas, Cadillac faded as others turned the wick up, but Perez still managed to out-qualify his Valterri Bottas and Stroll’s Aston Martin. The Mexican had further troubles, earning a three-place grid drop for impeding Piastri in Q1.

Sergio Perez, 20th, 1:46.658

"We were expecting more today. We needed everything to go our way, especially with the tow which is quite powerful - about six tenths – and we really needed that. We didn't get the tow as we planned it with Valtteri and myself – it just didn't work out. Valtteri had an issue with yellow flags on his second lap and had to abort, then he was stopped at the weighbridge and I ended up on my own. On my final lap I had an issue with someone going off so I had to abort. Nothing went in our favor and we really needed everything to be perfect to have a shot at going through to Q2. Tomorrow anything can happen and I believe that we can do a good job and go from there."

Valtteri Bottas, 22nd, 1:48.290

"We had a double waved yellow flag at the end of our qualifying, so only the first lap I did really counted. It’s a shame because we implemented some big changes from FP3, which was a difficult session, and those changes helped quite a lot. We changed the floor and the suspension, so the car finally felt like it was working like it should. It's a shame that we couldn’t make the most of it. We’ve closed the gap to the pack this weekend and there should be some opportunities in the race tomorrow. If you can get the tow to stay within the overtake range, we can be in the mix and fight."

Marcin Budkowski, Team Principal

"Following some positive practice sessions in Baku, we come away from qualifying feeling a little disappointed, as things didn’t quite go our way. Checo has shown promising pace all weekend, making the most of the upgrades we brought here, but we didn't manage to convert it into a good position today. He had to fight for track position during his first run and then had to abort his last attempt due to yellow flags. We made several changes on Valtteri's car for qualifying which made him much happier with the performance, but his best lap was deleted due to a double waved yellow flag. We’re looking forward to the challenge of the Baku street circuit and to an exciting race tomorrow."

Pirelli

Dario Marrafuschi, Pirelli Motorsport Director

"Today's conditions were, as expected, significantly different from yesterday's, with lower air and track temperatures and strong winds that contributed to making the cars less stable, particularly at the rear. At the start of FP3, the track was very dirty and offered limited grip, to the point that lap times were slower than those recorded in yesterday's session. Drivers spent the first hour building confidence with the circuit and refining car setup ahead of qualifying.

"Track evolution was significant throughout the day, allowing lap times to improve consistently and eventually reach the levels predicted by qualifying simulations. The absence of meaningful degradation enabled teams to push for multiple consecutive runs on the same set of Soft tyres, benefiting from track evolution, lower fuel loads and improved tyre operating conditions. It was therefore no surprise that several drivers, including pole-sitter Russell, set their fastest laps on the third attempt using the same set.

"The data gathered so far confirms that a one-stop strategy remains the most competitive option. Combinations involving the Medium and Soft compounds appear particularly effective given the limited wear levels observed. The use of the Hard compound in the second stint could become an alternative worth considering should an early neutralisation occur."