After his remarkable good luck in qualifying last time in Spain, Racing Point looked a little out of the ordinary at Spa-Francorchamps and suffered to keep up with his rivals.
Sergio Perez started from fourth place on the grid two weeks ago with Lance Stroll in fifth place, but it was another story in qualifying for the Belgian Grand Prix.
Both drivers barely managed to qualify for the last ten strokes on purpose after looking to ride medium-composition tires in their first race, leaving them out of the ten most sensitive and in the fall zone.
“We hoped to succeed in the Q3 with medium tyres, but with all the groups so close, we had to go very comfortable to progress,” said Cyril Abiteboul, Racing Point team manager.
“Our rating speed didn’t meet our practice expectations, so it’s something we want to perceive in the future.”
Fortunately, a race moment in the comfortable pulley allowed them to pass, however, in the last consultation, Perez and Stroll were unable to do more than the eighth and ninth on the grid respectively, not as high as the team expected this weekend.
“I’m a little surprised to be just P8, so we want to take a look at the knowledge and see why we seem to be losing speed today,” Perez admitted.
“We weren’t as strong on the FP3 or in the rankings as we did yesterday,” he said. “It was also very narrow there and the spaces between the cars were very small.
“I don’t think we should show our true pace and we had media issues on Q2.”
But Perez is sure that Saturday’s failure would not hinder his chances of getting a false result on Sunday.
“We know that the race will also be at odds, but I’m sure we’re going to have a smart race pace. I think we can move forward and add a lot more points.”
“There will also be something unknown over time, so we have to react temporarily if the rain arrives for the race.”
Pérez’s teammate agreed that the RP20 had not lived up to its usual spa form on Saturday.
“We weren’t as competitive as we were looking for and expecting more,” Stroll admitted. “We tried to succeed on the Q3 with the medium tire, but it wasn’t possible.
“On the Q3, I lost two tenths on my most productive lap through the lock on the last chicane, which is a component of the lap. When the grill is as tight as it is today, it’s expensive and meant improving P9.
“It was a frustrating day, but now it’s about recovering [in the race],” he continued. “I think we’re going to have a forged race speed and anything can happen, and at all times there’s a chance it’s raining.”
“We’re in the right combination and it’s going to be a closed battle, so we can fight for smart points.”
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