Formula 1: George Russell will lead the grid for the Sliverstone race after Mercedes dominated the qualifying.
Under pressure Perez crashes out | 01:12Qualifying for the British Grand Prix returned just about as British a result as you can get.
Even Alex Albon managed just his third Q3 appearance of the season, a good enough result for British pundits to talk up his English upbringing over of his Thai nationality.But for Mercedes the thrill of the result ran far deeper than giving the home fans something to cheer for in exchange for their exorbitant tickets.
“It’s been feeling great since Canada, when we brought these upgrades,” Russell said. “The two of us have been qualifying in the top three consistently, but it really came into its own today. “We’re riding this wave right now, but it doesn’t mean anything, because tomorrow is where the points are scored. But we’re obviously in a great position to fight for victory.”Talk of the next chapter in Lando Norris vs. Max Verstappen didn’t account for Mercedes nailing the brief at Silverstone, but as Russell acknowledges, there’s no reason to think the two title leaders won’t be Sunday protagonists.
It’d be a harsh assessment. Third on the grid might be less than the McLaren was capable of, but it’s not exactly wildly unrepresentative, and the Mercedes has some genuine strengths this track is playing to.Verstappen’s day ended barely after it had begun. In the tricky conditions of Q1 the Dutchman had a wobble through Copse — exactly where teammate Sergio Pérez had beached his car minutes earlier — and ran over the stones, damaging his floor.
With Oscar Piastri qualifying fifth after being sent out into traffic for his final Q3 lap, the fight for victory is sure to be a five-way fight.When it rains it pours for Sergio Pérez, both literally and metaphorically. “It’s very frustrating,” he said. “It hurts to let your team down in that way, especially because we’ve had a really strong weekend up to now.It’s been difficult to gauge how well Pérez has been doing this weekend given the mixed weather.
Both Yuki Tsunoda and Daniel Ricciardo have outqualified him 4-2 over the last six weekends in their markedly slower RB cars. It was a flat ending to what had been looking like a good qualifying performance, with the Australian consistently fast in the tricky conditions of Q1. “I started my last push lap a couple of seconds behind Zhou , and with the dirty air, you’re never going to get a good lap.”
The team spent practice evaluating the upgrades it brought to Barcelona, which have appeared to make it more difficult to get the car into a workable window. The team suffered in Spain, and it didn’t have time to work things out last week in Austria owing to the sprint format. Most concerning than simply having to roll back the upgrade is that this update package wasn’t a change of direction or philosophy. It was supposed to simply build on the performance characteristics that already existed.
Antonelli had been pencilled into Lewis Hamilton’s seat for 2025 but is being weighed down by a solid but unspectacular maiden F2 campaign, having been yet to step onto the podium before this weekend.
Andrea Kimi Antonelli British Front-Row Lockout North America Time Sheets Austria George Russell Tricky Conditions Compromised Preparation Lap Multiple Interruptions Customer Team Qualifying Talking Points Worst Qualifying Performances Sprint Format Perpetual Upgrade Program Constructors Standings Low-Speed Specialist Car Home Fans Lando Norris Barcelona Constructors Championship British Team Europe Brazilian One-Two Start Western Europe Hasty Temporary Fixes Yuki Tsunoda MERCEDES FRAME Rapid Promotion English Upbringing Canada Northern America Sergio Pérez Minor Errors Southern Europe German Company Title Leaders Driver Market Grands Prix Ideal Start Sector Times Province Of Barcelona Car Minutes Max Verstappen Track Running Mercedes Locks America Front-Row Lockout Performance Characteristics Repair Job British Pundits Carlos Sainz Charles Leclerc Update Package Final Lap Set Conversion Rate Title Rivals Quebec Sergio Perez Spain Reverse-Grid Rules Highest Speed Corners Race Pace Fundamental Weaknesses Like-For-Like Component Montreal British Grand
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