Formula 1

MAX TAKES POLE FROM GEORGE VETTEL SAYS… I TOLD YOU SO!

MAX VERSTAPPEN:
“I am very happy with pole position here at a home Grand Prix, but it was not easy out there. It was very hard to nail a lap, I was just trying to find the right lines at the right times and judging how fast to go into corners after such a long red flag was tricky. It was so important to get the tyres up to temperature because that could give you a few seconds of lap time around a long track like this.

Tomorrow we don’t know if it will be a dry or wet start, I think if it’s wet I don’t mind if I start first because at least I should have clear vision but I just hope that we have a good and clean start. I also hope that Lando is feeling okay and that he doesn’t have any serious injuries because that didn’t look like a good impact at all, he’s a good friend of mine so I hope he can race tomorrow.”

George Russell: It is an amazing feeling and we definitely did not expect to be starting on the front-row! The team did an incredible job to have me on the track at the right time, on the right tyres, with the right strategy. The driving is one thing, but you need to have everything right around you and often in these moments, that is what it’s all about. I’m so happy for everyone as it’s such a team effort and they did a fantastic job. We obviously had a great result in Hungary, and it feels like our hard work is starting to pay off and people are starting to recognise that.

I knew my last effort was a good lap. It was so tricky out there but because we’re not in Q3 every week, I had the luxury of really being able to put everything on the line and go for it. I had a really good feeling from lap one in FP3 in the wet and when it mattered, we put everything together and that was exceptional. This feeling is exactly what Formula One is all about. Qualifying is over now though and the race is tomorrow, so we need to make sure we have a good one.

CHRISTIAN HORNER, Team Principal

“It was a good session and a strong qualifying for us with our first pole position at Spa for 10 years. Both drivers did a great job, Max’s ninth pole, seventh for Checo and on our 50th Grand Prix with Honda as well, so it was a fantastic performance on a very difficult day.  Max has always been very strong in the wet, he made a mistake on his first lap but absolutely nailed his second lap, so it is now crucial that we convert this into good points tomorrow.

It looks like the weather could be similar to today, but at least if it is wet we have some visibility by starting at the front and both drivers have managed to retain a set of inters.  I think we are the only team in the top 10 to have managed that, so we have that up our sleeve. More importantly however it was a relief to see Lando walk away from his big accident at the beginning of Q3 and hopefully he is able to race tomorrow.”